After celebrating their 20th anniversary in 2008 with the release of their much praised live DVD/2CD "The Anatomy Of Melancholy", as well as exclusive live shows surrounding this event with Anathema and My Dying Bride, PARADISE LOST now return with the highly anticipated follow-up to 2007's "In Requiem": the brand new studio album "Faith Divides Us -- Death Unites Us".

"In Requiem" owed a lot of its phenomenal success to its increased heaviness and the band's unique feel for gloomy melodies. The album was hailed by critics as the band's most metallic effort since the classic albums "Icon" (1993) and huge-selling "Draconian Times" (1995), but the brand-new opus "Faith Divides Us -- Death Unites Us" strikes an even darker path.

For the first time in the band's history, guitarists Greg Mackintosh and Aaron Aedy have used 7-string guitars and decided to record with Jens Bogren (Katatonia, Opeth) at Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden, which resulted in a natural, warm and organic production. The new album was recorded with session drummer Peter Damin, who has now been permanently replaced by Adrian Erlandsson (Cradle Of Filth, At The Gates, The Haunted).

Already the album title, which contrasts the spiritual term "faith" with the bitter reality of "death", hints at the stark musical twists and turns on the album. From the foreboding mid-tempo crunch of "As Horizons End" over the drivingly heavy "I Remain" to the schizophrenic "Frailty" and the majestic title-track, the album is characterised by a clash of seething rage -- well symbolised through Nick Holmes' gruffer vocals - and melancholic despair evoked through the captivating guitar play of Greg Mackintosh. A song like "Rise Of Denial" is easily the most aggressive track the band has written in years, the riffs in "Living With Scars" even have a certain old school death metal edge to them, yet PARADISE LOST never fail to add enough of their unbelievably skilled sense for accessibility and effective song-writing. The epic anthem "Last Regret" for instance is destined to become a new sing-a-long favourite during the band's upcoming European headlining tour, which kicks off late October 2009.

Since their conception in 1988, PARADISE LOST have not only founded the genre gothic metal with 1991's "Gothic", but also diligently defined and daringly transcended it. From the crawling, harrowing doom of their debut "Lost Paradise" (1990) to the electronic sounds of "One Second" (1997) over to the dark rocking punch of "Paradise Lost" (2005), the band's entire career has been accompanied by the desire to evolve and stay ahead of musical trends and fashions. "Faith Divides Us -- Death Unites Us" easily and proudly continues this successful tradition and clearly points out that PARADISE LOST are one of the few outstanding acts working hard and earning their legendary status by the power of the song. (PL)

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