As forefathers and pioneers of the Gothic Doom movement, Paradise Lost have been pushing boundaries their entire career; from the genre defining "Gothic" opus to this, "In Requiem" their tenth studio album. With mixed successes over their two decade existence, Paradise Lost have been true to their ideals and continued to push the creative envelope irrespective of commercial considerations.

2005's self titled release saw a return of the grand operatic styling's of "Gothic". With less Death Metal influences "Paradise Lost" was an acumination of years of experimentation which yielded a triumphant return to form. This momentum has been taken into "In Requiem" and built upon. Having learnt from previous transgressions, all obvious pitfalls have been avoided which felled many a release in the past. Like a skilled sculptor chipping away all the rough edges, sooner or later a masterpiece will emerge.

"Never for the Damned" opens the record in majestic fashion, full of atmosphere and aggression, followed by the anthemic "Ash & Debris" which builds to a rousing crescendo. Full of melody and a real fist punching chorus line will ensure this a favourite in the live shows. So the album continues in this vein, manoeuvring between genres, encompassing the whole spectrum of variations that make up Paradise Lost back catalogue.

"In Requiem's" ability not to be tagged as Doom or Gothic or any other genre you care to name is it's strength. From the first to last song there is no doubting this is classic Paradise Lost, yet there is enough variation and development of their traditional sound to demonstrate that even after twenty years there is no looking back in the glow of warm reflection. Just a knowing nod of acknowledgement and then onto a next challenge. Proving that there is most certainly life in the old dog yet.