Paths – In Lands Thought Lost

[schema type=”review” name=”Paths – In Lands Thought Lost” description=”Label: Bindrune Recordings” author=”Başak Günel” pubdate=”2018-09-28″ ]

Paths is a Canadian black metal act. They were formed in 2013 and started with a psychedelic black metal sound but this evolved to an atmospheric BM later on. The band has a few releases including a few demos and two full-lengths. They are back with a third full-length called “In Lands Thought Lost”.

Considering they come from Canada, the whole Scandinavian black metal vibe was quite surprising to hear and feel. The sound is cold and dark, at times atmospheric and at times fast. Sound-wise, black metal forms the essence of the album for sure but I also sensed a bit of post-metal. The songs are long which is typical for atmospheric BM. Now depending on whether you like long BM songs or not, this album will either grow on you or become dull.

One thing I would criticize would be the band’s creativity. With an album like this, one could have gotten a lot more experimental and even epic. Instead, the songs sadly became too repetitive towards the end and lost their spark. The length of the songs and the production, especially the drumming, do not make it better sadly. On one hand, I definitely see the potential in this album and this band; Paths has a certain vision and inspiration but it takes a bit more to ignite the spark within this sound.

“In Lands Thought Lost” might not be the best album I listened to this year but I will keep an eye on this band. Let’s hope that they get better next time and deliver us some fine black metal!

Tracklist: 01. Night’s Tomb 02. To Brave the Storm 03. Creaking Boughs 04. The Everbright Land 05. South Ever South

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