Review by Ben for My Dying Bride - A Line of Deathless Kings (2006)

A more traditional doom metal album that requires a few listens to work its magic.

My Dying Bride had already well and truly exceeded my expectations since the turn of the new millennium. Prior to that, they’d seemed destined to head down a path that would take them further and further away from their roots, and therefore my personal tastes. 2001’s The Dreadful Hours changed all that, being the best thing the Brits had released in half a decade, and to prove it was no fluke 2004’s Songs of Darkness, Words of Light retained the high standard, leaving no doubt that My Dying Bride were far from finished. Unfortunately, somewhere in between that brilliant album and 2006, the band’s drummer curse struck yet again. After Rick Miah had been forced to quit the band in 1997 when he contracted Crohn’s disease, his replacement Bill Law was ordered to leave the country (back to Canada) due to visa issues less than a year later. They’d seemingly broken the curse after Shaun Taylor-Steels had been part of the band for five very successful years, only for a reoccurring ankle problem once again leaving My Dying Bride drummer-less. With a full length album ready to be recorded and an otherwise stable line-up, they decided to bring in John Bennett from fellow British death doom band The Prophecy to perform as a session musician to get them across the line. With that sorted, My Dying Bride entered Academy Studios in spring 2006 to record A Line of Deathless Kings.

I have to admit, the first few times I listened to what is the bands ninth full length studio album, I couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed. After Songs of Darkness, Words of Light had been one of the darkest releases in their long history, and one filled with both immense misery and beauty, My Dying Bride had decided to record a pretty straight forward doom album. Gone were Aaron’s numerous emotive styles of vocals (including death growls) and in their place was fairly one dimensional “singing”. While nothing on the new album called possibly be labelled upbeat, the ominous and desperately gloomy tone of the last few albums had been softened as well, and this more straight forward approach seemed to suggest My Dying Bride were once again attempting to be more accessible, just as they did in the Like Gods of the Sun period back in the mid nineties. That didn’t impress me to say the least and If I’d reviewed A Line of Deathless Kings during those first couple of weeks of owning it, I likely would have been quite harsh, and expressed my disgust in no uncertain terms. I can pinpoint the exact moment when I realised I was being unfair. Preparing for a long drive, I’d selected a few albums to keep me occupied in the car, with A Line of Deathless Kings amongst them. Let me just say that I cranked the album loud, and suddenly found myself completely engrossed, re-playing it three straight times before I reached my destination a changed man.

Unlike the last few albums, for which the strengths were effectively enjoyed through a decent pair of headphones, A Line of Deathless Kings simply demands to be played loud. Its powerful production and more traditional Candlemass-like doom riffs make it less of a personal affair and more of a neighbourhood waking one. It’s in this environment, and I imagine in concert too, that these tracks have real impact. I won’t suggest that this album matches the classics in their discography as it does still lack the creativity and passion that My Dying Bride emanates in their prime. It also suffers in the closing stages with the second half simply unable to match the rousing quality of the first few tracks. And I Walk With Them in particular has the most stunning section where Aaron breaks free and lets his emotions fly in combination with driving double bass kicking. Moments like this remind me of early Solitude Aeturnus which can only be a good thing, and it displays a new feather in the band’s hat that I hope they will one day integrate into their more death metal motivated sound. Other highlights are To Remain Tombless, L’amour Detruit and the stunning Thy Raven Wings. A Line of Deathless Kings is yet another worthy My Dying Bride album, albeit one I had to learn to love. Once I overcame my initial discontent, the album quickly got under my skin, so I highly recommend any potential listeners out there make sure they give this album more than just a passing spin.