Paradise Lost Sounds Sluggish On "Medusa"

Metal is raw and can be done in hundreds of ways. There's slow, brooding metal that'll slowly swallow you, or the fast paced, hard hitting metal that'll deliver punches in every blast beat. There are also ways to do metal wrong, which really feels like the case here, as Paradise Lost sound sluggish on Medusa and don't deliver something that excites you in any way.

Sludge metal works well if there's still a bombardment of power coming at you. It doesn't have to be fast paced to hit you hard. Medusa doesn't really have any punch to it, perhaps by fault of the production and mixing. Opening track 'Fearless Sky' just sounds downright awkward as a beginning track, the organ intro leading into guitars and drums that might as well be at a negative tempo. It's incredibly underwhelming and doesn't even have a dynamic when it hits you. This theme is pretty constant throughout the album, though the tempo isn't always negative (granted, it's never fast enough to justify anything either).

I really can't say what Paradise Lost were going for here. The slow nature doesn't really sound like a slow moving chaos or something brooding. It feels more like beginners playing songs at a slower tempo because they're not ready for the faster stuff. Closing track 'Until The Grave' really just takes the album out on a super unsatisfying note, a choir at least adding a little background space. The song is probably one of the fastest ones on the album, and does actually have a bit of drive to it, but it's still not the end you'd wish for. The screams are just gross and dragged on too long, too. This album is missing too much to make it stronger.

Paradise Lost sounds sluggish on Medusa, and it doesn't help the record's case. There's no dynamic, and the drama it attempts to create just sounds lazy and unprofessional. There's no meat, and it's awkward to listen to this album when they clearly think there is some.

Favorite Track: Until The Grave

Least Favorite Tracks: Fearless Sky, Blood and Chaos

Rating: 50 / 100

Stream or buy Medusa on Apple Music: