Leave it to Coil to craft an omega that connects perfectly back to their alpha before slipping off the mortal coi…well, you know how it goes. The Ape of Naples is a subdued affair, (mostly), a fragile, yet challenging movement of synths and digital mediums posed against acoustic elements such as the marimba, duduk, and hurdy-gurdy. “Heaven’s Blade” recalls the best bits of Coil’s early danceable period; “I Don’t Get It” is brilliantly noisy enough to sit comfortably next to their later work. “Cold Cell” and “It’s in My Blood”: essentially timeless. I’ve always thought that Coil’s shift away from lyrical song writing was a disappointing decision, despite the beauty and magic of their ambient works. The Ape of Naples reconciles the group’s aesthetic drive toward experimentation with vocal performances that easily rank among Jhonn Balance’s best. Balance’s opening lines in “Fire of the Mind”, (”Does death come alone or with eager reinforcements”), are simply chilling. But then, Coil always was a bit prophetic. All part of their charm, really. Coil were always a dangerous beast to categorize and this album shows why: the ethereal majesty of “The Last Amethyst Deceiver” sits perfectly alongside the avant-cabaret of “Tattooed Man”. Even the much-beloved “Teenage Lightning” gets another go-around in a particularly jovial version. Somehow, Coil’s re-working of the theme to Are You Being Served? caps off the album perfectly. Up, up, and away to the paradisaical men’s wear floor of the blissful cosmos. There are endings and there are beginnings. This feels like both.

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