After Forever's second album, 2001's Decipher, saw the Dutch sextet making great strides toward developing a distinctive and personal sound, and it vaulted them to the very forefront of Europe's operatic metal scene to boot. Sounding like a distant cousin of "Carmina Burana," the symphonic overture "Ex Cathedra" leads the way into expertly crafted first single "Monolith of Doubt" -- a three-minute distillation of After Forever's sound that contrasts a power metal-approved, staccato guitar riff with lead singer Floor Jansen's piercing, classically trained soprano. Along with another radio-friendly candidate, "Emphasis," its only concession to commerce is the exclusion of death metal-style grunt-vocals -- normally a key ingredient of the group's sound. A regular fixture of their debut, Prison of Desire, they are revived for Decipher's more challenging and eclectic "album cuts," including the doom-infused "Zenith" and the thrash-fueled "My Pledge of Allegiance #2 (The Tempted Fate)." Further showcasing the group's vast array of metallic influences, string-laden, choir-enhanced adventures like "My Pledge of Allegiance #1 (The Sealed Fate)" and "Estranged (A Timeless Spell)" go from metal, to classical, and back to metal again via often tortuous (folk, gothic, Irish jigs!), but well-executed, fascinating paths. And although they clearly highlight each musician's individual contribution, all of the above leave little doubt that Jansen is the real star of the After Forever show. And