Peccatum

Oh, My Regrets (Candlelight)
bby Scott Hefflon

Remember that weird shit Celtic Frost did on Into the Pandemonium, that classically-based, jerky-marionette stuff with female vocals that you were never sure was “good,” but sure was eerie and uncomfortable? Well, Peccatum accomplish the same thing, throwing in some blasting black metal riffs simply to make the mix even more confusing. Far different than Therion, but with the same desire to dig deeper into history to find scary sounds, styles and instruments. Three long, disjointed songs, the oddest of which is a cover of Judas Priest’s epic “Blood Red Skies” like you’ve never heard it! Symphonic strings, traded vocals between Emperor’s Ihsahn and his wife Ihriel, and classic metal chugging to a softly “thupping” dance beat (like when Enigma layered a beat behind Gregorian chants). While some bands might “pump up the bass” or try to match Halford on his own terms, Peccatum speak/sing some and shriek some, contributing the most interesting treatment this metal classic has ever seen.
(2 Elgin Ave. London, W9 3QP, U.K.)