Metal Underground.com

Encompassing everything from lightspeed thrash metal to classic blues — and ending on a beautifully quiet orchestral note — Eliminator's "The One They Were Waiting For" is one of the most unique metal releases of 2011. What's more, the band actually manages to combine all those disparate elements, which also include spoken-word segments and other weirdness, into something resembling a coherent whole.

More than half of the album is taken up by two tracks, "Atish" and "Answers Left Behind," which clock in at a bit over 18 and 19 minutes, respectively. The amazing thing is that both tracks manage to hold the listener's attention for that long. "Atish," in particular, feels quite daring, in that it starts the album off. Singer/guitarist Warchild shows off his lightspeed licks and incorporates moments both beautiful and terrifying throughout both tracks. Particularly enjoyable are some segments within "Atish" that incorporate what seem to be surf guitar techniques into the thrash.

A cover of Robert Johnson's classic "Me And The Devil Blues" is another highlight, with a fairly straightforward blues approach (save for Warchild's death-growl delivery) in the verses, before things go completely bizarro in a section filled with sounds reminiscent of Gregorian chant.

The band's drummer, Samus, more than earns his keep throughout the album, handling every lightning-speed turnaround in expert fashion. His work on "Goodness Is Dead...Enter The Black Hole, Fucker!" almost saves that track, which is doomed by its own silliness (at one point, Warchild feels the need to tell us that a section of the song is in 7/4 time before then inviting someone to "suck my balls").

The production on the disc is a bit on the tinny side, which is unfortunate. A few of the more grandiose moments (and even the rare quiet ones) probably could've been improved with bottom end tone.

If you're looking for a successful experimental metal disc, Eliminator's "The One They Were Waiting For" is the one you've been waiting for. With everything from thrash to jazz-influenced sections and poetry to stride piano — and all done well — this is the most unusual metal release of the year ... and one of the best.