Cathedral - The Guessing Game

The British leaders of a whole genre have return to discography after their great last album “The Garden of Unearthly Delights” in 2005 (pff… 5 years already have passed). When I first got informed that their new album is about to be a double CD set, something really unusual for them and they are about to move into more progressive rock forms, instantly a great curiosity got me about their new sound and their new album “The Guessing Game”
\r\nWhile I was listening to the promo, even from the first notes I realize that this quartet from Coventry is about to deliver us once again something rather different, it’s a fact that Cathedral almost on every album sound different, on this specific album their progressive rock influences are more audible than ever and in specific parts someone could tell that their main influence is the “Canterbury scene” and bands like Caravan, Soft Machine etc. This fact doesn’t mean that the ultra thick riffing of Gaz does not exist, on the contrary their classic riffing is once again here, but this time some more sounds have been added and instruments like clean guitars, mellotron, also I think that there is a sitar on this album.
\r\nBut someone will wonder why Cathedral changed their sound, well it’s so simple, as many old friends of the band would remember Cathedral were always this way, from the monumental flute on “Reaching Happiness, Touching Pain” from “Forest of Equilibrium” LP, to the funky experiments on “Hopkins” E.P. they always used to mix not metal sounds to their doom metal aesthetics, but probably they decided that this was the right time to focus on their prog rock side of them.
\r\nPersonally I consider “The Guessing Game” as the most “mature” album of them since the outcome sounds so tight and wise produced. I am sure that many fans will disagree with my opinion since they might want something more “Classic Cathedral sound” but after 4-5 auditions, I am sure that they will realize that this is a classic Cathedral album just because this is Cathedral,  the doom metal hippies of the 70’s and they adore the 70’s sound no matter if this is Sabbath or Gong.
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\r\nLampros “Witchfynder” Tennes
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