Ancient Dreams

I adore Candlemass. "Nightfall" is one of my favourite metal albums of all time. It is one of those records where everything clicks; the songwriting, the production, the performances. It is perfect. I also love the band's debut album (“Epicus Doomicus Metallicus”), although I will admit that it sounds dated in some respects. So, what about "Ancient Dreams"? This third album offers another dose of classy epic, melodic doom metal. That should mean it has the same replay value as its predecessors, right?

Well, no. The failings of this album are relative but significant. It suffers from inconsistent songwriting, dreadful production, and an underwhelming performance by vocalist Messiah Marcolin. Retrospective interviews with Leif Edling are interesting. He reveals that he has never been happy with this record, describing how it was rushed to coincide with a tour supporting Motörhead (needs must, I guess). His perception of the album mirrors my experiences with it, it is the most potent vindication of my own feelings.

The songwriting inconsistencies could be overstated. Edling is one of the greatest metal songwriters and he included some classics here. “Mirror Mirror” and “Bearer of Pain” show the band at their best; powerful, epic metal that evokes excitement and melancholy whilst being catchy and memorable. The upbeat numbers like "The Bells of Acheron'' and “A Cry from the Crypt'' are great, as is the gloomy soliloquy of "Darkness in Paradise". Five great songs out of eight is impressive by any yardstick (even Edling's). The remaining three songs suck, and his damning retrospective assessments of “Incarnation of Evil” and “Epistle No. 81” are indicative.

The biggest weakness is the production. This album fails to create much heaviness and momentum due to its constricted and lifeless production. The drums pale in comparison to previous albums (and to “Tales of Creation”, incidentally). There is no rattle or resonance on anything. The cymbals sound like dull ‘tinks’ rather than the required epic and dramatic sounding clashes. Edling and Marcolin have suggested that certain parts of the kit are missing from the mix (for some reason). The band also used a click track, a decision they regret. The guitar is similarly deadened in the mix, certainly in comparison to the fullness of the previous album. The cumulative effect of these problems is significant.

The performances are (mostly) excellent. Jan Lindh sounds good in spite of those production problems. Lars Johansson has always been a monstrous guitarist, and he contributes several amazing melodic solos here (the one in “A Cry from the Crypt” might be the standout). Marcolin's performance is more of a mixed bag. He is good on the more dynamic songs like "Mirror Mirror", but sounds bored and stilted on the less engaging material (the monotone seven-minute title track is the worst example). He never matches the energy and charisma he had on the previous album, where his enthusiasm upon joining his favourite band was palpable in every yelp and shriek.

Don’t get me wrong, “Ancient Dreams” is a fine album by most measures. I might view it more positively if it had been made by some other band, say, Solitude Aeturnus or Memento Mori. Still, this is a Candlemass record from the classic lineup in their prime, so it feels like a huge missed opportunity. I would love to have heard these songs under different circumstances, and I am sure Edling would too.

Reviewing a doom record is for me what you would call an away game in sport. As a thrash metal maniac, I'm all for energy, speed and shredding. Doom, on the other hand, stands for sluggishness, drummers who forget where their snare was in the middle of the song and... and I don't know what. Luckily there is Candlemass. Their debut is supposed to be cult (I never understood it, as I said, doom layman) and their second album seems rather toothless to me. (Outrage! Blasphemy!) They grew on me with "Ancient Dreams" - despite the kitschy artwork. It was the time when Messiah Marcolin gained a legendary reputation. This was based on three pillars: his always the same, terribly smelly stage clothes, a hairstyle (see back) that only let him walk through a door sideways and the almost unique, powerful, charismatic and sublime voice.

But Marcolin is not the only trump card of the Swedish five-piece on the album from 1988. Despite the compositional narrowness that the style dictates to its disciples, mastermind Leif Edling can score with a high degree of variance. The power riff of "The Bells of Acheron" sparks an otherwise absent forward momentum, while "Epistle No. 81" would make a suitable background noise for the prayer hour in the next best monastery. Unfortunately, the closer is also (probably for this very reason) the weakest track on the album. To return to sport, the song has the character of a 0:0 in football - there was something, you think, but nothing exciting.

Fortunately, there are also other calibres on "Ancient Dreams" which, by the way, is praiseworthily not overloaded with pathos, drama and tragedy. The B side is opened by "Bearer of Pain". It houses viscous verses, a chorus as if painted for Marcolin's voice and a surprising break after the second chorus, which lends the already good piece even more depth. The partly driving "A Cry from the Crypt" or the fatalistic and ominous "Darkness in Paradise" show Candlemass from their very good side as well. The latter track also impressively demonstrates one of the band’s strongest weapons at the end of the eighties. Edlund managed to write catchy choruses seemingly effortlessly. This feature combined with relatively snappy guitar lines ("Mirror Mirror" emphasises this element right at the beginning) and the omission of the lowest speed levels results in a piece of black vinyl that still spreads its musical charm after 33 years. This is also a merit of the production. "Ancient Dreams" sounds heavy, warm and occasionally a little dark. If I were an insider in matters of doom, I would perhaps speak of an almost perfect setting for this style - but in view of my limited knowledge of this metier, I prefer not to presume that. But no doubt, I listen to a good, balanced mix that gives Messiah's voice the space it needs.

In retrospect, "Ancient Dreams" is still what it was probably meant to be from the point of view of its producers: the next logical step in the discography. Maturity meets musicality, a good flow is more important than endless repetition and no song suffers from anorexia, but no one puts on fat either. So we are simply dealing with a rightly self-confident doom record, I guess. But what do the 11 experts before me say about this piece of vinyl? 91% on average? I can largely understand that.

