Early into the first leg, original drummer Trivett Wingo left the band, claiming to be "physically and emotionally unable to continue",[1][2] and was replaced for the entirety of the rescheduled tour by local musician Kevin Fender.

[14] Speaking about the songs "Cloak of Feathers", "The Hidden Masters" and "Hawks & Serpents" in particular, he has noted that the album contains "a smattering of classic rock elements", comparing the sound to the bands Thin Lizzy and Black Sabbath.

[14] In a review for Loudwire, Chad Bowar had similar points to make, praising the band's "songwriting prowess" and claiming that "the songs are more direct while still leaving room for some experimentation and jamming".

[15] Francois Marchand of The Vancouver Sun compared the music to that of Black Sabbath, Sleep and Lynyrd Skynyrd, praising the electronic elements on the album as well as the straightforward nature of its compositions.

[12] Cronise himself has explained that "The word apocryphon came up while I was researching Gnosticism, early Christianity, theosophy, and other esoteric subjects", describing the term as referring to "books that were either banned or removed from the biblical canon".

[19] Apocryphon was initially slated for release in "late September or early October" by the band, said to be dependent on when artist J. H. Williams III completed the album cover.

Writing a four-star review for the website AllMusic, Eduardo Rivadavia praised many elements of the album, including the musical compositions and the lyrical themes, concluding his review by explaining that "Apocryphon basically sees The Sword inching its well-established aesthetic along, slowly but surely; cautiously dabbling in new sounds rather than drastically altering their direction ... operating less timidly and with more satisfying results than anything released since that classic first album [Age of Winters]".

[16] In its first week Apocryphon sold nearly 17,000 copies in the United States, debuting at number 17 on the US Billboard 200 albums chart (the highest position achieved by the band).