Paradise Lost - Draconian Times (1995)

I started off P with the album "Icon", by this band, but after listening to four tracks realised I didn't feel like reviewing it just yet. So I plucked out this one instead. It's prettier, and more interesting, musically.

Paradise Lost formed in England in 1988 and started as death metal, moving slowly but steadily further into the doom metal scene, adding goth elements and eventually turning fully goth-metal. This is their fifth and most successful album. They are still active today.

 The cover is beautiful. In rich shades of reds and blues, a man, hands crossed against his chest, butterflies dancing around his face. All in eerie, surreal-ness. Inside, the colours and surreality continues, creating a dream-like, otherworldly feel of lyrics, band portraits, fossils and insects.

The album opens with the haunting piano of "Enchantment". Vocalist Nick Holmes has a low voice, not too deep but rich and gentle, with the occasional shouted line. The song moves at a slow, but steady pace, creating a stirring, not-quite-relaxing atmosphere. It is rich, evocative.

Faster guitar and solid drums urges us to seek "Hallowed Land". Vocals are rougher, rawer, but still accesible. Piano overtakes and the bridge is a haunting melody.

"The Last Time" is a rockier number, with a nicely repetitive and catchy chorus so that you can sing along - even if you cannot ever remember hearing this song before. Good beat, great vocals.

The opening vocals of the next track (following after a sample) awaken something in my subconscious. I had forgotten this song, but I used to love it, playing it regularly and loudly, and knew all the words. Yet somehow I had forgotten all about it! "Forever Failure" might sound like a depressing song, but it stirred something in past me. Although I must admit, the lyrics are quite negative:

 "High times are courageous, but in truth they serve no purpose. Induced, reduced, unable and afraid..."

It's funny that I liked this song so much, because Holmes is doing his guttural-shouting vocals, but it just works. And then as we slide into the chorus he drops into his sexy baritone and sends shivers down my spine.

Another rocking, energetic number; "Once Solemn" has more shouted vocals. Not overly inspiring.

"Shadowkings" is similarly solid and heavy, with shouted vocals. I really wish he would sing more. He has a beautiful singing voice. Ah, there we go - on the chorus.

We drop down into slower rhythms for "Elusive Cure". Mosty gloom-laden and heavy, it does have its softer moments.

With lighter guitar and drums "Yearn for Change". Then the guitar grows in complexity and the pace picks up. Vocals low, a little raw. Later though, the sexy baritone comes back ^^

"Shades of God" starts with haunting, echoing, slow guitar rhythms.Otherwise, much of the same as above.

The opening vocals of "Hands of Reason" reminds me of Ozzy, I think it might also be the slow Sabbathical rhythms.

Following on we have the similarly structured "I See Your Face".

"Jaded" is slow, moody. Gloomy:

"The feeling can't avoid you..."

And thus concludes a decent doom and gloom gothic album. It's not particularly great, certainly not compulsory or compulsive listening. A bit repetitive for my tastes, but with a few stand out numbers. Similar in style to Lake of Tears, but rather lacking in their creative, whimsical charm.

Rating = 6/10

Type O Negative - October Rust (1996)

After all that tenor and falsetto, I feel like something a bit lower, a bit slower, a bit moodier. Therefore, it is time to slip on one of my Type O cds.

There is something about Peter Steele's voice - so low, so somber, so emotional and powerful. Alas, on April 14th, 2010, aged only 48, he died of heart failure. It was a bitter day for the goth metal world. Standing 6'8" and with a history of cocaine and alcohol abuse, I guess his body was overworked. The negative edge to the lyrics, the self deprecation and general angst were also a sign of his mental health, as he suffered also from depression.

The legacy he left behind was seven albums and nine music videos. I'll try to find some that fit in with this review.

Like most (or perhaps all) Type O albums, "October Rust" is green and black, only the title and the band being written in the actual colours of october rust. Four vertical stems, thorny rose stalks, bissect the cover if the booklet, and on the back the band stare out. Monochromatic, scowling, their long black hair resembling hoods. Steele himself looks rather like a vampire. On it are the words:

"Functionless art is simply tolerated vandalism.
We are the vandals."

