Swedish band Opera Diabolicus released their new album late last year titled Death on a Pale Horse, the follow-up to their 2012 release 1614. The band is mostly known for their Gothic and horror metal sound mixed in with a knack for storytelling. Comprised of David Grimoire and Adrian De Crow, they also have a list of notable artists from bands such as King Diamond and Candlemass that contributed to the album.
The first thing that will strike you upon listening to the album is very much the sound and mood that the band captures.
The band very much fits the Horror Metal sound but there is also a blend of Neo-classical as many string instruments show up in the mixes causing songs to not sound too far apart from an orchestral musician. All this works in the favor of the band as songs such as Bring out your dead and Darkest Doom on the Brightest Days stand out as phenomenal executions of this sound. The later ones are my favorite song on the album, the guitars are haunting and catchy, the drums are energetic and give the song a nice tempo and the violin sprinkled throughout adds atmosphere and variety to the song.
The album has other highlights on it as well such as Little Sister. Though much shorter than most of the songs on the album I think it captures the musical feel of the album the best, the instruments do a lovely job to accompany the lyrics and help craft the story. The use of mainly a piano, violin, and acoustic piano is a refreshing change of pace from the electric guitars and the vocal arrangement with other singers does give the feeling of a stage play.
Listen Everybody is another song on the album that is short but sweet, focusing less on vocals and more on a dramatic instrumental that keeps building in intensity.
The negatives on the album would be that the songs can feel a bit repetitive and too long.
Songs like Second coming are good but it feels like it could be a minute or two shorter and not lose much. Another issue was vocals, they weren’t bad and I even liked Mats Leven’s style on the album but it would be nice to see more range and tone being utilized especially for an album trying to be more musical.
Overall the album does a good job of creating an atmosphere and nailing the tone they set out for. If you’re a fan of horror metal or even if you enjoy musicals I’d say give the album a shot because there will be something here you can enjoy.
Opera Diabolicus: Facebook
Release Year: 2021
Label: Season of Mist
Category: Album
Country: Sweden
Reviewed by Billy Poulopoulos
