Anathema  "Eternity"                             

This is one of my favorite albums of all time! "Eternity", what a name for an album. Celestial, melancholic, purely emotional, this album put me to tears when I first heard it 3 years ago (it still does, sometimes).
These days, I listen to it every single night. It's such a personal album, I feel like it was written for me! Er, yeah, it's unbelievably remarkable how this entire work of art coincides so perfectly with my deepest feelings and pulls so elegantly at the chords of my heart. The album starts off with "Sentient", a heart-stirring instrumental that floods with emotion, an overflowing tide of astral synthesizers and whistling guitars, and the sounds of a baby crying as it embraces life,
its joys and sorrows, and its eternity. Vinny's vocals are so mournfully beautiful, they make me shudder. When I make other people hear it, they say it's "okay". How could they say it's "Okay"??? What the fuck? Well, beauty is in the ear of the beholder. Heavenly, cosmic beauty. Sigh. Other (to name a few) great songs are Angelica, The Beloved, Eternity parts 1,2,3, Hope, Suicide Veil, Radiance, Cries on the Wind. Due to the huge Pink Floyd (my favorite band) influence, "Eternity" is a necessity, a companion to me when those lonely, depressing nights darken my world. "...Born alone, beneath pale sardonic skies, one love, one life, one sorrow."

ANATHEMA  "The Silent Enigma"                            

"...I gaze through my window at the world, Lying in a shroud of frost. In forlorn stupor, I feel the burning of staring eyes...Yet no one's here. In an empty room, we awake, and it's true...Know the entity of ensuing agony waits to clasp us in its cold grasp". This album is the Dr. Kevorkian of music. The most depressing, mournful music I've ever heard. A black hole of hellish astral doom, it will put the toughest soldier to tears in minutes. I reserve it for special occasions. All in all, it's absolutely beautiful, and typical of their earlier era, with some killer (slow and true- Pink Floydish!) guitar riffs. Listen to "Restless Oblivion", "Shroud of Frost", "Sunset of Age", "Nocturnal Emission", "Cerulean Twilight" and "A Dying Wish".

ANATHEMA  "Alternative 4"                       

"We are just a moment in time...A blink of an eye, I dream for the blind."
Alternative 4 marked the band's transition into the indescribable style they now have. Somber, but lighter than their previous work, Alternative 4 is an elaborate work of art. From the powerful "Fragile Dreams" and "Reconnect", to the angelic "Regret" and "Feel", one can listen to the entire album over and over, just like all their other work. Vincent Cavanagh's voice improved considerably on this album. A must-have for all Goth-metal and Floyd fans out there.

ANATHEMA  "Judgement"                           

Over the years, Anathema has dramatically metamorphosized from a dark cloud of hellishly mournful doom (Crestfallen/The Silent Enigma/ Serenades); thru a somber, cosmic transcendence (Eternity) to a mature and ethereal level (Alternative 4); and now, the indescribably beautiful "Judgement". I dub it the best album of the year. Vincent Cavanagh and the English crew have defied beauty with this iridescent curtain of light that flutters to the wind of Anathema's well-established music. It's as if the vault that had previously suffocated the band's emotions into extreme melancholy has finally broke open. The album, however, generates an atmosphere of yearning for beauty and for angelic love. Wow. The Pink Floyd influence is even stronger in this album than before, but it fits in perfectly with their music (They even have a cover of "Goodbye Cruel World" by Pink Floyd !). Some great songs (even though the whole album rules): "Deep", "Emotional Winter", "Forgotten Hopes", "Destiny is Dead". Enough said???

TRISTANIA  "Beyond The Veil"                       

"Dusk drawn hither to my evening star                                               
A glance in thy mirror,, the trance of thy mirror 
Venus...through the looking glass"                                

This is how "Beyond The Veil", the latest album from Tristania, kicks in. Well, what can I say? It is simply one hell of an album. Incorporating breathtaking lyrics with elaborate and melodic music, this Norwegian group masterfully blends  doom, death, goth, and crystalline female vocals in tantalizingly perfect harmony. Following their debut album "Widow's Weeds" (which happens to be another of my all-time favorites), "Beyond the Veil" shows stunning musical evolution and an icy, macabre feel- mystical, and typically Scandinavian. Some great songs would be: "Beyond the Veil", "Aphelion", "Opus Relinque", "Angina"; well, every song is
a jewel in its own right. A must-have.

NIGHTWISH "Oceanborn"                           

A keyboardist's paradise, full of incredibly well-orchestrated everything. Rock-steady rhythms and metal riffs, pumping bass lines, delicious solos, and breathtaking woodwind fill-ins. The female vocals are absolutely beautiful and operatic, reminding me of Mozart's "The Silver Flute". The entire album is a masterpiece. It's particularly fun to drive to. The lyrics are riddled in mythological content (which I crave!), and the artwork in the sleeve is rather good. The whole album MUST be heard by any music-lover, just to experience the new, heightened orchestral level of the gothic metal scene. I recommend you hear the following: "Stargazers", "Gethsemane", "Devil and the Deep Dark Ocean", "Sacrament of Wilderness", "Moondance", and "The Pharaoh Sails to Orion". 