Inside, the lyrics share page space with autumnal scenes creating a melancholic, somewhat oppressive atmosphere.

The album opens with "Bad Ground" - 37 seconds of long, drawn out static, followed by an introduction by the band - complete with chicken noises.

First actual track, "Love you to Death" starts low and smooth - Steele's voice a rich caress to the aural senses. His low, bass-baritone vocals stir something deep in the soul, although mostly he sings at a slightly higher pitch. The keyboards and solemn melodies entwine into something that is somehow both romantic and melancholic at the same time. It ends with the heartfelt plea:

"Am I good enough for you? Am I? Am I?"

"Be my Druidess" has an electronic edge to the music and a faster paced, slightly more upbeat mood. This seems to be about pagan rituals involving sex, something which can easily be concluded by the closing lines*. Darkly romantic.

Still slow, "Green Man" is rich with verdant goodness, the music feeling organic and alive.

Heart-breaking "Red Water (Christmas Mourning)" is possibly the saddest Christmas song ever. Slow, poignant and melancholic. The lyrics say it all:

"My table's been set for but seven, just last year I dined with eleven..."

Steele's deep voice, with its slightly liliting, accented edge to it, combined with the slow rhythms and dejected Christmas bells are enough to bring a tear to the eye.

 In a completely different vein, we have "My Girlfriend's Girlfriend" with its more upbeat rhythms, catchy chorus and rather silly and colourful video clip.

"Die with Me" starts with almost whispy vocals, gentle and mournful, accompanied by acoustic guitars.

This is followed by the rather repetitive "Burnt Flowers Fallen".

The cruisy, almost soothing "In Praise of Bacchus" is another richly organic piece. Vocals are slightly distorted and fuzzy. The fade-out is haunting and lingers, like smoke after a flame is extinquished, flaring again to complete the track.

Now for a cover song - Neil Young's "Cinnamon Girl" is treated to Steele's deep and magnificant vocals.

"The Glorious Liberation of the People's Technocratic Republic of Vinnland by the Combined Forces of the United Territories of Europa" is a weird instrumental that is over before I finished typing the title. I had to listen to it twice. It's slightly ominous, with chanting and cheering. I'm sure there's something deeply meaninful about it, but I don't get it.

The beautiful and haunting "Wolf Moon (Including Zoanthropic Paranoia)" opens with piano and violins (or bass). If you don't know what this song is about, read the lyrics carefully. If you still don't know, then it's probably better that way. It is another slightly murky sounding piece, over which Steele's voice rings out loud and low and clear and true.

The spectral and epic "Haunting" concludes the album. It starts slow and dramatic, looming beats and achingly wrenching vocals.

There's a final message from Peter too.

Although generally I prefer the higher, more operatic male vocals, I would have to say that the lower ones - like Steele and Brennare, definitely seem to stir something visceral within me.

Haunting, melancholic, beautiful, romantic - these are all words that can be used to describe this album. It's a fine offering from a fine band. We will remember you Peter, your legacy lives on in your music.

Rating = 8/10.

*Which are far prefereable to Quorthon's statements in his horribly grunge-esque solo track: "No More and Never Again"

Lake of Tears - Crimson Cosmos (1997)

Now we get to the point where Lake of Tears become truly awesome. Still retaining much of the doom, but shaking off some of the gloom, they took on a psychedelia edge, somewhat reminiscent of what Cathedral were up to at the same time - only LoT do it so much better. Quirky instrumentation, colourful artwork, lively music and Daniel's  voice all weave together to form one of my most played albums.

The cover is as psychaedelic as the music. A wizard sits in a duck-boat, with his companion corgi, whilst accompanied by a top-hatted gentleman riding a frog and a gnome atop a metallic fish. Around them, butterflies with strange patternings flutter. Behind, a forest of toadstools rises to meet the moon. The inside is fileld with whimsical colourful pictures, clearly detailed in colouring pencils - devils frolicing in bubbles, a grandfather and his grandkids staring at the Old Man moon. For Devil's Diner, candles are set, awaiting the diners. A manic jester, a frowning fairy and an angry wizard all illustrate the lyrics. Charming and delightful.

