Sermon - Of Golden Verse
This one is in heavy rotation since I've made my 2023 ranking. One of those albums that keeps growing with each listen and might top them all in the long run. Songwriting is fantastic both on melodies and hooks. It's packed with great riffs and creative drums. Add the overall atmosphere which I find hard to describe and you end up with a near perfect progmetal album.
It's a great, great album, I agree. I love how it manages to be moody and expansive (in a Tool-like way, if you will), but it doesn't do that at the expense of memorable melodies and hooks, as you said. And yes, the drumming is phenomenal, very tasteful. I had enjoyed their debut too, but this one is a step up, imo.