Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Furious Return To Form, 17 Oct 2008
Let's face it: Thornography is utter pants. Nothing of the sparkle that made previous albums, even up as recently as 2004's Nymphetamine, such joys to listen to. Not only that, but there was a bizarre attempt at commercialising their sound which just failed altogether. That album's reissue featured a few more promising tracks fitting of the deluxe edition's subtitle: harder, darker, faster. After a good few listens, I can happily say that Godspeed on the Devil's Thunder is a hundred times harder, darker and faster than Thornography, and then some.
The album is the band's third concept album, and their second about a serial killer (lest you count the devil as such, in which case it's three for three). Right off the bat, I'll address the one misfire on offer here: "The Death of Love" is an unfortunate piece stuck in the pivotal track-three slot, and could almost put you off the rest of the album. Thankfully, it is the only one example of that dreadful Thorno-era pandering rearing its unwanted head. Chorus aside, the song is actually quite good. But what of the Dusk... meets Midian sound we were promised by Paul Allender months ago? Read on...
He was half right, at least. I wouldn't say the album is stylistically similar to Dusk...And Her Embrace or Midian, but it terms of speed its a match for either. The fact that it sounds a lot like 2003's Damnation and a Day (another concept album) would lead me to think that the structure of a concept album works well for the band. The style on Thornography was more like a collection of songs than an actual album, if you know what I mean. Godspeed... actually feels coherent, thanks in no small measure to Doug Bradley's narration and the overarching theme of the record, place and people's names popping up all over the place.
As always, the lineup is different to that of the last album, by no means a bad thing. New drummer Martin Skaroupka is the band's most capable since Nicholas Barker left. Guest keyboardist Mark "De Sade" Newby-Robson really makes the tinkling feel like an integral part of the band again, his compositions being somewhere between Les Smith's and Martin Foul's in terms of quality. Certainly better than anything since Damnation. Sarah Jezebel Deva's Relentless Cockney Overtones are mercifully kept to a bare minimum here as well, another coup for fans.
Waffle dealt with, what of the songs? Well, "S**t Out Of Hell" really sets the tone with its immediate blastbeats and spiraling guitars, and features a great breakdown of sorts near the end. "Tiffauges" features musical themes that pop up again in the blistering "Tragic Kingdom". The pace barely lets up for the whole album. One thing I noticed while familiarising myself with the record was that Dani Filth's vocals have actually impressed me for the very first time, such is the high quality on offer here. "Honey and Sulphur" may well be the best song here, thanks to some seriously excellent riffs, though "Darkness Incarnate" gives it a run for its money for much the same reason. The closer "Corpseflower" ends things on an orchestral note for the first time since Damnation, another tie to the earlier concept album.
I imagine Godspeed on The Devil's Thunder will win back a fair portion of the fans put off by the last, shoddy album. Indeed, as a longtime fan myself, I feel a new enthusiasm about the band. Highly recommended.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wow, 5 Nov 2008
I was never much of a fan of Cradle's early works, although I admired the bands visualisations and their subject matter, I couldn't get past Dani's banshee/night after a bad curry vocal combo. However, Midian reeled me in with the fantastic "Her Ghost In The Fog" and I've been a fan ever since. I find it easy to like/dislike Cradle's albums, where Midian was an amazing album, I found Damnation hard work. I loved Nymphetamine and whilst I couldn't immediately like Thornography, I've since revisited it and found it to be an excellent album that I unfairly wrote off at first.
Godspeed is a whole different ball game though, I can't stop playing it. I've noticed other reviewers, fans of Cradles early stuff saying that this is the best since the old days...which I find interesting because I think that this album is a progression from Thornography. This album is meticulous in execution, from the concept to the ever reliable Doug Bradley's narration. The music is astounding, this band has never sounded better, I've always been impressed by the sheer poetry of Dani and this release is no exception.
I'm not even annoyed at the inclusion of two 'bonus' tracks on CD2 from "Harder, Darker Faster" (even though I bought the original Thornography) as for a change Roadrunner have given me the option of buying a special edition at the same time as the regular edition. Rare for Roadrunner!
All in all, I've never played a Cradle album as much as this one (much to the annoyance of my family/neighbours), a solid release from a band that polarize opinion but are always full of surprises.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Cradle return to form, 13 May 2009
I think that the majority of Cradle fans would agree with me that their last 2 albums have been a bit of a disappointment. I wouldn't advise against having a listen to Thornography but it and Nymphetamine were very much on the commercial and crowd pleasing side, failing to really deliver on the heaviness, darkness and maleficent magic that we hope for. But times have changed and Cradle seem to have gone back to what they do best, another concept album (their 4th, if you count Midian, which is more linked by a theme than telling a story). So they return to tell the blood drenched, dark and decadent story of the notorious Gilles de Rais. Google him. Concept albums have always worked well for Cradle with Dani's deranged poetry and the band's seeming inability to write anything catchy that their fans don't hate.
Opener "Shat out of hell" isn't the most auspicious of openers, with a somewhat annoyingly shouty approach, although the powerful riff is a good start, and it gets pretty good toward the end. Then we start to get into the interesting territory. "The Death of Love" and "The 13th Ceasar" are both very impressive efforts. The former utilising Sarah's beautiful vocals to full effect to tell the dramatic and tragic tale of Joan of Arc. The latter is possibly my favourite. Gothic, spooky choral backing, beautiful strings and heavy riffs all mixed together. "Honey and Sulphur" is another winner, also employing the choirs and severely screechy vocals not to mention some very poetic lyrics. "Midnight Shadows..." is one of their more fun songs, with some melodic keyboards added. Finally, "Ten Leagues Beneath Contempt" is my other favourite, I think it somehow shows a more mature side to their music. Very beautiful lyrics and a simple but effective riff, I can't stop listening to it.
The only thing I really don't like about this album is they have overused Doug Bradley's narrative something chronic. It's a good bit of story telling the first or second time round, but mostly I just want to listen to the music, and it gets on my nerves having to sit through the narration. It depends whether or not you want to listen to the album in one go.
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