Our journey begins with "Boogie Bubble"'s sludgy guitar twiddliness before the bass and drums and full on guitars come barging on in, bringing with them delightfully bouncy rhythms and Daniel Brennare's slightly husky, raspy tones. This song makes me think of goblins riding bubbles. Or devils.

The opening chords of "Cosmic Weed" are also heavy and sludgy, as though slightly bogged down. The rhythm is slower, slightly doomy. The lyrics - well, you can pretty much guess what they're about:

"Come, come, try some cosmic weed and glance a world so strange indeed..."

Another with the typical doom arrangement is the crushing "When my Sun Comes Down" which has a haunting eerieness to it. The music is also kind of intense and low, making for a melancholic edge.

Then we slip-slide across the keyboard and enter into the rockin' beats of "Devil's Diner". The liveliest song so far, this is one that I have - on several occasions, danced to. Admittedly, not quite in the fashion of the scantily clad lasses in the clip. The piano and the rhythms give it an upbeat vibe.

This is followed by the almost folk-ish "Four Strings of Mourning". Again, the guitars and drums are mixed quite low, making them feel kinda sludgy and evoking feelings of forests and trees, their leaves turning from green to gold and drifting to the ground (but not quite as autumn themed as their next album). The slow paced verses lead into a slightly more upbeat chorus in which the music circles with the lyrics.I can almost hear the symphony of the frogs and crickets. There's a quite a decent guitar solo as well. It almost makes you feel a wee bit giddy. Or maybe that's because I'm doing as the lyrics say and:

"...spinning around in circles every day... spinning around and finding no new way..."

 The ghostly, spectral chords of the instrumental "To Die is to Wake" bring with them a melancholic, bittersweet echo of memories. The sort of song that carries you away on broken wings and takes you into the land of lost dreams.

"There's a fairy in my head and I call her Lady Rosenred" starts us off onto one of my favourite tracks on this album - the quite bouncy "Lady Rosenred" in which Jennie Tebler* does most of the vocals, with Daniel shadowing her. The references to "dragon fairies" inspired me to create a diminutive dragon species.

The next song is inspired by the Dragonlance books. "Raistlin and the Rose" is a haunting, melodic and melancholic number, filled with bittersweet rifts. It is an eerie and moody peace, fading out with echoing guitar and the spctral whisper of pipes.

"He calls him friend, and says he'll change, she calls him friend and he deceives again..."

The album concludes with the mystical and enchanting "Crimson Cosmos". The slow, light guitars, the whispers of flutes and Daniel's low and powerful vocals combine together to create a haunting and oddly nostalgic** number. It brings a shiver down my spine, and a tear to my eye.

"One went to seek the loss. One went to seek the darker side of us. One went to seek the cross. Only to find a crimson cosmos."

 There is something of a leisurely laziness to this music, which evokes the mood of talls trees and enchanted forests. Of mystical realms, and childhood nostalgia. I would go so far as to describe it as having a sort of fantasy/stoner vibe. The doom influences are still clear here, but they have stepped away from the death/thrash and more into a haunting, evocative and somewhat spiritual eerieness. The low, sludgy feel to the instruments, the low vocals, the somewhat surreal lyrics all contribute to both be soothing yet interesting, and somewhat quirky.

I believe this album deserves 9/10.

* Apparently she's Quorthon's little sister.
** Of course, the nostalgic thing might just be me - This album has been with me for quite a time and I have listened to it on numerous occasions, thus it evokes many memories.

Nightingale - Breathing Shadow (1995)

Another in my Black Mark collection.

Nightingale is Dan Swano of Edge of Sanity with his guitars, a keyboard and a drum machine.  I believe in later hours he acquired an actual backing band, but this entire album was recorded over 7 days in January. Essentially Swano had a fascination with goth rock (esp the Sisters of Mercy), and thus decided to spend a week or so recording an album. This is the result.

And you might be surprised to find, it is actually pretty good.

