From early on in the RMR zine’s existence, Moonspell has been an ever-returning companion of sorts. The crew was forever fascinated with our first finding, Extinct. The puffy-nippled, yet gruesome female torso kinda drew us to the record as if the Lord of The Flies had called. But then, the record itself was somewhat hard fare for a fledgling music review site. But then, we stumbled across Night Eternal. This one carried real heft, a brutally dark, murderously ominous atmosphere that would not leave you until the last note disappeared into the ether.
The heavy, all-Portuguese 2017 piece 1755 proved to be at pains to climb that ladder further. That the RMR crew struggled with Extinct wasn’t an accident after all. The ‘new’ Moonspell really had trouble asserting itself. Point proven with Hermitage in 2021, which didn’t sit too well with this reviewer. And it appears that the past rumors of this band retiring took another turn.
Far From God here tries to fetch the baton that the gang around Fernando Ribeiro dropped the last time around. You know, this time rife with rumors that this would be THE END for Moonspell, and happy retiring everyone. But no such drama happened. The act is alive and kicking. So, Far From God should invent at least something, and MS does this with a trip to the past. Loud voices touted this new record as being as astute as the 1994 piece Irreligious ever was. But not so fast. True, Far from God‘s new delivery lost a lot of the sonic fat the band accumulated over the years. And the record indeed is more barebones than its latest two iterations. But Moonspell didn’t somehow magically move back to their former questionable glory that some of the older fanbase still lust after.
In fact, the RMR crew found a slew of tracks boasting a much simpler songwriting style. A style that veers yet again off into the more frugal territories that oscillate somewhere in between Dark and old-style Gothic Metal, such as a more toned-down version of this one. True, their new / old style will mimic old-school Gothic Metal with all its darkly ominous cemetery and statue-infested splendor. But some of the material presented on Far From God borders so much on the boring that the crew here feared we’re entering Darkwave territory. But luckily, the band didn’t go there.
Luckily, once The Great Wolf in the Sky hits yer turntables, some drama gets added to the fray. Subtle keys, synth underlay, and Ribeiro‘s crooning vocals will make you hope for more to come, real substance to hit your earphones. And indeed so, lightly progressive patterns drive this one forth, with a level of mystique this crew was used to on earlier records. Suddenly, a snarly rasp finds its way into the songsmithing that works well with this typical Moonspell concoction.
As of this moment, intricacy and oomph reign in a much better way. It is in these latter parts of the track list where the axeman truly comes into his own. Some snazzy riffing wormed its way into the production with – lo and behold – one or two pretty neat solos. But the last two tracks really steal the show on Far From God. Our Freedom to Fall first indulges into some Amorphis-esque melancholy until the rhythm and the tastily downturned, meaty guitars almost estinguish Ribeiro‘s fire. But fear naught, the last track, Reconquista, turned into one mother of a dynamic scorchers. Finally, the cat is burning as it jumps out of the proverbial bag with the enraged vocalist egging it on. This is the type of tragic, wistful spectacle that Moonspell often displayed to great success. And we should have had more of that.
Thus, unfortunately, Far From God turned into a mixed bag. The record’s in no way a copy of Irreligious, and we didn’t expect it to be. To dial the temperature back at first, almost to frugal levels, and hold back the good stuff until the very end didn’t help, though. The first few tracks almost sounded anemic until some oomph returned later. With tracks that showed that this act still has enough napalm in their bellies to deliver great material that will pull the fanbase along. Only, this time, the RMR crew found an uneasy mélange of absolutely great and much weaker moments. And that made us pull back from the record more than once.
Record Rating: 6/10 | Label: Napalm Records1 | Web: Official Band Site
Release Date: 3 July 2026
- The grand masters of the malicious stream.-↩