Forest of Equilibrium is the debut studio album by British doom metal band Cathedral, released on 21 October 1991 through Earache Records.[12] It is considered a classic of its genre, doom metal.[7][13][14] Forest of Equilibrium was notably inducted into Decibel magazine's Hall of Fame in February 2006 being the 12th inductee for the Decibel Hall of Fame.[15]
| Forest of Equilibrium | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 21 October 1991 (UK)[1] 11 February 1992 (US) | |||
| Recorded | July–August 1991 | |||
| Studio | Workshop Studios, Redditch, England | |||
| Genre | Doom metal | |||
| Length | 54:09 | |||
| Label | Earache, Relativity | |||
| Producer |
| |||
| Cathedral chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 6/10[4] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [5] |
| Kerrang! | (1991)[6] (2011)[7] |
| Metal.de | 9/10[8] |
| Metal Forces | 95/100[9] |
| Ox-Fanzine | [10] |
| Rock Hard | 9/10[11] |
In 2009, Earache Records reissued the album along with four "bonus" songs that comprise the long-out-of-print 1992 Soul Sacrifice EP. This deluxe digipak reissue also includes a poster of Dave Patchett's cover art and a new 40-minute documentary entitled "Return to the Forest" on DVD.[16]
Music
editChris Chantler of Metal Hammer said the album was "the result of their mutual doom obsession, twisted by their own forward-thinking extreme impulses."[17]
Legacy
editChris Chantler of Metal Hammer said in 2020 that the album "remains truly a unique, pivotal recording."[17]
Track listing
editAll lyrics by Lee Dorrian unless noted; all music by Garry Jennings unless noted
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Picture of Beauty & Innocence (Intro)/Commiserating the Celebration" | 11:16 | ||
| 2. | "Ebony Tears" | 7:46 | ||
| 3. | "Serpent Eve" | Mark Griffiths | Jennings, Adam Lehan | 7:40 |
| 4. | "Soul Sacrifice" | Griffiths | 2:54 | |
| 5. | "A Funeral Request (Ethereal Architect)" | Griffiths, David Park Barnitz | Lehan | 9:17 |
| 6. | "Equilibrium" | 6:08 | ||
| 7. | "Reaching Happiness, Touching Pain" | 9:08 |
Personnel
editPersonnel per liner notes.[18]
Cathedral
- Lee Dorrian – vocals, production assistant
- Garry Jennings – guitar, production assistant
- Adam Lehan – guitar, acoustic guitar
- Mark Griffiths – bass guitar
- Mike Smail – drums
Additional personnel
- Reverend Wolski – keyboard
- Helen Acreman – flute
Production
- Steve Gurney – production (credited as PBL)[2]
- Mark Tempest – engineering
- Dave Patchett – sleeve artwork
- Jason Tilley – photos
- J. Barry – layout
References
edit- ↑ Discogs image
- 1 2 Bennett 2006, p. 46.
- ↑ Birchmeier, Jason. Cathedral: Forest of Equilibrium at AllMusic. Retrieved September 17, 2016.
- ↑ Popoff 2007.
- ↑ Larkin 1998, p. 991.
- ↑ Gitter 1991.
- 1 2 Ruskell 2011.
- ↑ Matthias (30 April 2013). "Cathedral - Forest of Equilibrium Review". metal.de. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
- ↑ Dome 1991.
- ↑ Bohnensack, André (August 2009). "Review - Cathedral - Forest of Equilibrium". Ox-Fanzine (in German). Retrieved 14 January 2024.
- ↑ Rock Hard Editorial (22 November 1991). "Forest Of Equilibrium". Rock Hard (Vol. 56) (in German). Retrieved 14 January 2024.
- ↑ Alexander 1991.
- ↑ Ayers 1996.
- ↑ Badin 2006.
- ↑ Chase, Jesse (19 February 2006). "Cathedral – "Forest of Equilibrium"". Decibel. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
- ↑ "CATHEDRAL: 'Forest Of Equilibrium' Reissue To Include 40-Minute Documentary". Blabbermouth.net. 28 March 2009. Retrieved 1 May 2016.
- 1 2 updated, Chris Chantlerlast (5 October 2016). "10 essential doom metal albums". Louder. Retrieved 13 June 2025.
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help) - ↑ Cathedral (1991). Forest of Equilibrium (booklet). Earache Records. MOSH 43.
Bibliography
edit- Alexander, Phil, ed. (31 August 1991). "Record News". Raw. No. 79. EMAP. p. 7.
- Ayers, Chris (19 April 1996). "There's no Trouble in the Cathedral when these bands play". The Herald. Rock Hill. p. 7D.
- Badin, Olivier (May 2006). "The Depths of Doom". Terrorizer. No. 144. Dark Arts Ltd. p. 52.
- Bennett, J. (February 2006). "Doom On: The Making of Cathedral's Forest of Equilibrium". Decibel. No. 16. Red Flag Media, Inc. pp. 42–44, 46–48, 50.
- Dome, Malcolm (December 1991). "Albums". Metal Forces. No. 67. Force10 Publications. p. 29. OCLC 859210254.
- Gitter, Mike (26 October 1991). "Rekordz". Kerrang!. No. 364. EMAP. p. 22.
- Larkin, Colin, ed. (1998). "Cathedral". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 2. MUZE Inc. pp. 990–991. ISBN 0-333-74134-X – via Internet Archive.
- Popoff, Martin (2007). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 3: The Nineties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 73. ISBN 978-1-894959-62-9.
- Ruskell, Nick (November 2011). "Cathedral: Forest of Equilibrium". Kerrang!: 666 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die!. Bauer Media Group. p. 24.