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You know, it’s nice that Cathedral is finally getting a taste of what is due them in every metal/doom fans eyes. For years Earache tried to bury this band alive for reasons I can’t even fathom but Nuclear Blast has successfully resurrected their career with The Garden of Unearthly Delights, and now the more eclectic double disc The Guessing Game.
For the most part Cathedral sticks to what makes them great here. They play heavy, stoner-laden doom like nobody’s business. Songs like “Edwige’s Eyes,” “One Dimensional People,” “and “The Guessing Game” are unmistakably stamped with Cathedral’s unique sound and are sure to please the band’s rabid cult fanbase. What is most unusual is the slightly more exotic dynamic that Cathedral bringx to the table with this album. For example, “Cats, Incense, Candles, and Wine” (while not a particularly surprising sound from the band) channels the band’s obvious Syd Barrett influence while “Death on Anarchist” has a brighter, perhaps even more commercial, sound to it and “La Noche Del Buque Maldito (Ghost Ship of the Blind Dead)” is simply overwhelming in scope.
The Guessing Game is probably Cathedral’s most dynamic record to date. Supernatural Birth Machine may rival it but it certainly doesn’t take it in the end.
Bottom Line: This is a powerhouse record that encompasses a lot of different sounds from throughout the band’s career and even a few new tricks. As cliché as it sounds, The Guessing Game is the sound of Cathedral coming full circle and it’s freakin’ great.
Reviewed by: Mark Fisher
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