So, as previously mentioned, around my late teens and early twenties, I fell into metal in a big way. During that time, I existed on a steady diet of mostly thrash, grindcore and death metal bands, but was open to anything as long as it was heavy and dark. Paradise Lost were one of the first bands I got into after hearing them on a metal show that came on TV in the early hours of the morning, a show I would tape religiously. The song in question was 'True Belief'.
There are some musical moments that stay with you forever, and in this case it was the beautiful solemnity of the song's chorus. In particular, the way the lead guitar harmony played against the rest of the music. Somehow it resonated with me in a way I couldn't quite express in words, and is testament to the power of music itself, particularly its unique capacity for reaching into you and drawing out emotional effects. Anyway, I ended up getting the album and it actually took a few plays before it fully grew on me, but once it did, it became a firm favourite.
'Icon' to me is a nocturnal record, so I tend to only play it at nights, and only within the cold, dark winter months. At any other time, it just would not sound right. Also, it is the second in the triptych of what I consider the band's finest works, beginning with 'Shades of God' and ending with 'Draconian Times'.
Aside from the odd band (mostly the slower, sludgy, doomy stuff), these days, I listen to very little of the metal I once consumed so feverishly. It is occasionally fun to revisit some of my old metal favourites, but a lot of it is lost on me now. Be that as it may, the fact that 'Icon' has still remained with me to this day speaks volumes.
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