The Manticore and Other Horrors is the tenth studio album by English extreme metal band Cradle of Filth. It was released on 29 October 2012 in Europe and on 30 October in USA.[3] It is the band's only album as a three-man group rather than its six-man staple. It was also the last release with Paul Allender on guitar, who departed the band for a second time in April 2014.
| The Manticore and Other Horrors | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 29 October 2012 (Europe) 30 October 2012 (USA) | |||
| Recorded | April – June 2012[1][2] | |||
| Studio | Grindstone Studios (Suffolk, England), Springvale Studios (Ipswich, Suffolk, England) | |||
| Genre | Extreme metal | |||
| Length | 51:37 | |||
| Label | Peaceville (Europe) Nuclear Blast (USA) | |||
| Producer |
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| Cradle of Filth chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Manticore and Other Horrors | ||||
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Background
editGuitarist Paul Allender told Ultimate Guitar that "The last thing we want to do is come out with another album that sounds like the last two. We decided to change direction and go back to what we used to do with the female vocals; all the strong melody lines and harmonies... I've put a lot of punk orientated riffs back into it again. It's really gone quite dark and pretty hardcore."[4]
A press release in August 2012 revealed that the album was conceived as "a bestiary, a collection of stories on monsters," including "personal demons, chimeras, literary fiends, and world-enslaving entities..." The title track, "Manticore", was described as being "about a beautiful mythological horror that comes to be feared as the disfigurehead [sic] of foreign occupation in the Indian provinces". "Illicitus" and "Pallid Reflection" meanwhile, involve "lycanthropy and vampirism"; "For Your Vulgar Delectation" and "Frost on Her Pillow" are "grim fairy tales"; and "The Abhorrent" and "Siding with the Titans" are said to "extol tentacular Lovecraftian values".[5]
"Frost on Her Pillow" was the first video to promote the album, after "For Your Vulgar Delectation" and "Manticore" were uploaded to Peaceville's SoundCloud account.
Reception
edit| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 70/100[6] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [7] |
| Exclaim! | 6/10[8] |
| Kerrang! | [9] |
| Loudwire | [10] |
| NME | 6/10[11] |
| PopMatters |   [12] |
The Manticore and Other Horrors has received a generally favourable response from critics. PopMatters called it "the most vital record released by the band in almost a decade",[12] while Kerrang! wrote "There's nothing here that Cradle of Filth haven't done much better elsewhere."[9]
Track listing
editAll lyrics are written by Dani Filth; all music is composed by Paul Allender, Martin "Marthus" Škaroupka and DJ Gunnarson
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Unveiling of O" (instrumental) | 2:07 |
| 2. | "The Abhorrent" | 5:53 |
| 3. | "For Your Vulgar Delectation" | 4:46 |
| 4. | "Illicitus" | 5:24 |
| 5. | "Manticore" | 5:53 |
| 6. | "Frost on Her Pillow" | 4:12 |
| 7. | "Huge Onyx Wings Behind Despair" | 4:23 |
| 8. | "Pallid Reflection" | 5:34 |
| 9. | "Siding with the Titans" | 5:17 |
| 10. | "Succumb to This" | 4:43 |
| 11. | "Sinfonia" (Instrumental) | 3:25 |
| Total length: | 51:37 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Nightmares of an Ether Drinker" | 4:32 |
| 12. | "Death, the Great Adventure" | 6:18 |
| 13. | "Sinfonia" (Instrumental) | 3:25 |
| Total length: | 62:17 | |
Personnel
edit- Cradle of Filth
- Dani Filth – vocals
- Paul Allender – guitars
- Martin "Marthus" Škaroupka – drums, orchestration
- Guest/session musicians
- Daniel Firth – bass
- Lucy Atkins – vocals
- Choir formed by Jill Fallow, Scarlet Summer, Lucy Atkins, India Price, Janet Granger, Petra Stiles-Swinton, Anita Kilpatrick, Robert L. Friars, Daniel Oxblood, Joseph Kelly, Jasper Conway
- Choir conducted & arranged by Will Graney.
- Additional personnel
- Scott Atkins – mixing, engineering and mastering
- Mark Harwood – additional engineering
- Doug Cook – additional engineering
- Matt Vickerstaff – album art
- Travis Smith, Kewin Miceli – additional images
Charts
edit| Chart (2012) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[13] | 63 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[14] | 92 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[15] | 99 |
| Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[16] | 24 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[17] | 94 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[18] | 56 |
| US Billboard 200[19] | 96 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard)[20] | 16 |
| US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[21] | 11 |
| US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[22] | 30 |
References
edit- ^ "CRADLE OF FILTH Preparing To Record New Album". Blabbermouth.net. 3 April 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
- ^ "CRADLE OF FILTH: New Album Enters Mixing Stage". Blabbermouth.net. 21 June 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
- ^ "CRADLE OF FILTH: New Album Cover Artwork, More Details Revealed". Blabbermouth. 18 August 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
- ^ Rosen, Stephen (11 September 2011). "Cradle of Filth: 'We Decided To Go Back To What We Used To Do' | Interviews". Ultimate Guitar Archive. Archived from the original on 9 May 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
- ^ "The Manticore and other Horrors". peaceville.com. September 2012. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
- ^ "Reviews for The Manticore and Other Horrors by Cradle of Filth – Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
- ^ Jurek, Thom. "The Manticore and Other Horrors – Cradle of Filth | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
- ^ Wiebe, Laura (1 November 2012). "Cradle of Filth The Manticore and Other Horrors". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
- ^ a b "[The Manticore and Other Horrors review]". Kerrang!: 55. 10 November 2012.
- ^ "Cradle of Filth, "The Manticore and Other Horrors" - Album Review". Loudwire. 1 November 2012. Retrieved 1 November 2012.
- ^ Pattison, Louis (26 October 2012). "Cradle of Filth – 'The Manticore and Other Horrors' | NME.com". NME. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
- ^ a b Brown, Dean (18 January 2013). "Cradle of Filth: The Manticore and Other Horrors | PopMatters". PopMatters. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
- ^ "Austriancharts.at – Cradle Of Filth – The Manticore And Other Horrors" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Cradle Of Filth – The Manticore And Other Horrors" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Cradle Of Filth – The Manticore And Other Horrors" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ^ "Cradle Of Filth: The Manticore And Other Horrors" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ^ "Lescharts.com – Cradle Of Filth – The Manticore And Other Horrors". Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Cradle Of Filth – The Manticore And Other Horrors" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ^ "Cradle Of Filth Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ^ "Cradle Of Filth Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ^ "Cradle Of Filth Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ^ "Cradle Of Filth Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
External links
edit- The Manticore and Other Horrors at MusicBrainz (list of releases)