"Blooming," all 15 or so minutes of it, showcases this group's ability to weave ideas and sound in real time. Beginning with a swirling burst of scattershot percussion, Eisenbeil reacts with his own set of (not quite) random single notes. This decidedly non-bluesy call and response morphs into a more sinister area as the guitar begins hurling around an insane repeated figure that's pushed along from underneath by Blancarte's bass interjections. The intensity of these interactions slowly builds until, with about six minutes to go, Eisenbeil reaches into his bag of sonic trickery to make his guitar sound like it had discovered the universal resonant frequency of every steel mill ever built. "Men making metal machinery" indeed. The blast furnace does give way to a more textured section that features bowed bass, tortured guitar feedback, and bits of kit work that manage to again torque up the mood.

Other tracks on Solar Forge can surprise because though constructed from some of the same elements, the interactions develop along very different story arcs. "Austenized" starts off slowly and darkly before reaching a disturbing peak of deconstruction. If a score was written to accompany the failure of a suspension bridge, this would be it. Taking off at full and chaotic speed, "Hephaestus' Wrath" burns so brightly you almost have to look away. "Annealed" tracks like a soundscape imitating the failure of industrial equipment.

If you can get your head wrapped around the approach taken on Solar Forge, you'll be in for an otherworldly listening experience. Just don't expect it to "make sense" right away. Better still, maybe it's time to redefine the meaning of "make sense." If I'd had that thought to hang onto all those years ago, I might have actually enjoyed Gravity's Rainbow. Hmmm....maybe it's time for a re-read?