Well this is it- the final VOIVOD cd. After the tragic loss of guitarist Denis "Piggy" D'Amour to cancer in 2005, the band has endeavored to carry out his final wish that these songs he'd demoed and saved on his computer be completed and released by the band for public consumption. The first disc of posthumously released material, Katorz, was released in 2006 and was overall a solid release. This new disc, Infini, is comprised of what I am told is the last remaining material D'Amour left behind to be used as VOIVOD music, and it too provides us with a very solid listening experience overall.

The album on the whole is a very fluid and well-crafted piece of work, especially notable given that the band had to work on the material without the crucial input and actual in-studio presence of D'Amour. You might expect an album full of hodge-podge leftovers, the remains of what was not used for Katorz, but that doesn't seem to be the case. The more I listen to the album, the more I am able to grasp a continuous thread and feel that runs throughout it. For me, being a long-time fan of the band, that factor has always been a crucial component of their albums- the feeling that you are taken on a journey with many twists and turns along the way, but never losing touch with that "vibe" that's established at the start.

Kicking off the album is the track, 'God Phones', a fairly straightforward track (or as straightforward as VOIVOD ever gets) with a structure that is more stripped down and accessible than most of the rest of the disc. Snake's trademark drawl is ever present, almost bordering on complete repetitiveness within its choruses, until the song gives way to a more uptempo drive and Piggy's classic hooks take the song around a different corner entirely. 'From The Cave' picks up the pace, with it's dissonant hooks and grittier, throatier vocals reminding me of the earlier days of the band, albeit with a more refined approach. Definitely a track which would please some of the old school fans. Other tracks such as 'Earthache' and 'Destroy After Reading' feature a slower paced groove, with the latter having a somewhat more dark, sinister vibe to it. Mid-tempo rockers 'Deathproof' and 'Treasure Chase' are solid tunes that stay fairly consistent rhythmically throughout, with a few cleverly placed twists to keep things interesting. But the track 'Global Warning' was the first song to really grab me by the throat and the brain, with it's dense, tension filled riffing coming off like an incestuous offspring of 'Lost Machine' (from 1993's The Outer Limits) and 'Ravenous Medicine' (from 1987's Killing Technology). The strong presence of the band's trademark "Blower" bass sound (offered up here courtesy of bassist Jason Newsted) and Away's solid drumming really propels this track into the stratosphere and makes it an almost instant classic VOIVOD track to my ears. Other quite notable songs from the album such as 'Room With A V.U.' and 'Morpheus' could almost be viewed as siblings, in that they both feature beautifully haunting intros and sprawling dark grooves, that eventually burst into a more frenetic explosion of prog-metal glory towards their end. 'Volcano' is the final opus, and quite rightfully it is the song which most closely tips the hat to the old school VOIVOD sound.  Coming off as a not-so distant cousin to 1987's twisted thrasher ‘Tornado’ (from Killing Technology), it is both instantly gratifying to the old school fan in me, as well as giving a sense of melancholy at the realization that this song would've been a certain classic in their live repertoire. I can easily picture Piggy in my head tearing it up onstage while picking out the amazing riffs to this tune.

At times the production doesn't have a sound as big and thick as some of their other releases, though it does have a gritty raw power that works well particularly with certain tracks. And there are needless to say a few tunes which, given a different set of circumstances, I suspect might not have made the final cut had Denis been around to offer up his input. Sometimes at certain points I hear spaces in the music where I think, "Oh that section is just screaming for a great Piggy solo", which perhaps is only missing due to the incomplete nature of the tracks given the man's untimely passing. It doesn't take away from the enjoyment of the music, regardless. Is it likely that anyone will consider this to be as essential as one of their classics such as Dimension Hatröss or Nothingface? Perhaps not. But overall, while this cd might not be what some would consider the "perfect" ending to such a varied and interesting body of work, Infini is nonetheless a major achievement for the band, an interesting and satisfying listening experience for most VOIVOD fans and anyone who can appreciate putting on headphones and kicking back while letting themselves be swept away by the many moods and twists that are the hallmark of VOIVOD's musical legacy.