November 2007 Archives
MP3, Peaceville Records
Track list: Gothic Stone - The Well of Souls - Codex Gigas - At the Gallows End - Samarithan - Marche Funebre - Dark Are the Veils of Death - Mourner's Lament - Bewitched - Black Candles - Bewitched (demo) - Battle Cry (demo) - The Well of Souls (live) - Dark Are the Veils of Death (live) - At the Gallows End (studio outtake) - Mourner's Lament (studio outtake) - Interview
On Nightfall, Candlemass perfected their recipe of delicious doom metal: Messiah Marcolin is one damn good vocalist. His theatrical and dramatic style fits perfectly to Candlemass's heavy doom stylings. The song-writing on this album is top-notch: The Well of Souls, At the Gallows End, Samarithan, and Bewitched all are classic tracks with lasting power.
This is one of those classic albums that all metal fans should know and all doom metal fans should definitely own. *****
MP3, Peaceville Records
Track list: Solitude - Demons Gate - Crystal Ball - Black Stone Wielder - Under the Oak - A Sorcerer's Pledge - The Well of Souls (live) - Demons Gate (live) - Crystal Ball (live) - Solitude (live) - Bewitched (live) - A Sorcerer's Pledge (live) - Black Sabbath Medley (live)
There's few different styles of doom metal. Candlemass represents the original, the one that sounds like Black Sabbath, but a tad heavier and slower (Cathedral, often called doom metal, sounds to me exactly like Black Sabbath, which makes it heavy metal in my books). Epicus Doomicus Metallicus, an album with a remarkable silly name, is their debut from 1986, now reissued. Despite the silly title, it's a true masterpiece of doom metal.
It's a very, very strong album, with several excellent tracks. The guitar riffs are low and slow, while the drums beat ominously. The vocals, mostly clear and dramatic, deliver the gloomy lyrics. While most people seem to prefer the band's next vocalist Messiah Marcolin, Johan Landquist does a great job here. Occasionally the band picks up the speed a bit and shifts in a more aggressive gear. Excellent stuff, metal doesn't get much better than this. *****
