The last 5 or so years have been quite a time to be alive for Candlemass fans. The epic doom pioneers reunited with original singer Johan Längquist, best known for his contributions to their groundbreaking debut album, Epicus Doomicus Metallicus (1986). This led to many fans, myself included, to unfairly expect their first effort with Längquist in 30+ years to be Epicus 2. That (2019’s The Door to Doom) it was not. This isn’t to say it was a bad album by any stretch of the imagination. However, it more or less came off as a continuation of the band’s output with Mats Levén on vocals. In other words, it didn’t really hit that old school niche.
Fast forward a few years later and Candlemass have returned with their second Längquist reunion offering, Sweet Evil Sun. Whereas The Door to Doom stayed faithful to the Candlemass formula of the 21st century, Sweet Evil Sun sounds like a conscious effort to take things back to the 80s. Maybe I’m wrong, but I can’t help but think bassist and primary songwriter Leif Edling embraced the tropes and nuances of Epicus and Nightfall (1987) when working on this album. After all, both albums have recently celebrated 35th anniversary milestones, and the collective appreciation for these doom metal monoliths have been at an all time high.
The alternation between pummeling doom riffs, atmospheric chillout passages, and progressive twists on the opening “Wizard of the Vortex” let me know that Candlemass was ready to party like it was 1986, their marriage Sabbath’s hooks and Mercyful Fate’s darkness ever pronounced on this cut. The groovy Pentagram-esque title track and the half sludge beast, half traditional doom hymn that is “Angel Battle” keeps the ball rolling. The dynamic guitar duo of Lars Johansson and Mappe Björkman are as intertwined with each other today as they were in the Messiah Marcolin era, and although Längquist’s voice has aged since the glory days, it has worked to his advantage, sounding fiercer and more aggressive than ever.
With each subsequent track, Edling shines as a songwriter, showcasing a different, exciting angle to a band we all know and love. “Black Butterfly” sounds blatantly fashioned in the style of Epicus, riffs, delivery, and all. “When Death Sighs” spotlights the band at their proggiest, at least from a songwriting and arrangement perspective. After hearing a song like this, it’s no wonder Opeth’s Mikael Åkerfeldt considers Candlemass such a huge influence. And then there’s songs like “Scandinavian Gods”, “Devil Voodoo”, and “Crucified”, towing the line between traditional and doom metal. In the case of “Devil Voodoo”, I’d argue it’s a traditional metal song with doom undertones as opposed to vice versa, but enough of the semantics.
Sweet Evil Sun is indeed sweet, evil, and shines like only Candlemass could. In the scope of their catalog, I might even argue it’s their strongest outing since 2009’s Death Magic Doom, but I’d have to do a deep dive of their studio output before drawing that conclusion. What I can say is that it’s unequivocally better than The Door to Doom, and I hope it stands as a sign of things to come for this legendary outfit. Fear not fellow defenders! Candlemass is still as epic, doomy, and metal as ever.
8 out of 10
Label: Napalm Records
Genre: Epic Doom Metal
For fans of: Black Sabbath, Solitude Aeturnus, Pentagram