I’m not usually one of those people who harps on about how much better and more advanced Europe is than the good ol’ US of A, but when it comes to metal it may well be true. Scandinavia alone has produced a disproportionately large number of metal’s best contemporary bands. (Is there a Lutheran connection there?)

Case in point: the death/prog/power act Scar Symmetry. Here’s “The Illusionist” from their album Pitch Black Progress:

Incidentally, they’re also streaming their soon-to-be-released album Holographic Universe in its entirety on their MySpace page.