Review by Shezma for Cirith Ungol - King of the Dead (1984)

I feel dirty rating this so low. I do not like Cirith Ungol, and I never have even after trying so many times over the years with this band. But I can't in good conscience rate this better than I truly feel. The vocals don't work for me. The instrumentation seems lacking, and this is all my opinion and you can entirely disagree with me if you want, but the guitar sound is generic to me and when I do find a good lick or riff in there it changes or gets drowned out by the vocals or drumming or something else. Drums don't stand out, but I also tend to not always notice drums unless they're really good. This is not what I want to listen to, but I respect those that do. Variety is the spice of life, and we need this to bring out others to use this and take the style and run with it. I'm not trying to be down on this too hard, but it's not for me but I also think there always does need to be a counterpoint when necessary. I would perfectly accept someone taking one of my favorite albums and rating it low because it didn't work for them. Your opinion is still valid, and if you are also one that will still try Cirith Ungol and not like it either know you are not alone.