And we’re back! For those who don’t follow our Facebook page (if you haven’t already, you really should), you’re probably wondering where the hell we went last week. Unfortunately, as is the case from time to time, we were bogged down by technical difficulties, but fear not! We’re back and ready to kick this Monday afternoon in the balls with the first of a few new reviews we’re whipping up for you before heading up to the land of cheese for Jasta Fest, I mean, Milwaukee Metal Fest, come Thursday. How ironic that our last article saw us counting down our Top 10 Metal EPs of 1985, especially when today we’re reviewing a new EP from a band who formed in, you guessed it, 1985.
Branded as the band’s “40th anniversary EP”, Black Star is the latest offering of new music from epic doom gods, Candlemass. Now while this might be an EP in terms of length (18ish minutes) and songs showcased (four), give this release a closer look and one begs the question: Is it REALLY an EP, or just a glorified maxi-single? I’m veering towards the latter, because Black Star consists of two original songs, one of which is an instrumental/glorified outro, and two covers. Taking this into consideration, one might assume this was a hastily put together mini-collection of odds and ends to capitalize on an anniversary, and in all fairness, you’d be half right. The question remains: How is it?
Well, as for the title track, “Black Star” is classic Candlemass if I’ve ever heard it. With its amalgamation of eerie acoustic passages, lumbering misery riffs, dark guitar solos, and an unpredictable arrangement, “Black Star” sounds like a total throwback to the Epicus Doomicus Metallicus era, albeit with modernized production values. Upon repeated listens of this song alone, it might just be the best cut of the Johan Langquist reunion era thus far, which is all the more reason why I can’t help but be slightly disheartened that it isn’t surrounded by two or three other epic doom voyages of a similar disposition. The instrumental “Corridors of Chaos” follows, and comes off as your textbook Candlemass funeral doom march. It’s not bad by any means, but far from memorable either, feeling more like a glorified placeholder than anything.
This leads us to the first of two covers on here, “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath”. Now I’ve always been critical when any band (even ones I love) tackles the Sabs, but I must say, Candlemass unsurprisingly handles this 1973 classic very well. Instead of emulating Ozzy Osbourne’s vocals, Langquist delivers the lyrics in his own signature manner, spitting fire and venom, especially on the lyric, “You bastards!” A slightly less convincing rendition of another 1973 classic, Pentagram’s “Forever My Queen”, closes us out. While it’s cool to hear a band as prolific as Candlemass tackling the equally prolific Pentagram, it’s more novelty than anything, and I’ll take the acid-drenched doom-rock grooves of the original everyday over this rendition.
While I wouldn’t go so far to call Black Star a complete throwaway, I’d also be lying if I said I wasn’t a tad underwhelmed. Wouldn’t a 40th anniversary celebration call for more than a mere EP? How about a 40th anniversary album? After all, it’s been a few years since 2022’s Sweet Evil Sun. Seriously, if this were an album of “Black Star” and 6-7 similarly natured cuts, we’d be having serious “album of the year” contender talks right now. Instead, I find myself with a release that will only satisfy the desires of true diehards and completists, leaving the masses disillusioned and yearning for more. Considering I fall into the former category, my grading will likely be kinder than others, which is as follows…
6 out of 10
Label: Napalm Records
Genre: Epic Doom Metal
For fans of: Black Sabbath, Pentagram, Solitude Aeturnus
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