Packaging wise, it looks as cheap as you would expect a CD made in a week would look - red skulls gape out from the otherwise black cover, whilst the name "nightingale" sits above them in one of those ugly shadow fonts. Inside, a simple fold with over saturated colour and red font on black that renders it kind of difficult to read. Actually, it looks like the only working colours in the printer were black, red and blue. Hrm...

First track, "Nightfall Overture" opens with a swelling of keyboards and, combined with, the preprogramed beat of a drum machine a fairly artifical sound. Swano's voice, however, is lush and low, although also to reach slightly higher pitches. The music is variable and interesting and does not sound entirely programed.

The drum machine kicks us into "Sleep..." with its regular beats - beats that could be straight from the Sisters. It is repetitive, and somehow also hypnotic.

Picking up the pace slightly, is "The Dream Reader" which has a rather nice swooping bridge and quite a lot of keyboards. Like "Sleep" it is quite a hypnotic sound, very pleasant to listen to. The keyboards bring it to life.

"Higher than the Sky" has a slightly heavier beat, and a very nice keyboard melody. Makes one think a little of gliding through the sky, soaring around clouds and rising on thermals. Peaceful, almost serene.

Finally, some guitar - acoustic guitar I believe, adding a far more authentic touch to "Recovery Opus." It's something of a ballad - and seems to be about how the narrator has recovered from insanity. Or have they?

 "It's a mess here in my head... so I'll do what the voices say..."

I guess not...

 "The Return to Dreamland" is an actual instrumental - or possibly Swano didn't feel like singing along while playing his guitar. And there seem to be actual drums - unless a drum machine has a "drum roll" function? It's a slow paced, dreamy number with a few faster moments.

Probably the finest track on this album is "Gypsy Eyes" which is one of the few that I have actually danced to (in fact, we've played it at a few parties). The drum machine is back in force, but the pace is good, the lyrics interesting. Very 80s and very synth-goth. Maybe that's why it seems to be quite popular.

The vocals are very low and deep in "Alone?" Heavy with melancholy, and the light de-de-de of the accomapnying music accentuates the gloomy air. It sounds to me like Swano has accidentally "killed" his imaginery friend/voices in his head and this becomes more frantic, desperate and tinged with madness as it reaches the ending:

"...but it's not my shadow... it's not my shadow..."

The drum machine is back in "Lesson in Evil". There seems to be a theme of insanity and mental illness in these lyrics. Makes you wonder? They're somewhat sinister.

The album closes with "Eye for an Eye" which has the same smooth vocals, pleasant sound and somewhat macabre lyrics. The shadow is back, making me wonder if there is an ongoing theme running through this album - almost like a concept album.

For a one-man-one-week project created in his home studio, this is a pretty decent album. It's definitely different from Edge of Sanity (although the lyrics indicate that the narrator is approaching that edge) and proves that Swano can sing - and sing very well indeed. However, it could be improved manifold if Swano also happened to play the drums. Which he does, on later albums. Cos the slightly tinny, very electronic repetitive beat of the drum machine is no substitution for the real thing.

Let's go with a rating of 6.5/10.

Lake of Tears - Headstones (1995)

I remember the first time I heard this album - I found it a glorious experience. Black Mark were a relatively new label on the scene and suddenly our local stores were carrying four different titles - this and Tad Morose were the two that caught my eye (the others being of a rather less melodious nature). I was going through my goth phase at the time - you know the sort - black clothes, morbid music, gloomy music, writing bad poetry. Actually, the poetry was not too bad at all, but that's beside the point. I was also a poor student, so it was some time before I actually could afford to buy them, but luckily the library had a copy for me to hire and thrash.And thrash it I did!

Lake of Tears are a Swedish band, formed around 1990. In the early days, they had a very heavy, slow doom-gloom-goth sound but this later caught an edge of psychadelia and took some surprising, but wonderful, transformations. I shall share those albums with you later. Around 2000, after four albums, they broke up, then got back together again in 2003 releasing a further two albums. Somewhere in the middle there was "Neonai", recorded to fulfil their contract with Black Mark (and I am grateful that they did). They have just released an album entiteld "Illwill" which is apparently death metal, but I'm listening to House of the Setting Sun on YouTube and it is definitely NOT death metal. Ooooh, it's giving me shivers - in a good way.