Imagine hearing the first two Candlemass albums in the 80's. The masterful craft of epic doom they invented in 86 with their debut was unlike anything ever done musically, sure they had plenty of influences, but they took those influences and crafted an entirely different beast, as most Swedish metal bands do. Candlemass is special in the way that along with Bathory they helped influence the youth of Sweden to form bands and play at local youth centers, start fanzines, start bands, release demos, and eventually Sweden became the best country for metal and put out some of the most classic bands/albums of all time. Today I'm delving into the fantastic and highly anticipated follow up to 1987's "Nightfall" this is Candlemass's third effort, Ancient Dreams from 1988. Let's get into the music within, shall we?

The album starts out with the heavy hitting "Mirror, Mirror" one of their best songs and one of the best on the album. A key difference here is that there aren't any interludes/preludes like the previous record. This keeps us from having to wait, and because of this you'll soon hear the memorable riff of "A Cry From The Crypt" a melodic grooving 7:24 song with 2 fantastic solos (one being the outro) and a marvelous vocal performance by Messiah. These first two tracks introduce fans to a different production, which I'll cover later on. "Darkness in Paradise" is simply fantastic, one of the best tunes on the record, the bass and vocals at the forefront creating quite the song. "Incarnation of Evil" starts with a distorted voice intro talking about something evil. Of course Messiah slays here as well as the band, with memorable lyrics and riffs to boot. That's 4/8th of the album covered. with the last four tracks being all fantastic in their own right, but for the sake of the reader, I will only mention the 2 standouts of them, not going into detail, but I definitely don't dislike these tracks. "Bearer of Pain" and the title track rule. I love these songs, only 3 points away from "Nightfall" just because that album has more classic songs and is just a bit better. Now onto the production of the record.

The production on this album is just a bit cleaner than "Nightfall" the drums are just as punchy, but there isn't as much reverb, but it's still there. If i'm not mistaken there was an issue with the snare on "Nightfall", and as a result the drums sound different. I love the drums on "Nightfall" but the drums sound better and I stand by saying they are better on this follow up release. The guitars sound a bit less cavernous and a bit less "fuzzy" than the previous release, but I don't have an issue, as it does not stray away from the Candlemass signature sound and it doesn't compromise the riffs either. This album also has more audible bass, which adds proper backbone to the music, which was present on NIghtfall, but is done ten times better here. All in all, this album has better production and it serves it well.

All in all this album gets a 97 from me, I love this album, it's one of Candlemass's finest releases. It has all of the aspects of the band that make them the masters of doom metal and the masters of epic doom. It gets a 97 because of some very memorable tracks, just a little less memorable than "Nightfall" this album was originally a 95, but as a result of the cleaned up production it gained two points, and well deserved, because the production makes this record a more enjoyable listen when the riffs have more clarity as well as the drums and bass. If you like the first two records from Candlemass, I'll bet that you'll thoroughly enjoy this record. Listen to it after "Nightfall" and compare the sounds and the album style, while "Nightfall" has many interludes/preludes, Ancient Dreams have none to be found. Great record!

-Nolan

Candlemass started their career with a near flawless debut, and followed that up with a phenomenal album in "Nightfall." After two releases of that caliber, I really don't know how they missed the mark so much with "Ancient Dreams." Now, I wouldn't go as far to call it a bad album, but it's certainly not great. For sure, it's Candlemass' worst album if you're to bar both "Dactylis Glomerata" and "From the 13th Sun," which, as I pointed out last time, are incredibly different styles of albums. There are some gems on "Ancient Dreams," but there is so much dead weight along with it, that it becomes a frustrating listen. There's a lot about this record that I'd call pretentious. A ton of songs put an insanely heavy focus on Messiah, and even though he's a phenomenally technical singer, he doesn't have the range of emotion to be in such a forefront. It takes more than technical skill and excellent notes to capture attention fully.

Most of my complaints about "Ancient Dreams" are summed up in "Incarnation of Evil." The main riff is so painfully boring. Messiah's vocal melodies are actually very good ones, but with basically no backbone behind him musically, it really enhances all of his flaws as a singer and puts them in the spotlight. His notes are technically gorgeous, but I hear no real emotion in his voice. The notes are there, but without a dreaded emotion that doom metal positively NEEDS, the song sinks into the ground. When Messiah isn't singing, the fact that the riffs and instrumental portion of the song are so dull and boring becomes a forefront, and when he does, his bandmates let him down. The song is also 7 minutes long as well, so to call this one a snooze is an understatement. "Incarnation of Evil" isn't an awful song (we shall get there), but sometimes boring can be even worse. "Darkness in Paradise" is only marginally better. Edling gives a nice bass groove to give the song some energy, and the track's main riff is at least better than what they tried with "Incarnation of Evil." This song shows that the problem is Messiah, and not the rest of the band. Once again, when he's the one taking the lead over Edling's great bass riff, the song is as flat as an ironing board. Just like before, his physical notes are fantastic, but there's just no spine to them. There's no fire and no passion or emotion. This isn't to say that Messiah never had emotion to his voice, as he certainly has on other tracks, but still, he's just not the right kind of singer to take such a big role by himself. He's a singer that absolutely NEEDS a band to support him. The solo section on "Darkness in Paradise" is fantastic, though. That section almost saves the song by itself. The keyboard part that follows bestows an atmospheric tension that should have been built upon, but instead, if's wasted when Messiah's near-isolated parts come back. This one might have really been salvageable with a lot of its fat trimmed off.

