Lucifer’s Chalice are a heavy metal band from the UK and this is their debut album.

Featuring members and ex-members of bands such as Uncoffined and Horrified, this is a somewhat different proposition. Lucifer’s Chalice play a mix of classic heavy metal and traditional doom metal, with epic-length songs and strong vibes of days gone past.

Old-school doom metal from the times gone past is mixed with NWOBHM influences to create a very earthy, authentic homage to the earliest days of heavy metal.

This album sounds like it was recorded in the late 70s/early 80s, and everything that Lucifer’s Chalice have written in these songs sounds like it has been filtered through this time period too. Considering it’s actually a brand new release in 2017, it’s quite an achievement really!

The songs sound gloomy and weather-beaten, but not without a certain feeling of occult grandeur when necessary. Largely epic in length and ambition, the songs are relatively straightforward, but still pack a lot of character and personality into the playing times. Everything’s delivered and performed well, and I should particularly mention the usually-ignored bass, which makes a strong contribution to this album.

To be honest this is not music to be over-analysed. It’s the type of album that I like to just put on and slowly get lost in. It’s quite different to most other things that are released these days, so it’s great to just take a trip back into the past and relive the early days of heavy metal through 36 minutes of enjoyably played and performed music.