Review PARADISE LOST ‘At the Mill’

Lacking the possibility of live shows led to a lot of streaming events during the last months. Most of those have been done with the approach of transferring the live spirit into a virtual room while others preferred a bit of a different strategy – like Paradise Lost. The UK-based metal veterans decided to perform a show at The Mill near the band’s hometown Yorkshire, England, which as a venue is already special.

Not pretending that there is any audience, the event became a very intimate one with the band performing a setlist that covers many albums and hits. The main focus went to the latest longplayer ‘Obsidian’. Songs like ‘Ghosts, ‘Fall From Grace’ and ‘Darker Thoughts’ have never played live before and premiered in such a live constellation.

The rest of the setlist are songs that define Paradise Lost over a time span of 33 years. No doubt that ‘As I Die’ has been played and the same goes for ‘Gothic’, to classics mirroring the early days of the band. ‘Embers Fire’, Widow’ and ‘One Second’ represent the first heydays of the band. ‘So Much is Lost’, taken from the ‘Host’ album stands for an era of redefining band and sound before the newer tracks like ‘No Hope in Sight’ symbolize the latest development Paradise Lost.

More than three decades of Paradise Lost means a lot of songs to choose from and various chapters of a band that never stood still. The quintet also never shied away from evolvement and experimenting with new musical styles elements, some successful and some controversial. However, they all define the sound of this iconic band and ‘At the Mill’ is a well-done summary of these main steps in their career.