Despite my negativity up to this point, I still feel strongly that "Ancient Dreams" still has some Candlemass magic going for it. "A Cry from the Crypt" is a masterpiece of theirs. The song starts with a really spooky, eerie riff that sets up a great mood, and then the quicker one that comes in after and becomes the verse riff sets a galloping pace that still keeps that sinister mood. Messiah's vocals are extraordinary here. His held high notes work wonders in a song like this where the band is fully supporting him and giving him a leg to stand on. Even though I never thought Messiah was a super fitting doom singer, he's actually able to really drive home that haunting feel of the song. Johansson's solo is a really impressive one on this track. The way the guitars harmonize the intro riff after it is captivating. Finally, the last riff introduced in the song that fades it out is one of my favorites from Candlemass. The way they once again harmonize the riff as it fades out makes the song feel incredibly miserable and dreary in the best way possible. "Bearer of Pain" is another personal favorite of mine off the album. The main riff isn't one of Candlemass' strongest, but the verse riff syncs up really well with Messiah, and gives both him and the band the right amount of shine and breathing room at the same time. The chorus is excellent, and Messiah really enhances it further with his perfectly placed high note at the end of it each time. The best part of the entire song is definitely the mid-section of it that gives a really brilliant and unique middle eastern-like flare to the riff and vocal melodies. Messiah is basically note for note with the riff, and it gives both more power. Candlemass dabs into this sort of thing later in their career, but it's a pretty special feel on "Ancient Dreams." I also love the concise and abrupt ending the song has. It feels like it could continue more, but then just shuts the door.

I've talked about the mediocre, and I've talked about the good. Now comes the REALLY bad parts of the album. The title track is an absolute abomination. Easily in the running for worst Candlemass track of all time. The riff is a random one with no real decent melody or feel behind it. It doesn't groove nicely, it's not catchy...it's nothing but annoying. Then we have Messiah who comes in and basically matches each random dull note the riff is playing. Yet Messiah sounds far more bored than the guitars do, so every word and note spoken is just an affront to the ears. If you can call the chorus a 'chorus,' it's one of the blandest, weakest, and flat choruses of their career. Besides the solo section and a slight bit towards the ending, the song has absolutely no variation to it, either. It's such a criminally annoying, random, dull track. I absolutely struggle to listen to the song entirely without skipping it each time I throw the album on. "Epistle No. 81" is no better either. It's stock, paint by numbers riffing from the band, and Messiah is absolutely rambling on it. His notes sound more awful than my words can describe. They're bored, have absolutely no depth nor emotion to them, and have no melody whatsoever. His vocals on this song sounds like you got your tone deaf uncle drunk and taped him mumbling incoherently on the toilet. This is an unacceptable track that has absolutely zero point in needing to exist. Just stop the album after "The Bells of Acheron" (which is another REALLY good track, by the way.)

In general, Candlemass has such an amazingly stellar discography, and I wouldn't go so far as to call "Ancient Dreams" a failure, but it's one of the worst for sure. In a discography full of diamonds, a pearl seems worse in comparison. There's no question to me that it's a 50/50 release. Half with gems and great material, half with utter dull, random, unpleasant garbage. The band sounds like they were really trying to be ambitious with this release, but with that, they lost sight of a lot of what got them to the top of the mountain in the first place. Fortunately, though, this was a one time momentary slip-up, as when it came time for their next release, Candlemass got right back on the saddle. "Ancient Dreams" is worthy of some listens due to the handful of quality tracks on it, but some of the magic was undoubtedly missing on it.

For a long time now, I’ve been quite obsessed by how artists perceive their own work. Just a trip down metal’s history pages will reveal several artists whose own views on their oeuvre is wildly at odds with that of their fanbase. Some more notable ones might be in Tom G. Warrior’s book, Are You Morbid?, wherein he praises the best-forgotten Vanity Nemesis whilst not really having much positive to say about To Mega Therion. I imagine his view might be somewhat different now, mind you. Unlike our favourite Swiss beanie-enthusiast, Leif Edling has at least been somewhat consistent in his poor view of Ancient Dreams (tellingly, I believe the band played an Ancient Dreams set whilst Edling was inactive as a live musician). However, I’m quite sure you’ll not find too many (read: hardly any) Candlemass fans who share his view of what is, simply put, another fine work from their classic era.

The criticisms I’ve heard at this record are wide-ranging but nonetheless they mostly leave me a little confounded. Firstly, the production is deemed to be terrible. Now, I can understand this point-of-view from its makers; after all, the frustration of your own creation not being as you heard it in your head must be palpable. For the rest of us, however; let’s keep things in perspective! Sure, Ancient Dreams isn’t as smoky and evocative as Epicus… and it doesn’t have the instant advantage of Nightfall’s obvious step-up in terms of budget, but anyone complaining about this within the context of the realms of 80’s metal needs to spend more time with Destruction’s Eternal Devastation and its teeth-splitting treble or Metal from Hell by Satan’s Host (is that a guitar or did they just run a vacuum cleaner through a distortion pedal?). Honestly, I think this a suitably grandiose sounding record with enough polish and depth to allow the guitars to shine and Messiah, obviously, takes the spotlight in the mix.

Speaking of which, I’ve heard criticisms towards Messiah’s performance on this record as being “too gothic”. Obviously, a song like ‘A Cry from the Crypt’ is usually considered the main offender. However, I do wonder what critics were expecting from a song with that title? If nothing else, in such a context I don’t think one can be too gothic. Furthermore, it’s not like any of Messiah’s previous performances had been anywhere near understated; he’s the loud, proud guy in a monk’s outfit… never one to shy away from being the owner of metal’s finest warbling, wobbly vibrato. These people aren’t fit to eat Messiah’s cold McDonald’s cheeseburgers, I tell ya.

