Review by Ben for My Dying Bride - Symphonaire Infernus Et Spera Empyrium (1991)

The amazing title track makes this groundbreaking EP worth tracking down in some form.

My Dying Bride, along with fellow Brits Paradise Lost and Anathema, played a huge role in the establishment of death doom metal in the early 90s. It’s quite incredible that all three bands were formed within such close proximity of each other and even more astounding that all of them are still active 20 years on. Out of the trilogy it is My Dying Bride that has stayed closest to their roots and even they have broken out into new territory along the way. Forming in 1990 with Aaron Stainthorpe (vocals), Andrew Craighan (guitar), Calvin Robertshaw (guitar) and Rick Miah (drums) making up the band, My Dying Bride quickly established themselves as an act to watch. Both the Towards the Sinister demo (which can now be heard spread across the Meisterwerk compilations) and the God is Alone single sold out quickly and gained the attention of Peaceville records who signed them up immediately. They managed to recruit Adrian "Ade" Jackson to play bass before entering the studio to record their first official release. The rest as they say is history with My Dying Bride going on to be one of the most popular and successful bands in metal, with no sign of the journey concluding any time soon.

Symphonaire Infernus et Spera Empyrium may contain three tracks and it may be considered an EP, but it will always be remembered for the epic title track. Not only does it run for over half the EP’s 20 minute running time, it’s also of a much higher quality than the remaining two tracks. Symphonaire Infernus et Spera Empyrium was the first My Dying Bride track I ever heard way back in 1992 and I’ve pretty much been obsessed with the band ever since. The gothic and romantic tone of the track is beautifully combined with a haunting sexuality which is a theme the band would return to time and time again, peaking with The Sexuality of Bereavement. In fact, the album where most fans believe My Dying Bride temporarily lost their mojo is 34.788%...Complete, which is simply where the band pushed this almost morbid sexuality a bit too far for comfort. Aaron’s vocals are certainly rooted in the death metal mould, but his lyrics were far more poetic and romantic than the typical gore and anti-religious template. Instead of Hammer Smashed Face style lyrics we get “Please put off your veil, your heart is blameless, and I shudder for knowing it”, and who could ever forget “make yourself all honey and the flies will devour you”!?

This track was groundbreaking stuff in 1991 to say the least. When doom metal was becoming more and more operatic and death metal bands were intent on outmuscling each other, My Dying Bride switched seamlessly between aggressive death metal and wonderfully dark passages of death doom. The addition of violin was both brave and scene-changing and the success of the track would lead to far more experimentation with instruments not normally associated with extreme metal. But as pioneering as the title track was, the other two tracks on this EP just can’t maintain the quality. God is Alone and De Sade Soliloquay are both decent enough with some really nice riffs to bang your head to, but their purely death metal structures seem like a let-down after such glorious beginnings. Still, this little EP commenced an immensely exciting time in my life where I longed for each and every My Dying Bride release with an impatience perhaps increased by my youth. I still listen to it today, although I’m much more likely to do so by spinning the Trinity compilation that combines all three of the bands early EPs in one neat little package. If you don’t own this EP you’ll struggle to find it as it’s long out of print, so I suggest picking up Trinity as soon as you can.