Argh. So many bands do this. Often times, bands that are initially a goth-like-doom-like metal band ‘evolves’ into a made-for-mainstream goth-like rock band with simple licks and sometimes electronics. Tiamat did it. Moonspell did it. Paradise Lost, Pyogenesis, Cemetary, countless others did it. Unfortunately, Lake of Tears did not avoid doing it themselves.

Here we have Lake of Tears’ sixth studio album, ‘Black Brick Road.’ They took a step back from their previous outing, ‘The Neonai,’ losing most of the electronics that were on that 2003 album. The electronics are still there, but, man, do they not sound good. They pretty much aren’t even a goth-ish band anymore, but more of a dark hard rock band. It’s got enough groove to please some. The one good song on here is the opener, “The Greymen,” which sort of sounds like it could be from their 1999 album, ‘Forever Autumn.’ The rest of the album is mediocre at best. It is listenable, but the fire is gone. The guitar solos in the album, though, are actually pretty damn good. Unfortunately, that doesn’t necessarily make for a good song or album. There really aren’t any songs on here with replay value. Even ‘The Neonai’ had some songs that I could listen to over and over, and that album was loaded with simple, mainstream-sounding hooks, keyboards and electronics.

From a strictly sound standpoint, the production is, well, up and down. The overall sound isn’t bad, but little things kill the sound. The title track’s keyboards are too prominent, as it rings in your ear to the point where you just skip the song upon first listen.

So, if you’re into this kind of thing, get it. But if you want what Lake of Tears was really about, check out their first three albums (Greater Art, Headstones, or A Crimson Cosmos). Hopefully they can do what Moonspell did with their album ‘The Antidote’ and go back to a way they originally sounded. If not, I fear that it will be the end of Lake of Tears.

[This review was first published on the now defunct scandinavianmetal.info webzine]