For the rest of us, then, there’s a suitably dramatic performance full of all the pathos and over-the-top melancholy that made the epic part of doom metal. If he wasn’t a metal singer (one whose absence from the scene is baffling – c’mon, man, you’ve got that voice, you should be out there using it!) I could imagine Messiah in theatre. Maybe having a bit part in Shakespeare where the actors – given the frequently minimalistic use of props – have to create the setting using their words only. One can imagine that Messiah wouldn’t struggle to create the freezing fog on a cold night at Elsinore with just a rhyming couplet.

Of course, the other more pressing criticism seems to be that this is one record wherein Candlemass coast by on their fantastic sound, capitalising on the success of two stellar records before it. In fairness, though, I think the only fair criticism that I see levelled at Ancient Dreams is that it isn’t necessarily one of the top-ten doom metal records of all time like its predecessors. Which is a shockingly stringent criticism, if ever there was one. Whilst The Skull or Mournful Cries aren’t as strong as, say, Psalm 9 or Hallows Victim I’d say they absolutely deserve a place in the collection of even those who have a fair-weather interest in doom. The same can be said for Ancient Dreams. In fact, consider it a worthy place of refuge after you’ve – inevitably – overplayed the first two Candlemass records somewhat. So, consider that a massive benefit!

Furthermore, you have the sense that the band breathe a little better on this record: having been established as more of a “studio-project” on the first two albums (in the fine, Bathory-approved tradition of not playing live), the band finally got out on tour after Nightfall’s release and they reap the rewards here. It might be a somewhat nebulous issue to take, but Nightfall is just a little stiffer rhythmically than Ancient Dreams and it seems that the band are slightly more developed in their roles (ironically, the band used a click track on this record for the first time). Of course, Lars Johansson is a masterful player and, it seems to me, that he would be more than capable of being a guitar-hero bandleader in any other project (he is, however, too astute of a player and knows that the songs have to shine first and, therefore, plays accordingly – not accordion, that would be weird). Additionally, the band are keen to flex their harmony guitar muscles a little more on this record, which makes for wonderful interplay and tends to ‘liven’ up some of Leif’s more leaden riffs, which is occasionally necessary given his somewhat single-minded approach to writing here.

I should note that these criticisms are not necessarily ones I’ve read on this site, but nonetheless, Ancient Dreams is a mandatory record for fans of the band. Go forth, seek it out if you haven’t already and maybe give it another spin if you’ve been sleeping on it.

Sitting here on the Christian holiday of Candlemas, listening to Ancient Dreams, surrounded by lit candles, and drinking the Iron Maiden beer Hallowed: I am feeling pretty in the zone. So I think a review for my favourite Candlemass album is in order.

What is it that makes me prefer this album over the monstrously regarded Epicus Doomicus Metalus and Nightfall? I think it comes down to consistent hooks. While Epicus undoubtedly starts out with probably the greatest song that Candlemass ever wrote, and the rest of the album is excellent, I find that my attention can start to wander at times. Even more damning for Nightfall, is that I find myself rather bored throughout most of the album, with the notable exception of "At The Gallow's End". But there's something about the tracks on Ancient Dreams that keep me allured and engaged throughout the entire runtime.

"Mirror Mirror", while not immediately recognizeable as similar to "Crystal Ball" on Epicus, gives me that same feel, only better. In some ways it sounds like a cliche, "oh, the metal band singing about a magic mirror" but dayum, they do it well. Marcolin's voice really elevates the topic of the mirror to another plane. And "A Cry From The Crypt", holy hell, this might be my favourite Candlemass riff. It literally sounds like a corpse is slowly creeping its way out of the crypt towards you. Ditto for the other riffs too, in that many of them seem to embody the action/vibe of what the song is about.

Yes, it's definitely the riffs that make this album stand out to me. Marcolin's operatic voice is amazing, but it's also amazing on Nightfall and Tales Of Creation, so that can't be what elevates this above the others, although it's still an integral part of what makes this outstanding. Most of the lyrics seem to be inspired by Biblical stories, which certainly suits the origin of the band name, and fits the epic sound well.

The musicianship is solid, and the songwriting is gold. Slow parts that resemble "Children Of The Grave" type Black Sabbath, with sporadic bursts of speed bordering on thrash, not too different from early Trouble. Lots of the rhythm guitar tends to be slow and is played with lots of staccato, which gives it a kind of doomy trot, as though a dark figure is slowing shuffling along a castle corridor. Funny enough, the only thing that doesn't work too well on here is the Black Sabbath medley. Not that it's bad, but it belongs on a bonus disc, not tacked onto the end of the album.

All in all I don't have too much more to say about this album, except that it's great! If you already know what early Candlemass sounds like, but you haven't heard this album, you will most certainly enjoy it. It has that same galloping, pounding, epic doomy trot to it that complements the operatic vocals so well on all their albums. And if you haven't heard any Candlemass yet, here wouldn't be a bad place to start. Heck, any of their first four albums would be a splendid start. Even Nightfall is a good album, I just descend into an illogical boredom with it most of the time. But I always remain engaged during this beauty!

The late-80’s… the world was speed and thrash (with a healthy shade of death), and if one wanted to survive, they had to adapt to these speedy ways of expression. The US power metal scene nearly disappeared with many of its representatives (Helstar, Nasty Savage, Laaz Rockit, Liege Lord, Attacker, etc.) putting on the thrash “uniform”. Even the epic metal band of all epic metal bands Manilla Road started thrashing like demented on “Out of the Abyss” (simply remember “White Chapel” and run all the way to the Moon for cover). For a moment the other battle hymn-behemoths, Manowar, created the illusion that they were turning into a Slayer clone with “Winds of Fire”, the “Kings of Metal“ opener…

In truth, the speed/thrash metal craze was the first indication that the metal brotherhood was open to adaptations, so it wasn’t so surprising after all that many of the 80’s veterans embraced, more or less readily, the groove/aggro/alternative trends that conquered the scene a few years later. Evolution was the name of the game even for the leaders of the doom metal ship, Candlemass. Playing fast and tight within a doom metal context wasn’t exactly a novelty before the album reviewed here: just remember Trouble and their frequent speedy excursions on their early instalments; and Mercy, the band from where Messiah Marcolin came, although the Swedes’ arsenal wasn’t very loosely related to doom in the first place.