MY DYING BRIDE "Turn Loose the Swans"      
                    
Well, what can I say about this band? Melancholy driven to new heights. Aaron's vocals are beyond weeping, they convey a sense of emotional deadness, a detachment from sentiment, a dry and empty riverbed. My Dying Bride just kills me, every time. The band's deliberately slow but plowing rhythms, along with Martin Powell's (Anathema's keyboardist!) violin playing gives this album such a deathly cold feel. Some great songs from this album: "Sear Me MCMXCIII", "The Songless Bird", "The Snow in My Hands", "The Crown of Sympathy", and "Turn Loose the Swans". 

MY DYING BRIDE "The Angel and the Dark River" 

Definitely My Dying Bride's best album. It's way up there on my play list. Musically speaking, it greatly surpasses anything they'd done before. Progressive in some aspects, but mostly somber and full of dark rage; Aaron's vocals have gotten even weirder! The violins are also strange, but more melodic than ever. An atmosphere of lucid dreaming has always engulfed the music of this band. Particularly fucked up: "The Cry of Mankind/From Darkest Skies", "Black Voyage", "A Sea to Suffer in", "Two Winters Only", "Your Shameful Heaven", "The Sexuality of Bereavement". Hey, I just named all the songs on the album! Hmmm, maybe 'cause they all kick  arse... 

TRAIL OF TEARS                                                         
Disclosure in Red 

An unrelentless intro (When Silence Cries) ushers in this phenomenal album by the Norwegian sensation Trail of Tears. Greatly influenced by  death metal, their music is beautifully  embellished by the stunning voice of the opera singer Helena Iren Michaelsen and the great male doom vocals of Ronny Thorsen. I feel, however, that the overall album could have been better in many ways. I guess  it needed a few musical final touches. Nevertheless, it is always a pleasure to listen to. It portrays a mood ranging from nervous anxiety to free fall. Some of the better songs on this album would be: "When Silence Cries", "The Daughters of
Innocence", "The Day we Drowned", "Illusion" and "Enigma of the Absolute". Good Stuff.

THE 3RD AND THE MORTAL                                   
Painting on Glass

A complete astral trip. Beautiful, crystalline female vocals, sentimental guitar work, and outworldly keyboards; this album is relaxing and meditative. Spiritually soothing, you feel like you're swimming in a nebula cloud. Add incense, and there: you've got the perfect trip- in the company of ethereal vocals and spaced-out music. I love the synthesizers on this album. They've even got a trippy insect ala spaceship effect on one song! The whole experience is very atmospheric and rewarding. Especially when you snap back from your trip! Included in this album: "Magma", "Crystal Orchids", "Aurora Borealis", "Aurora Australis", and "Vavonia part 2". Highly recommended. 


THEATER OF TRAGEDY
Aegis

This Norwegian band made a jump to the top of the Gothic Metal-scene with only 2 albums. Sensitive compositions featuring the contrast of the dark voice of Raymond Rohonyi and the enchanting female vocals of Liv Kristine Espanæs created an atmosphere that hadn't existed in the Gothic-scene before. Other bands were quick to copy! No matter what, however, Liv Kristine's lovely voice is unmatchable, except maybe for The 3rd and the Mortal's Anna Marie. The band offers us 50 minutes of music divided on eight songs in which Raymond has drawn his inspirations from myths, fairy tales and legends once again, but also from the mysterious being named "woman" - its role as an incarnation of beauty and object of desire, and this is shown by songs like "Cassandra", "Lorelei", "Angelique" and "Venus". Well, what can I say ? At first one will realize that the aggressive side of THEATRE OF TRAGEDY's music (Raymond's growling voice) has nearly disappeared while the rhythmic and melodic side has gained the advantage.

WITHIN TEMPTATION                                                   
Enter                    

This Dutch group's music is rather pleasant to listen to. The female vocals are really,..nice. They've got this modern Gothic-doom edge to their music, but the whole thing is hardly a knockout. With some great string sections and piano melodies, the album is generally well orchestrated, and definately worth being in your collection. No doubt, they'll improve considerably in the future, because they've shown to be very talented. Some rather pretty songs on the album: "Restless", "Enter", "Pearls of Light", "Grace", and "Candles". 

PARADISE LOST                                                           
Draconian Times

Ah! What an album. Simply magnificent. The definition of gothic metal. The band's thick, wasteland edge, with its ruthless, heavy guitars and metal drumming; has a lighter, more melodic side- with some lovely piano/synth melodies. I love the vocals, they've got this husky, sort of gray-sky feel to them. This album is a definite must-have. Listen to "Enchantment", "Hallowed Land", "Once Solemn", "Shadow Kings", annd "Shades of God". Guaranteed to blow your mind away! 

THERION                                                                           
The Crowning of Atlantis

Therion, the first group to succesfully mix opera and metal, have given us such classics as THELI and VOVIN, and now, this elaborate work of jewelry. Musically speaking, Nightwish, if put on the same level, kick Therion's ass. However, I don't think Nightwish would have been who they are if it wasn't for Therion's pioneer work. The Crowning of Atlantis is a great album, however. The Opera lineup of 3 female vocalists, and the harmony they posess, makes complicated musical progressions highly unnecessary. Make sure you hear  "The Crowning of Atlantis", "Mark of Cain", "Calvicula Nox" (a remake?), "From the Dyonisian Days", "To Mega Therion"(from Theli), "The Wings of the Hydra", and "Thor" (Yes! a Manowar cover!).