If you wish to try Lake of Tears for yourself - they have TWO "Greatest hits" compilations. So, well worth it. Of course, I own all but two of their cds (the first and the last) so I think I'll be okay.

I WILL NOT buy Illwill, I MUST stop buying more cds! I haven't even listened to "Moonlight and Mushrooms" properly yet.

Anyhow, back on track.

This is their second album, and it introduces melody to the hardcore ragged sound of their debut album, "Greater Art". "Headstones" is a brilliant, gloom laden album.  Daniel Brennare's voice is capable of so much more than grunts and growls. It has a melancholic cover - a figure pinned to a tree with ivy, a cemetary in behind. How very gothic. Not much inside but the lyrics.

A shrill guitar squeal leads us into the burgeoning bass and the powerful force that brings us into "A Foreign Road". Brennare's vocals are rich and deep, the sort that brings a shiver to your spine (as has already been noted).

Acoustic guitar brings sweet, sweet melody with the flight of the ravens into "Raven Land". The vocals are rich, haunting, slightly sinister. The overdubbing is used to splendid effect and the music creates stirrings of great monolithic rocks, abandoned towers and black birds, fluttering hither and tither, quarreling or

"... bringing tales of the dead, dead in times before..."

"Dreamdemons" starts with a roar. Heavy chords, whispy keyboards adding an atmosphere of phantasmic mist, twining between the rifts. As usual, Brennare's voice is wonderful.

Slow and deep, "Sweetwater" flows, the liquid vocals gliding between the delicate guitar and in line with the thrumming bass.

The mysterious "Life's but a Dream" is quite probably backmasking. (it is - and here it is). Hrm, looks like there was some truth in the claims of satanic hidden messages.

The tolling of bells and gentle acoustic guitar brings a sense of mourning to "Headstones". What a magnificant, beautiful song. The guitar, Brennare's lovely voice... so gothic and so wonderful. Makes you think of a lonely hill, clad in low trees, a path weaving through them. Birds in the trees (a few ravens, perhaps?). Ah....*

"Twilight" is another moody, atmospheric piece.The keyborad solo is a nice touch.

The fury of "Burn Fire Burn" erupts with power. It is one of my least favourite pieces from this album.

Oh, but the glory that is "The Path of the Gods (Upon the Highest Mountain, part 2)"! It begins with flute, and Brennare speaking in his oh-so-wonderful Swedish accent. After this introduction, it slides into the heavy bass that characterises this album. I've never heard part 1, which I assume is on "Greater Art". I also really, really love the line:

"Seek the openings in sanguine painted clouds..."

"Sanguine" is such a wonderful world - and one of my favourite colours too. No, not blood! In colouring pencils, you sicko-phant! Evocative language, the shadowing of female vocals, the chug-chug-chug of the bass... It all combines for a wonderful aural experience. The keyboards accentuate it. I love the "stars" bit. I can almost imagine Brennare snatching them from the sky, and handing them to me, having them flicker away like tiny fireflies or luminscent hummingbirds.

A magnificant album - one of the finest and most evocative and emotional Gothic Doom albums I have ever been privileged to hear and own. It is masterfully crafted and truly touches my spirit. I have to say, whilst their later albums have lost a little of the charm - the first four LoT albums are amongst the finest in my collection.

My rating = 8/10 (and that's only because some of the others are EVEN BETTER, believe it or not).

I urge you, if you haven't heard Lake of Tears and you love atmospheric metal with sexy, baritone vocals you should buy these two albums NOW:

Greatest Tears vol I: This one seems to contain the heavier, more doomy songs
Greatest Tears vol II: This one has more of the psychadelic, progressive stuff

Or, just do what I did and BUY THEM ALL! (well, except the first and the last).

I am going to focus on Black Mark and, whilst still staying with the alphabet, give their CDs priority, where I own them.

* If you think this music is evocative, you should try "Forever Autumn" which is superlative - but I'm going to listen to my LoT CDs in chronological order, I'm afraid - not that you need worry, because they're all brilliant.