Hooded Menace Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration
Consensus is still forming across 3 professional reviews. Hooded Menace's Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration arrives as a widescreen statement from one of death-doom's most faithful practitioners, and critics largely agree it delivers memorable riffs and melancholic heft. Across three professional reviews the record earned a 76.67/100 consensus score, with reviewers repeated
Pale Masquerade is best for its skull-crushing riffs and balance of ferocity and melody.
The album’s core strengths are Lasse Pyykkö’s infernal riffing and effective blending of Goth doom with trad metal, despite overlong song structures.
Best for listeners looking for death/doom tradition and old-school metal influences, starting with Pale Masquerade and Save a Prayer - Cover.
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Full consensus notes
Hooded Menace's Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration arrives as a widescreen statement from one of death-doom's most faithful practitioners, and critics largely agree it delivers memorable riffs and melancholic heft. Across three professional reviews the record earned a 76.67/100 consensus score, with reviewers repeatedly citing “Pale Masquerade”, “Lugubrious Dance” and the surprising “Save a Prayer - Cover” as standout songs that showcase the band's melodic hooks and riff-centric guitar work.
The critical consensus highlights a deliberate melo-doom evolution: producers and writers praise the marriage of slow, heavy riffs and old-school metal nods that give tracks like “Portrait Without a Face” and “Into Haunted Oblivion” an epic sweep. Distorted Sound and Blabbermouth emphasize sublime, near-epic compositions and expert musicianship, while Angry Metal Guy echoes that praise but cautions that several songs overstay their welcome, producing occasional bloat amid the album's high points.
Taken together, professional reviews suggest Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration is worth attention for fans of death/doom tradition and 1980s-flavored metal nostalgia - its best tracks emerge as rewarding listens even when the record's extended structures divide opinion. Below, the full reviews unpack why critics agree the collection contains definite highlights and where it sometimes leans toward indulgence.
Critics' Top Tracks
The standout songs that made critics take notice
Pale Masquerade
3 mentions
"Hooded Menace clubs you like an Easter seal with the 7-plus minute riff-o-thon “Pale Masquerade."— Angry Metal Guy
Save a Prayer - Cover
3 mentions
"Somehow it works very well beaten into a Goth doom style"— Angry Metal Guy
Lugubrious Dance
3 mentions
"Fading in like a restless spirit encroaching on the petrified, "Lugubrious Dance" has more than a hint of CATHEDRAL"— Blabbermouth
Fading in like a restless spirit encroaching on the petrified, "Lugubrious Dance" has more than a hint of CATHEDRAL
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
Twilight Passages
Pale Masquerade
Portrait Without a Face
Daughters of Lingering Pain
Lugubrious Dance
Save a Prayer - Cover
Into Haunted Oblivion
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What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 5 critics who reviewed this album
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Critic's Take
In his rapturous appraisal James Weaver presents Hooded Menace's Lachrymose Monuments Of Obscuration as arguably the band's magnum opus, and names “Pale Masquerade” and “Lugubrious Dance” as standout tracks. He praises the marriage of death-doom weight with vintage 80s heavy metal flair, arguing that songs like “Portrait Without A Face” and “Pale Masquerade” show sublime epics and expert musicianship. The review highlights the surprise success of their “Save a Prayer - Cover” as one of the album's biggest highs, while citing the finale “Into Haunted Oblivion” for its epic, devastatingly heavy closure. Overall the tone is emphatic and admiring, presenting the best songs on Lachrymose Monuments Of Obscuration as proof of a band at the top of their game.
Key Points
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Pale Masquerade is best for its skull-crushing riffs and balance of ferocity and melody.
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The album's core strengths are its marriage of death-doom weight with 80s heavy metal flair and expansive, well-produced compositions.
Bl
Critic's Take
Hooded Menace have fashioned on Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration a record where the best tracks - notably “Pale Masquerade” and “Portrait Without a Face” - unfold into sublime epics that ride doom tradition while sneaking in old-school hooks. The reviewer's relish for the band’s weight and melody is evident when describing “Daughters of Lingering Pain” and the vast, near-10-minute “Into Haunted Oblivion”, both of which the writer treats as centerpiece moments that balance oppression with melody. Even the unexpected cover, “Save a Prayer - Cover”, is praised as a daring success rather than a novelty, reinforcing why listeners seeking the best songs on Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration should pay close attention to these highlights.
Key Points
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The best song(s) are the long, epic tracks like "Portrait Without a Face" and "Pale Masquerade" because they combine old-school doom hooks with dynamic subtlety.
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The album's core strength is fusing death/doom weight with melodic, old-school metal influences and successful risk-taking, including an inventive cover.
Themes
An
Critic's Take
Hooded Menace keep steering into melo-doom on Lachrymose Monuments of Obscuration, and the best songs - notably “Pale Masquerade” and “Lugubrious Dance” - show why their riffcraft still matters. The reviewer relishes Lasse Pyykkö’s infernal riffs and the album’s Peaceville-meets-arena-metal excursions, even when tracks meander and overstay their welcome. Overall, it’s a skillful, occasionally bloated set whose best tracks reward repeated listens.
Key Points
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The best song is "Lugubrious Dance" for its massive riffs and status as the album’s high point.
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The album’s core strengths are Lasse Pyykkö’s infernal riffing and effective blending of Goth doom with trad metal, despite overlong song structures.