BLOOD CEREMONY - THE OLD WAYS REMAIN

On their fifth album, the nostalgic The Old Ways Remain, Toronto-based hard rockers Blood Ceremony deliver their most fully-realized vision of the band to date -- a vision that includes the familiar distortion-laden guitars and flute flourishes, but which has been further fleshed out to include saxophone, fiddle, and more acoustic guitar than on any previous Blood Ceremony record. Following seven years after the previous Lord of Misrule LP (pandemic be damned), the wait has been well worthwhile, ultimately allowing the band the time needed to elevate their trademark sound to the next level.

The album opens with the triumphant "The Hellfire Club," an ominous take-no-prisoners guitar-driven track that sounds more like "classic" Blood Ceremony than any of the nine songs that follow. It's a great way to pull the listener in with something familiar, before blowing all previous expectations out of the water with the one-two punch of second single "Ipsissimus" and "Eugenie," the latter of which features a ripping saxophone solo by up-and-coming Canadian saxophonist Joseph Shabason, who also features prominently on the 2020 Evening Hymns LP Heavy Nights. The momentum doesn't let up at any point, as what follows is an updated take on the 2019 single "Lolly Willows" followed by lead single "Powers of Darkness," a pure 60's influenced pop song through and through. It's the least heavy thing that Blood Ceremony have ever committed to tape, which oddly enough allows it rock harder than anything else in their canon. Therein lies the true powers of darkness, indeed!

The second half of the album is just as captivating as the A-side; however, things lighten up and get decidedly more folk-tinged in the trilogy of songs that close the album -- "Hecate," "Mossy Wood" and "Song of the Morrow." It is here that the acoustic guitar is brought to the forefront, not to mention the aforementioned fiddle. For a band that has relied heavily on the novelty of being one of the only modern rock bands to feature flute so prominently in their music, the decision to expand the instrumental palette to include both fiddle and saxophone is a bold but highly effective decision. 

"Song of the Morrow" fades out with a slow decay, ultimately conjuring a bittersweet sentiment. As another Blood Ceremony record fades into the ether, the question remains: how long must we wait to hear more of their sweet, mystifying and mythical music? Here's hoping not an eternity!

-Leks Maltby