Paradise Lost

Paradise Lost - one of the premier death/doom bands (along with their former Peaceville labelmates Anathema and My Dying Bride) that later incorporated electronic elements in their music. They formed in 1988 in Halifax, UK. Along with bands like Dream Death, Sempiternal Deathreign, Asphyx and Winter, they are also credited for helping develop the subgenre known as gothic metal. Ironically, the band is almost unknown in their home country, whereas in mainland Europe they have been extremely popular for many years, especially in Greece, Germany and Bulgaria, where they are regarded as mainstream rock stars. Although they have also been partially attributable for pioneering gothic metal, throughout their career the band have also confounded fans and critics alike with their perpetual taste for reinvention and experimentation, a desire to work with producers from other musical genres, and an oft-stated refusal to repeat themselves for fear of stagnation. For instance, vocalist Nick Holmes used a muddy sounding grunt-style of singing in the band's early duration - Lost Paradise (1990) and Gothic (1991); upon the release of Shades Of God (1992), Icon (1993) and Draconian Times (1995), he refined his voice to a cleaner tone almost akin to James Hetfield of Metallica; and on One Second (1997), which was distributed by hip hop label Jive Records, the band experimented with Depeche Mode-styled synth pop and electronica. Despite criticism from traditionalists, this bold approach has also garnered them many new fans along the way, and cemented the loyalty of progressive "old-timers." Paradise Lost's line-up has remained remarkably consistent for a long-standing band, consisting of singer Holmes, guitarists Greg Mackintosh and Aaron Aedy, and bassist Steve Edmonson. Holmes and Mackintosh are the principal composers, with almost all of the band's songs credited solely to them. Only the band's drumming position has changed, with original sticks man Matthew Archer leaving in 1994 to be replaced by ex-Marshall Law drummer Lee Morris. In March 2004, Morris also left the band. Drummer Jeff Singer was brought in as a session and live drummer for the "Paradise Lost" album, and is now a permanent member of the band. Paradise Lost released their 11th album "In Requiem" which takes heavier guitar sound and a more aggressive vocal direction than in their past records. Over the Madness, a documentary by Diran Noubar displaying the impact Paradise Lost has had on gothic metal, will be shown in 2007. A single named "The Enemy" from the new album was released on April 13th. Their 12th studio album "Faith Divides Us – Death Unites Us" was released on October 2009. The album was produced by Jens Bogren. In this album, the band stripped off their poppier sound, which was replaced with doom of their first few releases.