For the Leif Edling gang “flirtations” with the more dynamic ways of expression weren’t the rarest occurrence, either, although they could only be traced to “Sorcerer’s Pledge“ from the debut, and “”Dark are the Veils of Death” from “Nightfall” (bits and pieces from “At the Gallows End” as well). However, here these expressions take the upper hand threatening to tumble the whole doom ship down, but all in a good way. I guess it’s only the kings of doom that can pull it off without sticking to the genre regulations; and not only but also to create their magnum opus. Because in the long run it’s the quality of the music that matters, not some stupid definitions and dogmatic tags restricting the artists’ visions…

I revere each of the first four Candlemass albums in pretty much the same way, but I tend to listen to this album here the most. I don’t know why, I guess it’s the more various manners of execution, its very dark sinister tone, its depressing pessimistic aura… it’s tough to tell. What sucks in the listener almost immediately is the very thick bass sound; Edling had decided to put himself up front, and the bass literally peels pieces of skin from your body the moment “Mirror Mirror” starts. This is arguably the most ship-sinking bass reverberation this side of Geezer Butler’s early feats. It dominates the landscape with such authority that there are moments from the album where it deafens the guitars even. You can hear the glasses and the plates shake in the kitchen if you play the music louder… it could even shatter the foundations of a small shack; no kidding.

Bass burps aside, said opener is a fabulous way to begin this morose saga. It’s hard to categorize this number; it is thrash, is it doom, is it power… I guess it’s just gorgeous metal Marcolin’s extraordinary vocals bringing all opera singers back to the conservatory with the closing glass-breaking chords. Mournful doom notes inaugurate the arrival of “A Cry from the Crypt”, but what follows is the greatest gallops in the annals of metal, absolutely overwhelming, Russian tank-like, steam-roller guitars that leave no stone unturned during their brooding, intimidating march. This is speed/thrash at its heaviest, most doom-laden form that puts to shame half the functional at the time thrash brotherhood. But that’s not all as at the end we have an extraordinary elegiac, sorrowful doomy epitaph, a bit over a min of pure musical magic; so much for nullifying pleiads of doom metal opuses with just a single stroke…

doom metal takes over afterwards, and “Darkness in Paradise” is one of the guys’ most emblematic songs, dark depression in its most shining musical form. Not much brightness on the following “Incarnation of Evil”, another supreme doom metal anthem with a crushing main motif which could pass for thrash if sped up by a notch; Johansson is ravishing with some of the greatest leads unleashed from his arsenal not to mention Marcolin’s impressive, soporific high-strung antics. “Bearer of Pain” brings back the more aggressive thrashy riffage which gets mixed with breath-taking balladic sections and hypnotic doomy dirges to a fairly dramatic effect. Prepare for the title-track, doom metal in its purest, most epic shape largely carried by Marcolin’s splendid performance, arguably the crowning achievement in his career. “The Bells of Acheron” follows suit to bang the heads again with vigorous speed/thrashy rhythms, the most immediate piece here, direct intense riffage without much doomy ado. “Epistle N81” largely compensates for the previous number’s hyper-active stance with grievous soporific tunes bordering on the ballad, but is this one of the saddest songs ever composed, not without Marcolin’s help again who nearly cries on some of the lines; the Funeral March should be re-written with motifs from this cut included to stop casual mourners and passers-by from dancing around the graves like it happens from time to time.

“Nightfall” is pretty much the perfect doom metal opus; it didn’t make sense for the band to reproduce it note-by-note for their own gratification. Something had to change, either to inaugurate the funeral doom sector by slowing down to a snail-like rate which wasn’t such an impossible task having in mind that the guys gave such a superb rendition of the Funeral March; or to speed up and impress the audience with their ability to speed/thrash with the finest. They simply settled for the second option, and came up with another masterpiece, an album that didn’t repeat their past exploits and had its individual face, also attracting wider audience in the process. I don’t know a Candlemass fan who had been left disappointed by this album; some were surprised by its faster pace, but such grand music is easy to get into, and man, would this overpowering bass hypnotize you like a serpent, and ensnare you in its iron grip…

one more grandiose opus followed a year later, again with a more characteristic sound, the bass tamed to a large extent for the sake of sharper, still super heavy guitars. Then Marcolin left thus allowing his comrades to explore more flexible vistas with “Chapter VI” which gave birth to a large scene of progressive power/doom metal acts (Memento Mori with Marcolin fully operational once again; Abstrakt Algebra, an Edling side-project; Fifth Reason, Memory Garden, Veni Domine, etc.). More metamorphoses followed including another stint with Marcolin (the self-titled, 2005) until the band found their stride again with none other than Robert Lowe (Solitude Aeturnus) behind the mike. The veterans are alive and well in the new millennium, there’s nothing stopping them from conquering Mount Doom again and again, be it with a slow patient stroll, or with an impetuous urgent gallop.

It would be really hard for me to give a Candlemass album a poor rating, but I did consider giving Ancient Dreams about 80%. Hopefully, by the end of this review my reasoning will be explained.

