CREMATORY

One of gothic metal's most enduring and respected acts, CREMATORY have been a steady presence over the last 30 years. From their beginnings as an unusually gothic death metal band, and albums like seminal debut 1993's "Transmigration", to their ongoing status as one of Europe's most prolific and consistent dark metal bands, they have been hugely important to the goth underworld and a staple fixture at European festivals, while largely operating under the metal mainstream's radar. As a result, the Germans have had little reason to change or to deviate from their meticulously plotted path.

CREMATORY have undoubtedly moved with the times, assimilating the baubles and trinkets of industrial into their deathly clangor, and steadily becoming more direct and melodic in terms of their ever-moody songwriting. They seem to be on a roll, too: the band's last three albums have all represented an uptick in potency and polish, with 2020's "Unbroken" and 2022's "Inglorious Darkness" standing out as significant highlights in a sturdy catalogue. That momentum is clearly audible throughout "Destination"; their 17th studio album, and one of the heaviest and catchiest in their history.

CREMATORY have experimented with their sound over the years, but its core remains the same. "Destination" opens with its title track, a thunderous juggernaut of industrial metal riffing, air raid sirens and the kind of bittersweet, melodic chorus that the Germans have excelled at in recent times. Inarguably heavier than most of their peers, CREMATORY mastered this discipline decades ago, and "Destination" is full of variations on the same theme, but with more than enough imaginative flair to side-step dreary repetition. There are also several moments that transcend the band's myopic bluster and edge into the realms of deeply classy synth-pop, albeit still with a brutish metal edge. "The Future Is A Lonely Place" is an absolutely beautiful song, hewn from melodic death metal shrapnel, but presented with a lavish, atmospheric touch. Again, the chorus is an absolute monster, and frontman Felix has never sounded so world-weary and crestfallen. Elsewhere, the short and snappy "Days Without Sun" weaves trance keyboards into a pounding, death metal disco, awash with bubbling electronics, and armed with another fearsome chorus hook; "Deep In The Silence" takes the grandiose, pop-goth route, with sweeping synth strings and a whispered vocal that builds to a feverish crescendo with a tearful but triumphant guitar motif, morbid but magnificent; and the pristine thump of "Ashes Of Despair" cleverly combines the militant crunch of AMON AMARTH with the orchestral leanings of symphonic metal, and just the slightest hint of '80s AOR twinkling benignly in the middle distance.

Another obvious standout is CREMATORY's electro-metal take on TYPE O NEGATIVE's "My Girlfriend's Girlfriend". Basically unchanged from the original, the German veterans interpretation is simply darker and more muscular than the original, albeit with Pete Steele's lascivious charisma supplanted by Felix's gruff exhortations. Either way, a great song has been treated with respect and taken down a measurably more sinister path.

Another strong album from some of gothic metal's most dedicated lifers, "Destination" keeps things black-hearted and as shiny as leather. For CREMATORY, this is a lifelong vocation, and the great work continues.