Reverend Bizarre, whose debut album pays homage to all the old-school doom metal bands, but does it in such a way that even doom/death fans should appreciate. Many have compared this album to the classic first CD from Cathedral, Forest of Equilibrium. There is some truth to this, especially the mournful clean epic vocals reminding me of that album somewhat, but In the Rectory... is definitely more stripped down and straightforward. The riffing is fairly simple, focusing on feeling and impact. The band's vocalist Magister Albert deserves the most credit for elevating this album to such a high level, as it is his convincing performance that adds that special something. With traces of old masters such as Black Sabbath rampant in their sound, Reverend Bizarre are poised to become the band that will inject traditional doom metal with a fresh dose of originality and power.

The passion of these doom maniacs for their music is so palpable throughout this record that this could only trigger the same enthusiasm on the listener�s side. Each riff was obviously crafted with love and total dedication and flows like lava in the ears. You can�t find any filler here. I can�t point to a single standout track on this, because all these hymns to sadness and melancholy are equally convincing and should not be severed from the others. Take notice of the last song of this CD, an epic of more than 20 minutes length inspired by the darker side of the Lord Of The Rings saga.

In the Rectory... is so old-school doom metal sounding that it�s kind of hard to believe your own cultivated ears that such a band is still amongst us and reanimating the gloomy old-school doom metal sound and at the same time, bringing back the very best, strongest and most emotional-filled moments from that particular genre for all of us who have once cared about it. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, here pays tribute to the old doom masters and we should really bow to them and respect the guys for achieving a huge slice of those magical doom metal moments for their killer debut. This is the kind of doom metal I�d like to hear more of these days, absolutely! Luckily we have Reverend Bizarre and a few other bands that have all the understanding and knowledge for creating an outstanding doom metal.

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