However, I'd like to start with the album cover, a copy of Thomas Cole's painting 'Youth'. That cover is a lot for any band to live up to, isn't it? There's a gorgeous, primal countryside with a foreboding mountain lurking at the horizon, above which we can see a temple in the sky - the celestial city. In the foreground is a tiny boat with 2 figures reaching towards that distant and unearthly emblem, straining to touch the unreachable.

And yet, that scene describes Candlemass so exactly. The band sound, in a completely non-denominational sense, utterly godly as they stretch a musical finger towards the perfect city in the sky that, as we can tell from the fact they are playing doom metal, they know they will never reach. There is a hopeless crushing quality to the music and lyrics that in no way undermines the joyous celebration that those epic riffs seem to create: the vastness of the sound and vision is matched only by the emptiness of the reality, because without that mirage on the cover, it only shows a man in a boat and without those sublime ideas Candlemass are only 5 Swedes with instruments and dodgy haircuts (seriously, Google "Leif Edling's mullet").

Ancient Dreams is not the best Candlemass album, though it might contain the most perfectly realized songs of the band's career. 'Mirror Mirror' is a very strong opener, but is superseded 3 times as the best song on the album. 'Darkness in Paradise' has a wickedly haunting vocal line and the main riff sounds like a salute to angels; 'Bearer of Pain' is lyrically very involving and has a great solo; 'Ancient Dreams' really does sound like the sky opening up and the mysteries of the universe being revealed, even though the theme is concerning the futility of hope and the eternal longing that won't go away. Aside from those exquisite moments, there is a good general mixture of signature Candlemass elements. Slower songs are well balanced alongside faster riffs and sections, the leads are usually creative and satisfying, and Messiah gives perhaps his best performance with plenty of nuance alongside his famous power.

My complaints, however, are directed at 'Incarnation of Evil' and 'Black Sabbath Medley'. Sad to say but 'Incarnation of Evil' does not really sound like a Candlemass song, nor does it sound like a song by any other band I want to listen to. It's an example of a great band forgetting what makes them great, as the most bombastic epic doom machine in the world has a crack at subtlety, which isn't what this kind of music is about at all. The performance is flat, too slow and lifeless, and the riffs and vocal lines are very forgettable, not to mention the horrible cliche of the lyrics. 'Black Sabbath Medley' is not particularly bad, I just don't find it a helpful addition to this version of the album - I would prefer to just have a copy on disc 2 of the remastered edition alongside the live tracks. Candlemass and Sabbath are very different bands, whatever the debt of influence owed, and those very classic riffs sound horribly out of place after the last rites of the closing 'Epistle 81'.

A few minor points to grumble about might be the slightly flat guitar tone (it attained levels of impeccable crispiness on the following full-length) or the moments that wander in the more generic 'A Cry from the Crypt' or the way that 'The Bells of Acheron' repeats a riff that isn't that interesting. The drums could sound a bit tighter as well, bearing in mind that I'm reviewing the remastered version, but I can't help but feel that these complaints are caused by the utter hugeness of 4 of the tracks on here, plus the don't-touch-anything beauty of 'Epistle 81'. I also award one bonus point for Leif Edling's description of Milton Keynes (where I currently live) in the liner notes with the apt summary that it's all roundabouts, but "where are the people?"

Now, to explain my actual rating. If those 2 nasty songs mentioned above were removed from the release (at least from disc 1), Ancient Dreams would contain 7 songs and be 45 minutes long, which is plenty of time for a doom metal album, especially when the songs are as well developed as they are here. Of those 45 minutes, there is ONE other fault that I can find, which is the high note that Messiah hits in the chorus of 'Bearer of Pain', though even that's growing on me. Everything else, however, is just sublime. Everything else makes me feel like I could touch that castle in the sky.

When you've recorded an album like "Nightfall", the best you can do is split up your band, and spend the rest of your lifetime becoming a legend in eternity. No, I'm kidding of course, but it is only natural that "Ancient Dreams" couldn't possibly match the previous one. It is both natural and acceptable. But that doesn't mean we should underestimate it, right? Like we wouldn't like to underestimate "...And Justice For All" or "Somewhere In Time", because this is the league we're talking about. Absolute Premiership, if you ask me.

So the recipe is well-known, heaviest, most desperate doom, injected with shots of up tempo riffing like rays of light in a gloomy crypt. Three or four ultimate classics reside in here, "Up From The Crypt", "Mirror Mirror", "Darkness In Paradise" and maybe "Incarnation Of Evil" do stand out from the rest-and that's the difference in comparison to "Nightfall" where you just can't make a choice. The rest of the songs in "Ancient Dreams" are great, but not classics. It seems Leif Edling is a guy who just can't compose a bad song, just good, great and classics. But Edling's great is other people's classics and so on. To be honest, most doom metal bands would cut off one of their testicles to have recorded "Ancient Dreams".

So I think you maybe understand my train of thought behind the "90/100". For any, and I mean ANY, other band, this would be a crystal clear perfect 100. In a way, it is deeply unfair that this album is in the shadow of its predecessor. It's so damn heavy, so damn good, so damn well-played and well-produced. The artwork is great, the vocals will make the hair of your back stand like barbed wire, the riffs are like funeral bells in your bedroom, it is a quintessential doom metal album. Don't overlook this one, you will miss a lot. If I had to make a choice, you all know what it would be. But that doesn't mean I can't enjoy "Ancient Dreams" with all my soul, right? There's room in my shelf for both of them (actually, for all Candlemass albums in existence) so it's no big deal anyway.

This is perhaps one of the most overlooked Candlemass albums – like other reviewers have said, most people point you to Epicus Doomicus Metallicus and Nightfall as the two best candlemass albums, however, Ancient Dreams is quite a strong release, and perhaps, dare I say, one of the best doom metal albums ever created.


