“Love Songs…” takes us back to the time before the music of While Heaven Wept embraced a more Classical / technical slant. Considered a rarity, the EP is now made more widely available through High Roller Records, a label which in fact specialises in the re-release of lost/rare gems.

Despite harbouring an admiration for the music of WHW, I was oblivious to the band’s earlier material and this release opened my ears to some incredibly creative and profound music. Indeed “Love Songs…” possesses grandeur of epic proportions. Think of it as a film Noire equivalent of Metal if seen through the eyes and ears of Peter Jackson.

The delivery and sound of the song are fraught with imperfections but I felt that that only served to give the music a rawer sound and make it more believable. After all, lest we forget, the first Venom and Black Sabbath albums were epitomes of imperfection but their magic remains undeniable. Having said that, this EP probably needs a few listens in order to be appreciated but once the listener warms to it, there’s no letting go.

“Love Songs…” is subdivided into 3 parts segued together, respectively embodying hope, despair and resignation. Also included is another version of the same song, having a different mix from the original, the former having previously appeared as a “rare” promo-cassette version in 1994. I don’t really see the point of featuring what is virtually the same song twice but then I suppose vinyl's do have 2 sides to fill in.

Cold but ultimately uplifting, “Love Songs of the Forsaken” is another showcase of the creative minds within While Heaven Wept.