Cathedral "The Ethereal Mirror (2009 Reissue, Remastered, CD+Dual Disc, UK Earache Records, MOSH077CD)"

The Ethereal Mirror is the second studio album by British doom metal band Cathedral. It was first released on 24 May 1993 through Earache Records, and in the United States on 6 July 1993 through Columbia Records. Earache re-issued the album in 2009 with the Statik Majik EP as bonus tracks and the DVD Ethereal Reflections as DualDisc.

The album's front cover artwork unfolds and expands into something "much larger and weirder," according to Kenny Schticky of MetalSucks.

The Ethereal Mirror received critical acclaim. Peter Atkinson of the Record-Journal stated that "By tempering the oppressive gloom of its debut for a more spirited thunder, Britain's Cathedral has crafted the heaviest and most brutally satisfying album of the year." Kerrang!'s Xavier Russell considered it a stronger album than Forest of Equilibrium, praising Lee Dorrian's discernable vocals and the interplay between guitarists Adam Lehan and Garry Jennings. In their retrospective review, Metal.de called the album "a work of transition that seems almost formless in a positive sense, which draws its charm from the close proximity of styles and moods: dark doom here, right next to loosely rocking brain drills". Martin Popoff, writing in The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal Volume 3: The Nineties (2007), called the album "Fantastically powerful throughout" and singled out "Ride" as the best track in Cathedral's discography up to that point.

In 2000, Terrorizer listed the album as one of the "100 Most Important Albums of the Nineties". In 2005, Kerrang! ranked the album at number 83 on their list of the "100 Best British Rock Albums Ever", stating that it "confirmed [Cathedral's] status as the real Brit metal warlords." In 2014, Decibel ranked the album at number 56 on their list of the "Top 100 Doom Metal Albums of All Time". On Loudwire's 2017 list of the "Top 25 Doom Metal Albums of All Time", it was ranked ninth.

In 2022, Kenny Schticky of MetalSucks included the album in his list of "10 CD Booklets That Should Be Remembered as Fine Art."

Tracklist:

Component 1 (Other) - CD side

1. Violet Vortex (Intro) 01:54   
2. Ride 04:47
3. Enter the Worms 06:07   
4. Midnight Mountain 04:55   
5. Fountain of Innocence 07:12  
6. Grim Luxuria 04:47   
7. Jaded Entity 07:53  
8. Ashes You Leave 06:21   
9. Phantasmagoria 08:42  
10. Imprisoned in Flesh 01:44   

Time:  54:22  

Component 2 (Other) - DVD side

1. Musical Progression  
2. A Major Deal  
3. Manor Studio  
4. The Artwork  
5. Tension Rising  
6. Fashion Sense  
7. Disco Doom  
8. Exit Adam  
9. Where Are You Now?  
10. Reflections  

Disc

1. Hypnos 164 05:43
2. Cosmic Funeral 07:00   
3. The Voyage of the Homeless Sapien 22:44  

Time:  35:27  

CD side features the cover artwork.

DVD side features the Statik Majik EP artwork with lyrics at the bottom.

The DVD side of the Dualdisc contains a 40 min brand new documentary with key original band members, filmed in Coventry in 2009. Also featuring interviews with infamous cover artist Dave Patchett, an in depth exploration of the formation of Cathedral, the recording of The Ethereal Mirror and the growth of the band from humble beginnings to a major label deal.

Tracks 7 and 9 were originally recorded in late 1989 or early '90 by guitarist Gaz Jennings's project Morbid Doom, and were part of a demo that contained approximately 9 songs. In those versions, "Sorrows End" was the original title of "Jaded Entity" (track 7), and "Suffocation of Mankind" was the original title of "Phantasmagoria" (track 9).

A widely shared release date of February 1st, 1993 was corrected by the band in 2023 after they received a lot of congratulatory messages on social media from people believing the 30th anniversary of the album had been reached. The band posted a correction, stating that they were in fact still in studio in February 1993 and the album was not released until May 24th, ahead of an European tour with Penance and Sleep.

Official music video:

- Ride

Credits:

Track 1 by Jennings

Tracks 2, 4, 5 & 10 by Dorrian & Jennings

Tracks 3 & 7 by Dorrian, Lehan & Bianco

Track 6 by Dorrian & Lehan

Track 8 by Dorrian, Lehan & Jennings

Track 9 by Dorrian, Lehan, Jennings & Bianco

Recording information:

Recorded at Manor Studios, Oxford.

Remastered at Optimum Mastering, March 2009.