3. Candlemass - Ancient Dreams
Track List: 1. Mirror Mirror 2. A Cry from the Crypt 3. Darkness in Paradise 4. Incarnation of Evil 5. Bearer of Pain 6. Ancient Dreams 7. The Bells of Acheron 8.Epistle No. 81 9. Black Sabbath Medley
Recommended Track: Mirror Mirror, an absurdly catchy ten-tonne riff kick-starts Ancient Dreams opening track and the listener is instantly bombarded with gloriously over-the-top Doom Metal performed by masters of the craft. Lead singer Messiah Marcolin and his vibrato-laden operatic style had fully bedded in on this record, his soaring vocals counterbalancing Leif Edling's punishingly inventive, power-chord riffs which channel Black Sabbath while simultaneously moving the genre into ever expansive realms. Unafraid to incorporate choruses as big as a blue whale, these are songs that build and build into a crescendo of operatic noise. A must for Black Sabbath fans and a must for lovers of heavy music in general, not a second is wasted as Candlemass realise their distinctive, dark vision. This is epic doom which is both epic in scope and epic in execution and Ancient Dreams is undoubtedly one of the most enjoyable records to listen to on this list.