2026 Anniversary Series 074: Candlemass – Epicus Doomicus Metallicus

Scribed by Sandre the Giant Released: 10th June 1986 Rediscovering earth-shaking debut records is the bread and butter of the Anniversary Series, and few shook as much earth in the doom genre as Swedish icons Candlemass, and their ‘Epicus Doomicus Metallicus’ debut from 1986. An album whose name you’ll never forgot, paired with songs that once you hear you’ll never forget, this was a real epoch altering record. Forty years later, this is still an album that resonates deeply within the doom community, and the overall metal scene at large, given the massive influential shadow they have cast for four decades. Even the band themselves have been chasing this at times during that time, and even managed to hit it once or twice, but it still has that unassailable magic it always did. Forty years on, it somehow still feels as old fashioned and fresh as ever. An absolute cornerstone of everything that would become modern doom, but with the grandeur and the melodies to create something entirely…