The Principle of Evil Made Flesh

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2007-01-27 rating:
A good introduction to black metal!
The first Cradle of Filth album I bought was 'Midian', which I was very impressed by. After reading some reviews I decided to buy 'Cruelty And The Beast'. However, due to a mix up I received this album instead. So I thought "What the hell? I might aswell listen to it!". Little did I know that my taste in music would be changed so dramatically by this album.

The first thing I noticed was the contrast between the production on this album and on Midian. The "wall of sound" on Midian is replaced by a sparse sonic landscape. The guitars are fuzzy, the bass cold, the drums tight; all backed by keyboards, brimming with elegance. The vocals Dani produced on this album are raw, more true to the 'black metal' that was beginning to surface in Norway.

The songs themselves are brutal yet still elegant. Ranging from the harsh 'Princible of Evil Made Flesh' to the dreamy, floating imagery of 'In Secret Love We Drown'. There is something here for most extreme metal fans.
This album does lack the maturity of the ensuing albums but in my opinion contains an energy that the others lack. It is one of my favourite albums and will remain so. I cannot reccomend it more.

If you like this album and wish to experience more black metal then I reccomend 'In The Nightside Eclipse' by Emperor and 'Pure Holocaust' by Immortal. By these albums, you shant regret it.

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review by: Jonathon Parr date: 2006-01-07 rating:
I love...
...Dusk and Her Embrace and Cruelty and the Beast, but this will always be the first and the best. Of Mist and Midnight Skies, To Eve the Art of Witchcraft, The Forest Whispers my Name, Summers Dying Fast, Black Goddess Rises, each and every song of this is at once both haunting and ear burningly brutal. I have to agree with the other comments I have read, a completely outstanding album

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review by: date: 2003-10-17 rating:
many have passed but it's still the best
Take it from a man who has listened to not just all types of metal, but all types of music, intensely, for many many years..... this is one of the best albums you will find.

Up there with Carcass' Necrotism and Anathema's Serenades, if you do not have this album your collection has an almighty gap in it.

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review by: alleonard date: 2003-07-12 rating:
Dark and sinister, Cradle at their best!
This is how Cradle should sound. The aggresion and brutality of this record make it an instant classic, the highlights being:

The Principle Of Evil Made Flesh - True classic. Great riffs, great screaming vocals. Brilliant. Although recorded again for 'Bitter Suites To Succubi', I believe that the rawness of it on this record makes it the classic that it is.

The Forest Whispers My Name - Amazing. A more melodic track, but it's still very brutal in places. Outstanding.

The Black Goddess Rises - The best of them all. Fast, brutal, black metal. A true masterpiece. Originally taken off COF's 'Total F**king Darkness' demo, it has been made a bit more mainstream than it was, but still incredible.

This is COF's best ever record in my opinion. But be careful if you've only heard Cradle's newer stuff, because this is amazingly different.


review by: koffin date: 2003-04-24 rating:
1 of their best !!!!
Cradle of filth's first album is definetely 1 of their best. Ever since i first got this album I have been listening to it for ages. Veteran COF fans will notice that Dani's vocals are different-they are more raspy and menacing than his later work. here are a run-down of the songs :

1.Darkness our bride(jugular wedding)= A nice opener but a bit weak as far as COF intros are concerned.
2.The principle of evil made flesh= 1 of the best on here. heavy-as-hell !!
3.The forest whispers my name= a hauntingly good song with a chilling keyboard riff
4.Iscariot= A so-so instrumental but, again, not quite up to regular COF standards
5. The black goddess rises= Another standout track on the album. was later redone on "bitter suites to succubi" and made better but the original is still good
6.One final graven kiss= Absolutely BEAUTIFUL !! the best instrumental on the album
7. A crescendo of passion, bleeding= Brilliantly fast guitar riffage and an interesting mix of tempos throughout the song
8. To eve the art of witchcraft= An intersting song, this one. It starts off mixing organ melodies with thrash guitar riffs and in the middle of the song, the fury breaks down into a sweetly erotic tune...absolutely hypnotic. One of my favs on the album
9. Of mist and midnight skies= A huge organ intro at the start followed by guitars playing, this is perhaps one of the darkest songs on this album, not that the rest arent
10. In secret love we drown= Not a very good instrumental. in my opinion, this is the worst song on the album. its ok but is a bit naff
11. A dream of wolves in the snow= Starts off with a line quoted from Dracula and follows with a slow guitar riff and keyboard tune. This is one of the more melodic songs
12. Summer dying fast= The finishing number. This song has been appropriately put at the end as it is very dramatic and changes a lot during the song

So, overall, id reccommend this album to COF fans and newcomers alike as it contains some mindblowing heavyness and hypnotic, catchy melodies. Doesnt quite compare to cruely and the beast, midian etc. but is better than Bitter suites to succubi.

Buy this NOW !!!!

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