Like quite a few other bands, Paradise Lost decided to make the best of a poor situation by recording a set with no audience present, filming and recording it for a Blu-ray and CD release. I only have the audio, so don’t know if the band had any additional guests at The Mill Nightclub, in Bradford, West Yorkshire on November 5th 2020 but if not then they have used some backing tracks here and there, as no-one else is listed yet we have some female vocals, keyboards etc. Mind you, that is only a minor niggle as the band showed why they have been around for more than 30 years with just one line-up change (which means that drummer Waltteri Väyrynen is unlikely to ever lose the newbie status, even though he joined in 2016). What we have here is a collection of songs which include some which have not previously been played live and includes what everyone would hope to see from a career-spanning set. Guitarist and songwriter Greg Mackintosh said, “We decided against trying to pretend there was an audience in the room with us, opting instead for a rather moribund version of a live lounge show. Whilst never being pleased with anything, we were however slightly less miserable at the result.”

The result is a set which moves from Goth through death and doom into areas more atmospheric, always with the guitars at the heart of everything and singer Nick Holmes showing how he can switch through multiple styles, singing sweetly here, providing death growls there, and then being 100% goth there. They produce a wall of sound which is all-consuming, powerful and hitting like a melodic metallic sledgehammer, clearly demonstrating why they have been such a major influence on so many other bands. At more than 70 minutes in length this is a great introduction to the band, covering as it does so much of the band’s career. If anyone wanted to know where so many dark metal bands take their influence from then look no further than this.

Rating: 8/10

Links:
https://www.paradiselost.co.uk/
https://www.nuclearblast.com/