Review Summary: A worthy listen for those who like their goth light, melodic, yet guitar-driven and somewhat ballsy. It’s not the definitive release of Paradise’s career, nor will it change the face of goth rock as a genre, but by no means can it be considered bad.
Paradise Lost were one of the forefront names in the second wave of British goth/doom metal, where they became one of the most instantly recognizable bands alongside My Dying Bride. Over the years, however, their sound progressively relinquished the “doom” tag, becoming, quite simply, a very listenable brand of goth metal with a penchant for a catchy hook. And while this was a somewhat logical progression for a maturing band, in Paradise Lost’s case the stylistic change was reviled by not only diehard fans – from whom such a reaction would be expectable – but also by the specialized press, who accused the band of lacking inspiration and excessively softening their sound. 2005’s
Paradise Lost may serve as an argument both for and against these theories, but it shows that some of the fuss may have been unwarranted.
Now, granted, this was my first and – to date – only contact with Paradise Lost; I haven’t heard any of their earlier, more famous albums, and therefore can’t vouch for their superiority over later outings. However, from the album at hand, they seem to be a clearly above-average goth metal outfit, capable of showing younger bands how the style should be done. All the trademarks are here – mournful vocals, sprightly guitar leads, simple, heavy riffing and strong input from pianos and keyboards. To this, the band adds the catchy choruses typical of the more commercial strands of the genre , without ever losing that particular sense of elegance which comes with seniority.
Don’t Belong already serves as a good welcoming card, greeting us with a calm, sorrowful piano line and a quiet verse before exploding into the first of quite a few attractive choruses. From there, a rather strong series of songs kicks off, culminating in the second best song, single
Forever After. This is a far more typical goth song, with the driving mid-tempo, sweeping keyboards and low-pitched vocals usually associated with the genre; however, it is no less attractive than
Don’t Belong or
Grey, another distinguished song with which it shares a few characteristics.
The problems, however, start after
Forever After. The second half of the album is far more inconsistent than the first, including quite a few clunkers and incurring in some repetitiousness. There are some undeniably strong songs, including another standout in
Accept The Pain, but most are either unremarkable or boring, with
Laws Of Cause and the snore-inducing
Over The Madness serving as perfect examples. The band’s strongest trademarks paradoxically add to the impression, with Nick Holmes’ monotone vocals becoming grating and Gregor Mackintosh’s leads and the constant, recurring piano sweeps sounding a tad too repetitive. There are also two “Dub String Mixes” who detract, rather than add, to the songs, with
Don’t Belong in particular suffering from the removal of its gigantic chorus.
Still, when all is said and done, the end product of
Paradise Lost is positive, and manages to place itself a little above the average album of the genre. There is no denying that the band could easily be compared to a few others in the genre, most notably Moonspell in their
Darkness And Hope phase, but also acts like Poisonblack, Sentenced or even Sinamore. There is also no question that the lyrical portion of this album is a little weak, with each song amounting to little more than repeating choruses coupled with a pair of short lines passing for verses. But the short duration of most of the tracks – few venture over the three-and-a-half-minute mark – and the appealing musical side of things help make this a worthy listen for those who like their goth light, melodic, yet guitar-driven and somewhat ballsy. It’s not the definitive release of Paradise’s career, nor will it change the face of goth rock as a genre, but by no means can it be considered bad.
Recommended Tracks
Don’t Belong
Grey
Forever After
Accept The Pain
