The Principle of Evil Made Flesh

Cradle of Filth's debut LP, The Principle of Evil Made Flesh, is so much about musical and stylistic duality. Although synths had always been part of the Cradle of Filth sound, there lacked a gothic element to their music that is first introduced on this album. Principle also marks a shift in songwriting for the band. Gone are songs driven by atmosphere, replaced by jarring structures and lengthy "compositions."

Cradle of Filth expand their lyrical style more than they do subject matter--their lyrics more poetic and competent than before...but the improvements generally end there. The band's newfound finesse is belied by their inability to invoke what is necessary for a truly evil release. For an album with the word "Evil" in the title, I'm not really feelin' it.

The title track, "To Eve the Art of Witchcraft," and "Summer Dying Fast" are definite standouts. These songs are excellent examples of a band expanding their sound in all the right ways. Principle also has Dani experimenting vocally, and his vocal versatility is an asset to the record--for the most part. The remainder of the album either presents too much of a frustrating experience of failed potential, or just plain bad songs.

"The Forest Whispers My Name," while lyrically one of Cradle's best ever songs, is SOOO FUCKING SLOOW on this record. Way too slow. And lame. A single listen of their re-work of the song featured on Cradle's followup EP, and arguable greatest release, V Empire, will quickly remind anyone to forget the original travesty. The same goes for the equally embarrassing rendition of "The Black Goddess Rises," which comes nowhere near to achieving the atmosphere and darkness the song evoked on the Total Fucking Darkness demo.

One bonus is "A Dream of Wolves In the Snow." Not only does the track feature the excellent Darren White on vocals, but it's also just a good song--very different from anything Cradle have done before (or since for that matter).

All in all, the highlights of Principle cannot save the listener from what is ultimately a frustrating and overlong listen.