r/GothicMetal

"The Kiss", taken from The Sins of Thy Beloved's debut album Lake of Sorrow, released November 9, 1998 on Napalm Records.

Dark and menacing, lush and romantic, The Sins of Thy Beloved crafted a masterclass of Norwegian gothic metal with their debut album. It took me a long time for me to come around on this band. They always felt a little too intimidating because of how longwinded and doomy they were, but once this album clicked with me, I lived in it for months.

"The Kiss" is not my favorite track from this record, but I think it fits my current mood.

Hey everyone,

I wanted to share a personal passion project I’ve been crafting. I just released Miserere, an 8-track debut album under the name Mourning Star.

The album spans nearly an hour of dark, heavy riffs paired with symphonic/orchestral arrangements, haunting vocal dynamics, and melancholic atmospheres heavily inspired by classic gothic and symphonic metal.

A couple of days ago it was even added to the Metal Archives, which was a huge personal milestone for me as an independent artist!

You can listen to the full album on your platform of choice.

If you’re into bands like Tristania, Sirenia, or overall dark atmospheric metal, I’d be honored if you gave it a spin. Any feedback or favorite tracks would mean the world to me!

Thanks for listening! 🥀🕯️

"Seventh Seal" is the English language version of "Siódma pieczęć" by Polish gothic metal band Artrosis. Originally released on their debut album Ukryty wymiar in October 1997 by Morbid Noizz Productions, six songs from the album were re-recorded in English in March 1998 to be later released on a truncated cassette version of the album titled Hidden Dimension. Those English versions, intro track, and remaining three-Polish language songs would finally be compiled together when Hall of Sermon (the record label founded by Tilo Wolff of Lacrimosa fame) licensed the record for European distribution and re-released the album on January 25, 1999. I usually choose to listen to the original Polish version of the album, but I do think the English version is mixed a little better.

To me, this album is like the sound of gothic metal (more gothic metal per gothic metal, so to speak), which makes this band's ambivalent feelings on the label kind of interesting. It's lush and atmospheric with layers of piano and synth-strings balancing out against pretty aggressive riffing (Artrosis' first guitarist was a lot more traditionally "heavy metal"). This album (among other 90s/early-2000s classics like Widow's Weeds, Lake of Sorrow, and Prison of Desire) sounds like the anachronistic imagery of 13th century cathedrals.

Hi, I made a playlist with some metal tracks I think deserve more attention. Mostly underground/lesser-known bands, with a mix of black, doom, death, gothic and atmospheric metal.

Gatekeeper by Within Temptation off their debut album Enter, released April 6, 1997 by DSFA Records.

A classic of Dutch gothic and symphonic doom metal.

Another 90s doom band reuniting to celebrate a notable 30 year anniversary, here's The Third and the Mortal's full set in Trondheim earlier this year playing songs from Sorrow EP and Tears Laid in Earth. Unfortunately I couldn't find any pro-shot footage, but this video still looks and sounds pretty good.

I’m trying to find a song i can walk down the aisle as a bride. My fiance and bridal party are coming out to ice nine kills cover of Elvis can’t help falling in love. I really like the RIP by motionless in white but I’m not sure how that would look??

What did you guys walk out to or plan to or want to??

I want more songs on my playlist that just scream doomed.Any Metal genre counts really,If its sad I'll probably like it.

The Gathering's tour celebrating 30 years of Mandylion (2025) continues! Here's live footage of their performance at Hellfest.

Missed this when it came out at the end of last month. The lead single from the German band's fourteenth studio album Lay Me Down O Silent Fear (out September 25, 2026 on Steamhammer). What do we all think? I personally love how much HIM is in this.

We are in the first week of August, which puts us firmly in the middle of summer (late summer is right around the corner!). The season is marked by warmer weather, longer days, and for those lucky among us, fewer responsibilities (or at least a break from school or work). Where I’m from, mornings are quite gloomy until the sun breaks through the clouds and fog around noon, but the days never really get “hot”.

It’s a very nostalgic season, at least it seems that way for full-grown adults. I admit the periods of my life when I was listening to and buying the most music was during summers, especially when I was in late-high school. Very few responsibilities, and virtually no expenses meant that what little allowance I got could be spent on used CDs on eBay (this was the early 2010s, niche CDs averaged less than 10 USD with shipping).

So in that summer nostalgia, what are the gothic metal albums that you associate with the season, and why? I know the ones that I associate most are probably what others would consider autumn/fall listens, but here are some of mine:

1. Within Temptation - Enter (1997), though quite dark and dramatic, there’s a warmth to this album that makes me come back to it in the hotter months.

2. Lacuna Coil - Karmacode (2006), probably my first summer music purchase, had to beg for my dad to get this for me off eBay (I had just turned 11, I believe). The mix of the gothic and orientalist atmosphere with nu metal riffs makes for a fun and breezy listening experience. I think this album is over maligned, it’s just a little different.

3. Artrosis - Ukryty wymiar (1997) (or its English version Hidden Dimension (1998)), fell in love with this band and album in the last weeks of August 2013. It’s been permanently burned into my brain as a summer listen.

4. The Sins of Thy Beloved - Lake of Sorrow (1998), slow and romantic, Lake of Sorrow is perfect for languishing on summer days, and the piano and violin are so bright, it reminds me of sunlight.

5. After Forever - Prison of Desire (2000) and Invisible Circles (2004), two very different takes on the genre from the same band. Prison of Desire is as classically gothic as gothic gets with an austere and otherworldly atmosphere. Invisible Circles is farther along in the band's transition into progressive and symphonic metal, but still has a lot of those gothic tones from their earlier career. It's a strange album because of its concept, subject matter, and rock opera-like approach (without a big cast of guest musicians), but it has some bangers.

6. Taia - Seeds of Rain (2007), this one is a very modern take on gothic metal, it mixes that atmospheric heaviness with epic J-rock sensibilities. It's light and uplifting, energetic and very catchy.

7. How Like a Winter - Beyond My Grey Wake... (2003), this album has a lot of My Dying Bride-isms about it, but I find it a lot warmer than the Peaceville Three's death-doom material of the 90s. This album is romantic and a little sexy, and epic.

8. Myriads - In Spheres without Time (1999), a somewhat forgotten gem in the Napalm Records catalogue, Myriads were a long-winded and twinkly band that made music that is endlessly consumable. Spheres isn't my favorite of their two albums, but there's something about its rougher production and dreamlike atmosphere that makes it a better fit for this list — I'm, telling you, take a long walk on a sunny afternoon around town with this album in your headphones. It just makes sense.

9. Forever Slave - Tales for Bad Girls (2008), I found this album for sale at a local record shop, and haggled with the cashier to include it in my haul (I was only down 26 cents!). I admit this isn't a classically "good" album, and of the two albums this band put out, their debut Alice's Inferno (2005) is much better. This is like the apotheosis of mid-2000s gothic metal Evanescence-worship, but I actually don't mind that sound (trust me, a lot of bands were doing that, and I do have a whole spiel about it, but I will spare you for time). Anyway, it's easily consumable and commercially viable for a fun summer day.

10. Cradle of Filth - Midian (2000), I know this one is probably considered very Halloween-y, and I agree, but I just associate it so much with the summer months. I love the choirs and the hyper-melodic riffing, and they fit with the season.

So, what records do you come back to this time of year, and why?