Tragic Idol

Paradise Lost | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 24, 2012)
• Original Release Date: 2012
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Century Media
• ASIN: B007IFZU5A
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #36,224 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Solitary One

2. Crucify

3. Fear of Impending Hell

4. Honesty in Death

5. Theories from Another World

6. In This We Dwell

7. To the Darkness

8. Tragic Idol

9. Worth Fighting For

10. The Glorious End

Editorial Reviews

In a career that has spanned 24 years (and counting), PARADISE
LOST have sold over two million albums worldwide.
Their constant reinvention and brazen attitude towards musical
experimentation has always allowed them to maintain a constant
relevance despite the myriad fads and short-lived scenes
that have emerged over the last two decades. Indeed few
bands that prove so very influential in their infancy maintain the
quality of output that this band have. In 1991 PARADISE LOST
set the blueprint for a whole genre with their album Gothic and
their new masterpiece Tragic Idol easily and proudly continues
this successful tradition and clearly points out that PARADISE
LOST are one of the few outstanding acts working hard and
earning their legendary status by the power of the song.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Blew my mind! Majestic return to their Icon/Draconian sound. April 26, 2012

By Xavier I. Ucar Conte

Format:Audio CD

I completely disagree with the first reviewer ( KOURKOULOS NIKOS ). I think this is the best album this guys have released since Draconian Times, and that's saying a lot. The fact that this album is so reminiscent to Icon and Draco, my two favorites by them, can also be a factor to make me like it even more than their later stuff, but since in the past few years they had made a comeback to their original goth/dark sound, this record cannot be compared to their late 90's - mid 2000s synth/poprock melodic stuff. This record has their original sound, so if you are looking for their mellower melodic radio synth pop ala Depeche Mode stuff, this is not your record. This new songs sound like some of the stuff you could find in their early- mid 90s era. If that's your thing, we are on the same page. This is a heavy album, and a very melodic one endeed. In my opinion, this is most melodic stuff they have come up in years.

Old fans are quite happy that PD made an extreme sound shift their to old sounding classic records on their last two albums (which are pretty good), but to my ears, this record sound WAY more inspired than those records. Those two new records are good, but they lacked something. That something, which I don't know how to describe, I found here. The Tragic Idol is the album I was waiting from this guys.

To the record. Almost every song, if not all, are arranged beautifully and tastefully, and in some moments, range into the amazing. Since I pressed play, I was truly blown away by how tasteful, dark, heavy, atmospheric and melodic their new stuff sounded. The record production is immaculate! The composition is absolutely inspired and the vocals are amazing. But what really destroyed my senses was how beautiful the guitars fit into their old/new sound. Layer after layer after layer of guitar melodies on top of each other and above some of the most awesome dark riffs PD has composed in years. And even though this record is very heavy and doom, it's also VERY melodic, but If your looking for melodic as in catchy ala One Second, I may say that some of that stuff is also here, but not as prevalent. The music is dark, heavy, very melodic, quite agressive at times, and in some occasions, sad (in the beautiful way). This is the best guitar stuff this band has recorded in years! The guitar work are really what make this record stand out. The drumming is also quite extraordinary and it has a more metallic approach than on previous records. A lot more signature changes, up beat, fast, double bass. Quite creative for a PD record. And the last thing that I should stand out is Nick Holmes EXTRAORDINARY vocals sessions for The Tragic Idol. This is by FAR some of the best stuff he has ever recorded. He is just flawless on energy, melody and reach!

I will give this album and absolute five stars. And for me, this is the real continuation of the Icon/Draconian era.

I love this record.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Where did this come from? May 9, 2012

By AKS

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is undoubtedly one of the best metal albums of 2012. A bit of background - I was (and am) a huge fan of Gothic when it was released (yes, that dates me). I kept up with Paradise Lost through Draconian Times and then lost interest. I have some of the later stuff, it is good, but doesn't capture my attention. Then the Vallenfyre side project was released, which is fantastic, so I had to check this out.

From my perspective, this may be the best Paradise Lost album. Ignoring comparisons to past work (different folks hear different parallels), the key with Tragic Idol is that the songwriting is brilliant. Song after song, the riffs and melodic structures are fantastic. The vocal work complements the guitar work perfectly - heavy when it needs to be heavy, lighter when it needs to be. The result is one of the most well-crafted metal albums I have heard in recent years.

A bit of an update to my review. . .thinking about this album a bit more, I figured out why I like it so much. Much of the song writing is very reminiscent to the structures (though not necessarily the exact sound) of Gothic and Shades of God. Effectively, the rhythm guitar lays down a "crunch" with the lead playing a clean melody line over the top. This is basically the approach on classic songs like Shattered (Gothic), Rapture (Gothic), As I die (Shades of God), and also used for Vallenfrye (though with a much heavier sound there). But indeed, I have been weighing this against their back-catalogue and it really is one of if not the best - lots of great hooks with some of the catchiest work at the end of the album.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing album! Best in years! May 2, 2012

By DarkSound

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have been a fan of Paradise Lost since first hearing "True Belief" back in 1994. I love most of the albums they have put out with the exception of "Believe in Nothing". Yes I am a fan of "Host" but prefer them to sound more like they do here on "Tragic Idol". It really paid off for these guys to revisit "Draconian Times" on their recent tour and for Gregor to get his death metal fix from Vallenfyre. This album is easily their best in years and is really a return to the sound from "Shades Of God" through "Draconian Times" era of the band. Fans should eat this up and new drummer Adrian Erlandsson (At The Gates, Cradle Of Filth) whose drumming is the best the band has had in years as well. He really knows how to play well no matter how heavy or soft the music is. The music is amazing and very emotional. It takes multiple listens to fully sink in just how amazing this album is. I loved their last album "Faith Divides Us, Death Unites Us" but find this new album to be so much better. This is a true return to form and I think any fan of the band should love this album from start to finish.