Cemetary
Sundown

And now a bit of healthy, straightforward, and essential vintage gothic metal: the Cemetary of "Sundown" ('96) offer all of this starting from a past rooted in a primordial doom/death metal quite close to the very first Tiamat, a dimension in which they never really convinced, although in "Godless Beauty" ('93) and especially "Black Vanity" ('94), all released by Quorthon's Black Mark and his father "Boss", there were signs of restlessness that preluded an imminent change of direction.

The line-up has never been very stable and has always revolved around singer and guitarist Mathias Lodmalm, so in this intriguing release (which at the time of its publication also achieved some success in the specialized press) we find Anders Iwers (who later became a permanent member of Tiamat, but on bass) on lead guitars, Thomas Josefsson on bass, and Markus Nordberg behind the drums.

From a purely musical point of view, we are faced with searing sounds like a Saharan wind, stripped of excessively cumbersome or bombastic background elements, gothic metal a bit ante litteram, parallel but not tangent to Paradise Lost’s "Shades of God" or Tiamat's own "Skeleton Skeletron", in which small fragments can also be found that refer to the classic dark/goth (Sisters of Mercy, Fields of Nephilim). The songs have a fairly simple but poignant construction, with keyboard insertions that are always targeted and never invasive, a hoarse voice (which tends to be a bit monotone, given the death legacy to which the good Lodmalm owes tribute) but expressive and capable, unexpectedly, of modulating itself depending on the variation of the riff it rests on.

The recording is excellent and well-defined, the gibsonian-influenced guitar sounds at times even recall the stoner of the excellent Kyuss, in songs like "Primal", while I would point out as strong pieces of the album the opener "Elysia", 2 and a half very intense and fiery minutes, the third "Last Transmission", a vintage gothic song but very effective and sly, the already mentioned "Primal", scorching and acidic just enough, "The Embrace", simple and direct, and the concluding "The Wake", a rather poignant doom piece with a catchy melody.

The artwork is of a good level, created by the Nordic magician of booklets Kristian Walhin, which somewhat recalls the cover of the seminal "Brave Murder Day" by Katatonia.

Ultimately, "Sundown" may not be an essential album in your already abundant discography but I still advise you to give it a listen, because in my humble opinion, we are in the presence of an LP that knows how to transmit emotions and captivate.