Candlemass - Psalms For The Dead (2012) (Limited Edition Digibook)

This limited Mediabook edition adds a bonus DVD which features a 'Making Of' segment, plus 'Ready For Boarding,' documenting the band's adventures on the high seas at the 70,000 Tons of Metal Cruise! (2012)

After a couple of albums that didn't please everyone, especially the Candlemass faithful, the band are back with what I think is their strongest album since the 'From the 13th Sun' album released in 1999. The story has been out for a while that Candlemass are calling it a day after this album but they may want to re-think that judging by how good this album is. Looking back on their history, they have had some ups and downs with not all of their album being exactly masterpieces. Recent albums like 'Death Magic Doom' and 'King of the Grey Islands' met with mixed reactions. Personally I thought those albums were good but not up to the usual Candlemass standard but I am more than satisfied with 'Psalms for the Dead.'

The truth is they really haven't altered their game plan too much as the same elements that are on the last two albums, reappear here but this time, the songs seem all that much stronger. Robert Lowe's voice is amazing as usual but so amazing, this will go down in history as potentially his greatest vocal performance yet on a recording. One of the big pluses with this album is the atmosphere. One of the most common criticisms of recent albums was that they sounded kind of dead or sterile. There is no chance of that criticism being waved around with this album, the album has a majestic, alluring feeling about it that is magnetic. Also on recent albums, there was some highs and lows during the recordings but that is not the case here either. This is a non-stop great album, no weak tracks to be found and picking a favorite track is frankly impossible as I love all the tunes this album has to offer.

The song most of you would have most likely heard already is the single 'Dancing in the Temple (Of the Mad Queen Bee)' but as good as that song is, it is probably the weakest track on the album. So if that tune rocks your boat, the rest of the album will be like a tidal wave to your senses. As with recent albums, Candlemass are not the slow doomsters they once were, songs are still doom-laden but tracks like the opening 'Prophet' are neck-snapping, almost epic power-metal chuggers, not the doom metal plodding some of you might be expecting. 'The Sound of Dying Demons' is classic recent Candlemass that is in the same vein as recent tunes of the last few years but only much better and more infectious. The same could be said for 'The Killing of the Sun' and 'The Lights of Thebe' but don't fear doomsters, the album also unleashes some true epic doom as well.

The big doom moments come in the title track which has to be one of the all great Candlemass masterpieces. The emotion that is injected into this song which seems to be a "farewell song" of sorts has to be heard to be believed. Everybody knows how emotionally driven are Lowe's vocals but he scales new heights on this monster tune which is the kind of music that tears at the heart-strings but also pounds the gut with its unrelenting power. Epic doom metal also makes an appearance in 'Waterwitch,' 'Siren Song' and the album closing 'Black In Time.' The band is of course brilliant musicians and with Robert Lowe out front as the voice of doom, the result is nothing short of mesmerizing. I have got the feeling that Lowe has been a bit down and out lately, judging by Facebook messages and the like so I don't know if that has anything to do with the emotional element on this album but lyrically, this is Robert Lowe at his most poignant and sorrowful.

As a fan of Candlemass for 26 years, I have to say if this is the last hurrah, it is a damn fine way to exit the scene. The songwriting quality is pure perfection and while it is still hard to beat the timeless majestic quality of their first two full length albums, 'Epicus Doomicus Metallicus' and 'Nightfall,' this comes so close to that magic. I can't find any negatives at all with this release. It is a well-balanced, expertly produced album that should please all fans. If not, I don't know what more you want. Yes, more epic, slow majestic doom would have been good but a killer tune is a killer tune and 'Psalms For The Dead' is packed to the brim with those.

~ 10/10 by doommantia.com