Anyone for a slice of Candlemass inspired South American doom? Forty four years on this planet, and I never thought I’d put those words into one single sentence. The simple fact is that Capilla Ardiente (Burning Chapel) hail from Chile, play doom, and readily admit to being inspired by those far more European veterans Candlemass. Such is the global nature of metal that I received this album, and it is now my duty to review the music to help inform readers of where to spend their hard earned money. So, would I recommend you to part with your cash for Capilla Ardiente’s first full length? Please read on.
‘Bravery, Truth and the Endless Darkness’ is truly entitled like a doom album, and that promise is upheld in the instrumental opener ‘Consequence and Consequences’ where the guitars scream, the drums batter, and the tempo is slow and heavy, but with enough pace to pull the band away from the funereal edge of the genre. This same sensibility is progressed into the post intro ‘Nothing Here For Me’, an eleven minute epic that with the opening line of “Cyclopean Hordes”, sung in clean, near operatic style highlights the direction the band is clearly aiming for, as well as showcasing their obvious influences, sword and sorcery inspired lyrics sweeping across the down tuned dragging sound-scape. ‘Towards the Midnight Ocean’ follows surprisingly fast on the previous track’s heels, with an almost thrash intro, artillery barrages guitars trading salvoes before merging into a NWOBHM (New Wave Of British Heavy Metal folks) riff to support the clean and well sustained vocals, an epic number that has more then enough hooks to have cross genre heads banging; throw in a break with a military mark drum roll and the track ticks so many metal check boxes that I’d defy even hardened cynics like me not to have their head banging, right down to some blasting drum beats into the staggering closing riff.
The fact that High Roller Records allows the band to explore and experiment is a tribute to the label, the only sub ten minute numbers being gentle linking tracks like the two minute ‘Naufragios’ before ‘They Who Were Lost and Now Are Cursed’ with its excellent highlighted bass lines, the number enhanced with a most unexpected but welcome Spanish guitar riff, and the almost twelve minute album closer ‘Into Unknown Lands’. By merest coincidence, when I stacked this album alphabetically in my collection, it came out right next to the often afore-mentioned Candlemass; Capilla Ardiente are clearly fans of those doom laden veterans, and could well be contenders to be the heirs to that particular metal throne, should our Swedish masters ever vacate the chair.
(7.5/10 Spenny)
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Capilla-Ardiente/276244682414001
Leave a Reply