Of course, doom metal takes a lot of cues from Sabbath – and Candlemass is no exception. The riffing here is similar to any early Sabbath. However, Candlemass takes what Black Sabbath had and expands it. They took what Sabbath had and made it darker, longer, and more epic than anything Sabbath put out. Some of the riffs on this album are downright twisted, and the eerie way Candlemass harmonizes a lot of their song’s main riffs makes them that much more creepy. There are no happy riffs here – every riff on here is sinister and morbid. Imagine wading through tar after a heavy dose of psychedelic drugs, and you get the idea of the riffing on this album. At the same time though, Candlemass manages not only to create significantly creepy riffs they also have those soaring, epic sections that really make the songs on this album, such as near the end of “A Cry From the Crypt”, for the best example. The way Candlemass manages to incorporate these kinds of riffs fluently into their songs is what sets them apart from other doom metal bands, which often end up being too slow and plodding instead of heavy and epic, which is what Candlemass does perfectly. On top of all this they also manage to have many thrashy riffs thrown in, obviously nothing as fast as something off of Bonded by Blood or Darkness Descends, but crushing and heavy. Imagine if Sodom or (early) Slayer got extremely stoned – that’s sorta what some of these riffs would sound like. This kind of riffing is most evident on “Bearer of Pain”, or maybe “Incantation of Evil”. It is also obligatory for a metal album to have guitar solos, and Candlemass does this quite well. The solos on this album are perfectly adapted to the songs – imagine a slowed down Yngwie Malmsteen, but more sophisticated. The whammy bar is not used recklessly here, unlike many bands which relentlessly abuse it.


Now about the vocals of Messiah Marcolin. This guys voice is perfectly suited for Candlemass. His soaring, operatic vocals perfectly compliment the slow, heavy guitars riffs and the slow, crushing drum work. The thing that makes this guy different though is that he has an awesome vibrato – the power in his voice is unmatched, and probably the epitome of doom metal vocals.


The drumming of Jan Lindh is quite simplistic. Definitely not very fast – there is no blast beats or ferocious thrash breaks here. However, that doesn’t make it bad. The drumming matches perfectly with the guitars, and the minimalist approach Jan uses works quite effectively.

The lyrics here are pretty interesting, and are just like the music - dark and sinister. Many of the themes of the lyrics here are fantasy, but with a dark, evil twist, and that gives the listener an impeding sense of doom, and along with the majestically creepy riffs, creates a perfect atmosphere for a metal album, or any album in general, and for 52 minutes you are subjected to some insanely talented songwriting and musicianship, and some of the best doom metal ever.

Overall, I think this is an album that most metal fans can enjoy. It's not too slow, or too fast, but interesting and unique, accessible and easy to listen to, and a true classic in the doom metal genre.

This is one of those albums which helped define my adolescence. It was the first time I'd heard doom. It was the first time songs had actually scared me! This might sound quaint in these days of sicko extremity and blacker-than-thou blackness in blackest of black metal (!) but back in the late 80s, only a handful of bands had the ability to give you the heebie-jeebies in their music. But there was a genuinely eerie quality to Candlemass's songwriting and performances on this album which set the band apart from other purveyors of supposedly evil/Satanic metal. Candlemass eschewed the gore and deliberate attempts to offend that characterized Slayer. They were also less fixated on horror movie theatricality than King Diamond. Candlemass, to me, can be mentioned in the same breath as Celtic Frost in terms of their scariness. But CF were much more radical, leftfield, experimental, avant garde. Candlemass were simpler; more obvious, perhaps.

On Ancient Dreams, they deal with fairly stereotypical lyrical themes of dark fantasy and demons and devils and etc on the whole. But the songs are delivered with such panache, such skill, such emotion and such a fantastic ear for melody that you'll forgive them that. And, anyway, Epistle No 81 is a completely unexpected and unusual song. It's a mourner's lament, a heart-rending ode to mortality which has its origins in the imagination of 18th century Swedish poet Carl Michael Bellman. It's an oft-overlooked doom metal classic. But then, I'd say every single song on the album is a classic in its own right. You'll weep at the crushing, monumental beauty of the riffs the band come up with on song after song. Rifftastic highlights include Darkness in Paradise, Incarnation of Evil, Ancient Dreams and Mirror, Mirror.

Sacrilege though it might be to say it, I actually prefer the Black Sabbath Medley that closes Ancient Dreams to the originals it distils so perfectly! And I haven't even mentioned Messiah Marcolin's phenomenal voice yet! He was truly one of the greatest frontmen metal has ever seen with a highly distinctive sound that is simultaneously so pleasing to the ears and powerful. Wonderful as his performances on the other Candlemass albums might be, Ancient Dreams represents the pinnacle of his career. It is also the band's best work to date.

Most people rate Nightfall and Epicus Doomicus Metallicus as Candlemass's best two albums. But I think Ancient Dreams is just as good in many ways. Better in some ways, actually.

First off, people often say that "A Cry from the Crypt" is a weak song because it sounds vaguely like "At the Gallows' End" from Nightfall. I disagree. It is a great song - pure doom from beginning to end. Even better, it has a really sad and tragic riff at the end, and is the only one of Candlemass's songs that actually makes me feel sad, from their first four albums at least.

Not only that, but this album is pure doom - 52 minutes of it - all eight tracks are proper doom metal tracks. And the final and ninth track, "Black Sabbath Medley", is no worse than the instrumental tracks on Nightfall and Tales of Creation. Those tracks are what prevent Nightfall from being a perfect album, in my opinion. They are filler. Same with Tales of Creation. On the other hand, on "Ancient Dreams" there is no filler, except for Black Sabbath Medley. All eight of the proper tracks are pure doom, and I find all of them to be either very good at the least, or excellent at the best.

