Back in 1990, a demo cassette was made available by a UK band called Cathedral, and with the release of In Memoriam, the doom world was never quite the same again. Though acts like Black Sabbath, Pentagram, Trouble, Candlemass, Saint Vitus, and Witchfinder General paved the way, nothing this massive had been heard quite like what Cathedral brought to the table. Rise Above Records now brings this heralded demo, the precursor to their great debut Forest Of Equilibrium, back from the grave in this deluxe CD/DVD package, complete with the four original songs, five live tracks from the following year in 1991, and a DVD of a set from Groningen in 1991 (which was not made available for review).
The main tracks that make up the In Memoriam demo are heavy as all hell, funeral dirge slow, and quite frankly, pretty damn evil sounding. "Mourning of a New Day" sees some vile growls from Lee Dorrian creep over behemoth riffs courtesy of Garry Jennings, while "All Your Sins" pounds & grooves like vintage Saint Vitus, obliterating everything in its path. The haunting, unsettling "Ebony Tears" is the stuff of nightmares, the soundtrack to your next suicide attempt, with some of the most monstrous, tortured riffing on the album that never relents for the entire 8+ minute length. "March" takes more of a steadfast 'death march' stance, with rumbling bass, pounding drums, and those killer riffs just stomping through 7-minutes of battle combat; no need for vocals, just pound and pound till the enemy has been annihilated. The live tracks are just as much 'fun', with "Comiserating the Celebration" steamrolling ahead with loads of bottom end, screaming guitar solos, and Dorrian's deep growls, and "Neophytes For Serpent Eve" is as close to death metal as doom can get...I mean, this shit is so damn heavy you'll feel the weight of it all just smashing you into the ground and below to the pits of hell. Epic versions of "Ebony Tears" and "Mourning of a New Day" just crush from start to finish, cementing the fact that this band really must have been something to see live back in their formative years.
I can't stress enough just how heavy and powerful this stuff is, but make no mistake, if all you know of Cathedral is their more accessible late '90s and early 2000s material, you are in for quite a shock. This is massive, primal, chilling doom quite possibly unlike anything you have heard before, and kudos to Rise Above for making these early Cathedral gems available once again.
Track Listing
Demo 1990
Mourning of a New Day
All Your Sins
Ebony Tears
March
Live Holland/Belgium 1991
Intro/Comiserating the Celebration
Ebony Tears
Neophytes For Serpent Eve
All Your Sins
Mourning of a New Day
DVD Live in Groningen (NL) May 1st 1991
Intro/Comiserating the Celebration
Ebony Tears
Neophytes For Serpent Eve
All Your Sins
Mourning of a New Day
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