There has always been a steady demand for all Katatonia's releases in the market, but I strongly believe that it was the success of the band's latest opus "The Great Cold Distance" which generated a new wave of interest for the band's oldest releases. That interest resulted in Peaceville's decision to contact No Fashion Records and Avantgarde Music, obtain the rights to Katatonia's first three releases from them and reissue their remastered versions, the latest of which is for the band's first full length release "Dance Of December Souls" and which I now hold in my hands.

It was not a very long time ago that the Swedish label Black Lodge reissued "Dance Of December Souls" in a digipack format, featuring the band's current logo and an alternative album cover - a review of which you can find in "Pure Metal'. Now, I can definitely understand why those of you who already own the Black Lodge version would argue the point on purchasing Peaceville's latest issue, but there are a few factors that will almost definitely make you change your mind. Peaceville's remastered issue of the album sounds better in comparison, comes at a cheaper price, but most importantly contains as bonus material the five tracks which were first released in an EP format back in 1992 under the name "Jhva Elohim Meth...The Revival". I bet I finally got your attention there, right?

Well, as far as "Dance Of December Souls" is concerned, there are not many things to say that I haven't already mentioned in my previous review. I still believe that the duo Blackheim/Renkse made a very brave decision, choosing to go with lengthy compositions so early in their career, but I hope that you will all agree with me when I say that this risk definitely paid off.

Once again I found myself mesmerised by the Paradise Lost-influenced riffs and keyboard melodies of "Velvet Thorns (Of Drynwhyl)" and Jonas Renkse's primitive but admirable vocals in the atmospheric/mournful opus "Tomb of Insomnia" and realised the importance of the term 'simplicity' in describing the band's approach to composing their material.

Now, those of you who have never listened to the band's legendary EP "Jhva Elohim Meth...The Revival" should expect to come across a similar approach to songwriting. It was quite interesting to see how a few changes in the sound of the guitars and the role of keyboards can slightly alter the vibe of a song like "Without God" - the only common link between these two releases. Closer to the vain of early Paradise Lost ("Gothic" era), "Palace Of Frost" will surprise you with it rawness and straightforwardness, whereas the acoustic guitar melodies of "The Northern Silence" will almost certainly haunt you for the months to come.

If the evaluation of an album were based on the high standards set by famous music institutions, as the Berklee College Of Music, Katatonia's debut would have probably received a pretty average score. I guess that we all agree, though, that, especially when it comes to metal albums, it is the overall feeling of each release and the band's ability to convey strong emotions that's important in establishing the real worth of an album, and with that in mind "Dance Of December Souls" deserves nothing less than a full five star rating!

*****

Review by John Stefanis