Review by Rosh on October 9, 2023.

"But if they already peaked creatively, then how can this album be their "ultimate statement?" Well, a creative peak and an ultimate statement are both very high praise, but in this case they differ in many ways - more on that later. But, just know, forming the ideas behind this review requires an in-depth look at this seminal American doom institution.

Pentagram is one hell of a curious band, and I don't use that word simply because I just reviewed Curious Volume on here yesterday, I actually really mean it. Their 70's material (which, as a younger fan, I have experienced exclusively through the First Daze Here compilation CDs) reflected early metal as far as I can tell, but in my opinion, it bordered more on psychedelic rock than Black Sabbath's seminal metal classics like Paranoid, Master of Reality, or Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, as evidenced by the fact that a 70's Pentagram-inspired doom band like Witchcraft is considered to have a psychedelic rock component themselves, right here on the Metal Archives. But why does this musical tendency of early Pentagram matter? Well, I think when they were known as Death Row in the early 1980's, they further embraced heavy metal music (since, as the metal historian knows, heavy metal was evolving fast at this time, for example the NWOBHM was going strong) while still retaining their distinct melodies that we know so well from songs like "When the Screams Come." As a result, the first three Pentagram albums are all classics, and there can be no debate about that - while Pentagram (Relentless) serves as the best introduction to the band's wholly original doom sound for the average heavy metal listener, Day of Reckoning and Be Forewarned place a greater emphasis on those doom metal melodies I mentioned above, which to me makes it clear how once their music got a little bit heavier than it was in the 1970's, they were playing fully "matured" doom metal - that said, from the very beginning, they were a doom band.

This brings me to a point I do not necessarily need to bring up to make my case, but I would still like to expand upon since I could talk about Pentagram all day, this being from the user gasmask_colostomy's 2015 review of Day of Reckoning. In this slightly critical but ultimately insightful review, this user astutely notes two things - one, Pentagram in the 1980's is far removed from the band they were in the 1970's, and two, Day of Reckoning introduces the sound that would be expanded upon on Be Forewarned (by which I assume they must be referring to those distinct melodies which define the doom metal genre and can also be heard in early Trouble or Cathedral songs). Indeed, both albums are littered with those sorrowful and mysterious guitar lines like on the bridge of "Day of Reckoning" or in the chorus of "Nightmare Gown"(which along with "Fear No Evil" by Trouble are palpable examples of "fast" doom metal - melody, progression, and mood defines this music, whereas slower tempos are often just coincidental.) I like these points on their own but I would like to unify them by saying this - Pentagram circa 1985-1994 doesn't resemble Pentagram circa 1972-1980 because they became more of a heavy metal band, but I still think they remained somewhat faithful to their original sound by retaining those melodies I've talked so much about. "When the Screams Come" fits perfectly on Day of Reckoning while still doing justice to the original, and I'll always stand by that.

But hey, look at this, I can come up with a better example of rerecorded old songs being put to damn fine use for a new album, that being 1999's overlooked Review Your Choices, which actually relies heavily on the band's 70's material, but to its merit. After Be Forewarned, which in many ways was the band's creative peak (since it featured so many at the time new and overall tastefully dark songs), Pentagram's (superb) lineup tanked and Martin Swaney and Victor Griffin left. Granted Joe Hasslevander was still in the band and he's actually the main hero of Review Your Choices since he plays every instrument and totally gets the songs, but there's no denying that he and Bobby were under strain on this outing. Some people fault them for reusing the title track and "Forever My Queen", but honestly it goes perfectly with the new songs like "Gorgon's Slave", which is actually the most gloomy song Pentagram had written up to this point and is one of my favorite doom metal tracks. And yet at the same time, the rerecorded songs are entirely faithful to the original versions, just way heavier and murkier sounding. Those chord progressions were always doomy as hell!

Additionally, I originally thought that songs like Gorgon's Slave or "I Am Vengeance" were written as an attempt to fit in with doom metal circa 1999 since by that point, metal subgenres were well established and there were plenty of classics to be found in each one. However, as I made clear above, I think Day of Reckoning and Be Forewarned already were totally mature doom metal. It's just that while songs like "Madman" and "Lifeblood" from those albums rely on chilled and mysterious doominess, songs like "Change of Heart" from Review Your Choices are simply very downcast, which reflects the loneliness of the lineup at the time and Bobby's addiction struggles. In fact, I think the title of this album is really very apt, especially if you know the lyrics to the title track - "Review all of your choices now, there's no one 'round to show you how." That song especially makes me feel lonely and depressed, the version from this album in particular. And they totally did review their choices here! It shows, because what a monster of an album this is. It's like Mournful Cries and Lunar Womb in that it's doom I have nothing bad to say about. It may not be Pentagram at their most creative but it IS Pentagram, the definitive experience of their music I'd say, even if the muddy production here makes it a bit less accessible to get into than the first three albums. Songs like "The Diver" or "Mow You Down" might seem a bit like "filler" to some, but I think deep cuts can add completeness to albums, and they do here. Most albums with this many tracks aren't this strong overall, anyway. Lastly I would just like to note that the doom to be found here is a bit less melodic than that of Day of Reckoning and Be Forewarned. To me they went for more of a Saint Vitus kind of trudge on this one, just not as punk-leaning as their younger brothers in that band obviously.

Overall an essential doom metal album! These guys were a pioneering band of the style and this album is the ultimate testament to that - for this reason it's still my favorite Pentagram album and I do find it pretty interesting how it fits into their discography. Sub-Basement from 2001 also uses the same formula as here but honestly I'd only rate that one an 85% which is a bit low considering Pentagram is one of my favorite bands, just because the songs have less of a sense of direction on that one, but on Review Your Choices it's like the perfect balance of variety yet consistent doominess and strong songwriting. I'd definitely recommend picking up the Season of Mist CD pressing if you can too, because it's fairly cheap from most websites, that way you can get some great doom in your collection! The only thing is, I don't recommend starting with Review Your Choices if you're just getting into traditional doom, because this one is a bit more bleak and burned out sounding. Try one of Pentagram's first 3 albums or maybe The Obsessed!

Rating: 10 out of 10