The 11th release from UK masters of gothic tinged doom metal Paradise Lost is a solid and enjoyable platter of heavy, accessible music, easily their best album in years. Fans who have missed the heavier moments of their Draconian Times era will no doubt revel in the bone crunching guitar thunder mixed with gothic electronica heard all over In Requiem, splashed with plenty of Nick Holmes' assertive & angry vocals, which sound very similar to James Hetfield from the early Metallica days. While the band's earlier material straddled the line between doom & death metal (alongside Anathema & My Dying Bride) their slow rise to a more gothic sound aliented some fans along the way who fully embraced the heavier side of the band. Well, that heaviness is back, with huge walls of crushing guitar riffs on tracks like "Never For The Damned" and "The Enemy" bludgeoning the listener with plenty of doomy thrash intent, and backed by orchestral keys and occasional female choir vocals. The guitar tandem of Greg Mackintosh & Aaron Aedy create one hell of a huge wall of sound here, their And Justice For All meets Nightfall influenced riffery on "Requiem" and "Sedative God" instantly bring to mind a time when Metallica and Candlemass were creating absolutely thunderous metal.
There's also some more gothic fare, like the dreamy "Praise Lamented Shade", the trance inducing "Unreachable", and the catchy yet somber "Beneath Black Skies", each one certain to appeal to the HIM or Depech Mode crowd. While at times it almost seems like there are two bands at work here on In Requiem, the end result is a very varied and well rounded release here by Paradise Lost, as they show that they can still deliver crushing metal as well as more accessible gothic rock. Recommended.
Track Listing
01. Never For The Damned
02. Ash & Debris
03. The Enemy
04. Praise Lamented Shade
05. Requiem
06. Unreachable
07. Prelude To Descent
08. Fallen Children
09. Beneath Black Skies
10. Sedative God
11. Your Own Reality
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