In the beginning … there was Lucifer! And now this fifth full-length outing for the “occult metal” outfit proves to be a thoroughly satisfying, good ol’ heavy rock ’n’ roll album which, at its very best – the outstanding “Slow Dance In A Crypt” – can be downright beautiful and utterly beguiling.
With song-writing nous, all-round playing chops and excellent production, including a superb, crunchy guitar sound, Lucifer V (Nuclear Blast Records) has at its heart the clean, clear, commanding voice of Johanna Platow Andersson.
While so much about “Lucifer”, the literary character (see the Bible, Milton’s Paradise Lost etc), concerns the Fall, so much of Lucifer’s music succeeds in lifting us up, climbing, soaring towards the sun. They’re that “good”. It’s no surprise that in 2023 they toured with Swede Abba-metallers Ghost, an almost perfect fit.
Berlin-formed Lucifer, now located in Stockholm after several line-up changes over the years, cite as influences Blue Oyster Cult and Black Sabbath. The former reference is reasonably valid, in terms of some of the “strange telepathy”-type content, and there is still a certain Sabbath doominess to the sounds on V.
But this is more about superior, straight-ahead riffy rockers, Kiss meets Pat Benatar at her feistiest – pure hooks, songs that melodically ripple, pop, grind and throb. Yes, some of it’s a bit dumb, but dumb can be fun, right?
Having said all that, several of the album highlights are mid-tempo “epics”, if not quite out-and-out power ballads.
Robust and righteous opener “Fallen Angel” is followed by “At The Mortuary”, an atmospheric, romantic, Meatloaf-y number with a semi-operatic section – multi-layered and magnifico, in a Galileo, Figaro kinda way. “Nothing Left To Lose But My Life” pulls off a similarly melodious, atmospheric trick.
Johanna (aka Sadonis, formerly of The Oath) is the real star, her vocals and all-round charismatic performance impressing throughout, with the twin geetar attack of Linus Bjorklund and Martin Nordin sharing the spotlights.
The propulsive “Riding Reaper” showcases a strong solo, as does the Blackmore-esque, Purple-tinted “Strange Sister”, while “The Dead Don’t Speak” has a real swing and beat to it. “Maculate Heart”, another stand-out, opens acoustically, before Nicke Andersson Platow’s drums sound like shellfire, and we’re off again. The rhythm section, also including bassist Harald Gothblad, gives all the songs a suitably devilish drive.
Is there a downside? Well, yes. Very little of this music can claim to be unique or wholly original, and I’ve already said some of it is a bit dumb – more silly than Satanic. The lyrics, at times, remind me of the graveyard smash that was “Monster Mash”, by Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers (from 1962, originally – “I was working in the lab late one night, When my eyes beheld an eerie sight …!”).
In short, given the sheer, undeniable talent of Johanna & Co, maybe they are taking the “gimmick” of the spooky, ghoulish themes and titles a bit far this time? “A Coffin Has No Silver Lining”? Really? Less of that and more of the perils and horrors of “normal”, everyday life would be welcome – I am thinking here of an album like Dorothy’s Gifts From The Holy Ghost? Or even the unashamed glam spirit and gusty, contemporary subject matters of a Starbenders?
But Lucifer know how to have fun and aren’t about to change the name on the tin. Why should they, with V surely set to be their biggest album yet? As “Slow Dance …” soars: “So we begin, once again … Again!!!”
Buy the album here:
https://luciferofficial.bandcamp.com/album/lucifer-v
8 / 10
CALLUM REID