Evolve’ is Paradise Lost’s first foray into the world of DVDs and it’s a bit of a let down actually. Despite featuring two concerts and a host of extra features, Evolve is let down by the fact that both concerts had been previously available, the somewhat dubious sound quality and the fact that lead singer Nick Holmes projects rather more of an air of boredom than of menace. This, rather sadly, leads this release to be more for fans than casual viewers and so should be approached accordingly.
That said, if you area fan then there is plenty here to admire. Kicking off with the ‘Harmony Breaks’ MTV special, we have an impressively filmed set from just after the release of Icon. Featuring only seven tracks, it is rather short, but it’s nice to have some footage from when PL were long of hair and big on rock. Following this, we are treated to the promo videos of the era which, bearing in mind they are mid 90s metal promos, aren’t too bad, but it is unlikely you’ll watch them more than once.
The main meat of the set is a full performance from London’s Shepard’s Bush Empire, featuring 19 tracks. Originally available as ‘One Second Live’ for members of the fan club, the set list is an intriguing mixture of songs from the One Second album itself (sounding rather more beefy in the live environment) and choice cuts from the band’s earlier albums (although scant attention is paid to their deathly roots). Unfortunately, despite the reasonable filming, the sound is somewhat muddy with the twin guitars of the band frequently compressed out of the mix (‘Lydia’ in particular suffers from this) while Nick’s vocals sound strained and often off-key. The latter is not helped by the fact that Nick looks bored throughout much of the performance, and the ‘Harmony breaks’ special doesn’t help when offered as evidence of the energy that PL can exude when they are in the mood.
The package is rounded off with more promo videos (which get better as the band’s budget expanded) and home movies featuring rehearsal footage, backstage banter and more. In the end, this is not a bad package, per se, but it’s not great either. It handily gathers together material that was previously hard to find, and it offers plenty for fans, but it also feels like a bit of a missed opportunity from a band who have so much to offer. This is rather a chapter in the evolution of the band, rather than the full story. Approach with caution.
