Hailing from Suffolk, England, Cradle of Filth is without a doubt the face of black metal worldwide. Lead by Dani Filth the band has found popularity over the years due to their heavy yet strangely accessible songs. 1999 year proved t o be a big year for Cradle, no doubt do to the success of their 4th effort
Midian
Taking after every album prior,
Midian starts with (in my opinion) their strongest intro ever "At the Gates of Midian". Starting with hushed whispers the intro has a somewhat creepy beginning. It takes a drastic turn though, when the choral chant and synths cut in, creating a very uplifting type of sound not typical of Cradle. It works great though, and it leads perfectly into the next track and the true start to the album, "Cthulu Dawn". The song kickstarts with a drum roll and a tremolo picked riff that is aggressive as it is melodic. Dani's vocals come in screechy (yet enjoyable) as ever. I really enjoy the layering of gutterals under his normal vocal rasp. The song combines some great guitar-work in the style of black metal but also delves into thrash in a few parts. The synthwork is also really well done. "Saffrons Curse" is the next song and one of my favorites on the album. Dani's vocals seem to be at their most emotional and it really adds something extra. With a galloping guitar line, this song pummels until about 3 minutes in, when it all stops and a creepy keyboard part joins the fray. One thing i love about Cradle is how they make the songs seem like multiple songs at once with the tempo changes and great variation on riffs. The guitarwork for this slow part is very classic metal and compliments everything else really well.
"Death Magick For Adepts" is probably one of the most varied songs on the CD. Once again the guitar takes a refreshing dive into thrash (the verse riff) and classic (the harmonized lead) metal, while still keeping its black metal intensity. The melodies really jump to the forefront of the song with a reoccurring melody played by the guitarists and the keyboardist. Amazingly enough (for black metal at least) the bass is very present in this song, adding something extra. "Lord Abortion" starts with some atmospheric keyboarding and leads into some uber heavy guitarwork, double bass drums and a layer scream courtesy of Dani. I admit to say that this song seems like filler to me, and while its okay, for whatever reason it just doesn't do it for me. Everything is played very well, and i'm sure most people love this song, but for me it just doesn't cut it.
"Amor E Morte" starts with a very chunky harmonized riff then then switches to a more keyboard-fronted song. The guitar is tremolo picked and kind of in the background for this part but compliments the synth work nicely. Not long after being pushed to the background, the guitar once again comes back to the front of the mix, taking on a very death metal influence approach (which still seems to fit with the black metal atmosphere). The switches gears to a more mid-paced song song with beautiful melodies and we're treated to some great deep, low vocals. Sometimes its hard to fathom that Dani is the sole vocalist of the band, especially when he brings so much the table with his variation on the vocals. There is also a very strong presence of female vocals which is a great contrast to the screams and grunts. 5 minutes into the song we get a well played, and interesting guitar solo, which demonstrates that the six-stringers in this band know what they're doing. "Creatures that Kissed in Cold Mirrors" is another instrumental that incorporates some synth and choral chant- work.
"Her Ghost in the Fog" was the single for this album and with great reason. It perfectly illustrates all of what Cradle is about from atmosphere to to heavy, melodic guitars to Mr. Filth's vocal styling. The song has one of the best and catchiest harmonized leads I've ever heard and just the thought of it makes me yearn to put the song on. Once again Sara Jezebel does a solid job of vocal contrasts. "Satanic Mantra" is weird chant, that honestly creeps me out a little bit.
"Tearing the Veil from Grace" is a song that strongly reminds me of Cradle's second studio effort
Dusk...and Her Embrace due to its length and more epic nature. In the beginning there is some very interesting alternation between choir vocals and Dani's filthy black metal voice. The song then picks up full speed with blastbeats (Woo!) and some fast palm muted guitar lines, that definitely have some death metal influence to them. Keyboard cuts in after the riffwork and teaks prominence until we're introduced to a black metal galloping riff (if that at all makes sense) I'd like to also put a spot here to comment on the drumming of this CD. I think Adrian does a great dob of keeping the tempos extreme, while having unique and interesting drum fills and patterns. His drumming is very technical and really stands out.
The last song "Tortured Soul Asylum" is another track that i don't really find too interesting. I however do enjoy the keyboards on this song very much, i think they add some great texture and melody.
Overall, i would have to say that is one of my favorite black metal albums ever. Everything (almost) about it is perfect and i think it really stands the test of time and will be a classic and staple of the genre.
