13 Candles entered the gothic scene in 1992. The band released their debut album Come Out Of The Dark in 1995 on Nightbreed Records. This was followed in 1997 when the band signed to Cacophonous Records and released their second album called Angels Of Morning Silence. After this release the band - the vampiric duo Dracul and Marc - replaced their vocalist by Danny J. After the arrival of their drummer, they entered the studio to record the Killing For Culture album.

The album reminds me a little of My Dying Bride. The calm and deep vocals resemble those of My Dying Bride, although they are not as varying. I must admit that after a while the monotonous vocals of Danny are a bit boring and that’s definitely not the case with My Dying Bride. Although the vocals are a bit boring, they certainly fit to the music. Maybe they could use a bit more of the screams I hear in the background in a couple of songs. The rest of the music also sounds quite nice. The guitars are constantly completed with synthesizers.

Because of this a sad and sensitive ambience is added to the music. Until that point it all sounds quite good. The industrial-like intro in the song “Killing For Culture” however made me swallow a few times before I could continue listening, because I really dislike industrial in general. Fortunately after playing the song a couple of times I got used to it. If I play the song now I hear a great resemblance to Rammstein in the first couple of riffs; so I guess there is still hope for this song. Killing For Culture is very slow paced most of the time, which does not contribute to the variation on the album.

Evaluating Killing For Culture, I must conclude that yes the album is emotional and deep, but it could use more variation. If you are into the gothic scene you should definitely give this band a chance, because if even I like it, you will probably adore it. So watch the shadows, for 13 Candles have returned to the world of gothic.