Besides the awesome "Mirror, Mirror", which is probably one of their best songs ever, and "A Cry from the Crypt" which I still really like, "Darkness in Paradise" and "Incarnation of Evil" are also fantastic doom metal songs. Darkness in Paradise was supposedly made less good because it had a bad production job, but I don't notice this - it's a great song, probably one of Candlemass's best. Fantastic Solo in the middle. Great words too.

Incarnation of Evil is also great.......very doomy and very evil and scary. Brilliant riffing and creepy words. I don't know why Leif Edling doesn't like this song, I think it's awesome.

Next, "Bearer of Pain" is much faster, almost thrashy at times, and although it isn't as dark and scary as the previous songs, it's a great fantasy based song with good riffs and solos.

The title track, "Ancient Dreams" is a bit on the slow side, but that means it is even doomier. Definitely an interesting dark fantasy tale. A good song anyway.

The last two songs, "The Bells of Acheron" and "Epistle No. 81" are good songs too, the former being fast and semi thrashy, the latter being slow, plodding, and doomy. But both are good.

As for "Black Sabbath Medley" - well, it's Black Sabbath. I find this track to be ok. Certainly, it isn't out of place to have Black Sabbath on a doom metal album.

The other reason why I think this album, along with Nightfall, is actually better than Epicus Doomicus Metallicus in places, is because it has a unified theme, and so does Nightfall. They aren't concept albums - that isn't what I mean. I mean the songs have similar themes, which makes the albums fit together better. On Nightfall, for instance, almost all of the main six songs - four of them - are about death, in one way or another. "The Well of Souls" and "Bewitched" are about demons coming from hell and a person being possessed by the devil, respectively, but other than that, the album has a much more unified theme than Epicus, which was six songs - six great doom metal songs, to be sure - but they were, perhaps, too different from one another lyrically. On Nightfall and Ancient Dreams, this is not so. Ancient Dreams, unlike Nightfall, focuses on dark fantasy, heaven and hell, and demons and devils rather than death, which makes it very mythological and interesting.

Anyway, a great doom album - easily one of the best albums I could recommend to anyone who wants to understand what true doom metal is. Candlemass is epic doom metal, but they are proper and pure doom in every way. And Ancient Dreams is one of the finest pure doom metal albums ever - the biggest reason, besides all of what I have already listed, being that besides the final track, there is no filler whatsoever on it. Pure doom metal.

For people into metal, it’s normal for certain bands to pop into your head when you hear the “Doom Metal.” The first band is usually Black Sabbath, and for the sake of this review, I hope the second band that jumps into your head is Candlemass.

For those (unfortunate) few not familiar with Candlemass, they are a five piece band from Sweden characterized by their thick sludgy epic sound and their insane borderline operatic vocalist.

Some people would say that Candlemass founded their very own genre within a genre, most often referred to as “Epic Power Doom.” Their third full length release, titled Ancient Dreams found them moving further into this genre by establishing more of a stronghold within the doom community.

Not as impressive as their previous album Nightfall, this is still a very strong album
most fans of doom probably aren’t as familiar with Ancient Dreams as they might be with Epicus Doomicus Metallicus, their first full length released in 1986.

All of the elements that fans of doom have come to expect from Candlemass are of course present in this 1988 release. You have the slow crawling to mid-paced tempo, the sweeping arcs of melody laden riffs arranged beautifully to create a very epic appeal to the presentation of the album and a man with the voice needed to get the powerful words and emotions across.

Messiah Marcolin is the name belonging to the voice on this album. With a unique timbre and style of singing, Messiah’s vocal power rivals that of an opera singer. With his incredible range and strong vibrato, he is the epitome of what most power metal vocalists strive to be. While annoying to some, I find that his voice adds something to this album that would be lacking with any other vocalist. “Epistle No. 81” is a perfect example of how versatile his voice really is. The music in this song is what you would expect from Candlemass: dark and somber with excellent deep-pitched vocals in the appropriate places.

Even though this album is pure doom, it excels in variety. Not only do they play in slow motion, most songs are peppered with faster passages as well, and there are also gothic melodic passages as well, if only to keep the listener’s attention, which is fine. Not that they need to do that here. If the music isn’t enough to keep your attention, bassist and chief songwriter Leif Edling has added lyrics that definitely capture the imagination and ears of those listening. The stories of demons, death, darkness and despair should appeal to all fans of the band.

Lead guitarist Lars Johansson is a wonderful soloist and he isn’t afraid to use a variety of techniques in his playing. You get a combination of sludgy slow Sabbath-type riffs and dark melodies delivered with less low end and more beautiful haunting melodies than one might expect from a band in this genre.

To demonstrate the wide variety on this album, you should listen to “Mirror Mirror” and “Bearer of Pain” which are two of the thrashier songs on this album while songs like “Incarnation of Evil” is more slow and plodding.

Ancient Dreams is an album highlighted by memorable choruses, dark melodies and epic compositions all in the seven minute range. While most fans of Candlemass would rate this below Nightfall and Epicus, I have to rate this higher than both. I feel that the vocal arrangements on this album are far more emotional than the two albums before it. This is definitely essential ‘80s metal, especially for those with a soft spot for bands like Solitude Aeturnus and later My Dying Bride.

Also, as an added bonus, there is a wonderful Black Sabbath medley. A little something for everyone, I guess.

All in all, this is definitely a masterpiece of doom. If you’re into doom at all, you’ll be into this album.