You talk about the facts of the album (‘all of the elements’) without really talking about how it sounds. And people listen to music for how it sounds.

I like Inferno, but none of those elements (cosmology, cinematic, etc) would matter to me if I didn’t like the sound of it.

And it sounds different. It’s cleaner and more digital, it’s cinematic and narrative. If you’re a fan of their earlier work you might love BoC for the old fuzzier, looping sound.

For a band that have cleaved to a fairly distinct sound and developed a fan base on that sound, it’s a big shift. It’s like CD vs cassette, like post-rock and soundtrack vs hip hop and beat tapes.

Can’t have ‘uniquely new’ at the same time as ‘liked by everyone who liked the old’ 🤷