# Left Hand Path (album) > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Left_Hand_Path_(album) > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Left_Hand_Path_(album).md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left_Hand_Path_(album) > Source revision: 1347136541 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|1990 debut studio album by Entombed}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2021}} {{Infobox album | name = Left Hand Path | type = studio | artist = [Entombed](/source/Entombed_(band)) | cover = Lefthandpath AlbumCover.jpg | alt = | released = {{Start date|df=y|1990|6|4}}{{cite web |url=http://www.earache.com/catalogue/mosh021.php |title=Entombed 'Left Hand Path' |website=earache.com |publisher=[Earache](/source/Earache_Records) |access-date=28 September 2016}} (Europe) {{Start date|df=y|1990|12|7}} (US) | recorded = December 1989 | venue = | studio = [Sunlight Studio](/source/Sunlight_Studio) (Stockholm, Sweden) | genre = [Death metal](/source/Death_metal) | length = 39:16 | label = [Earache](/source/Earache_Records), [Combat](/source/Combat_Records) (US) | producer = Tomas Skogsberg, Entombed | prev_title = | prev_year = | next_title = [Clandestine](/source/Clandestine_(album)) | next_year = 1991 }} '''''Left Hand Path''''' is the debut studio album by Swedish [death metal](/source/death_metal) band [Entombed](/source/Entombed_(band)). It was released in the UK by [Earache Records](/source/Earache_Records) on 4 June 1990 and in the United States by [Combat Records](/source/Combat_Records) on 7 December 1990. It is now considered a landmark in the [death metal](/source/death_metal) genre, and is noted for having put [Swedish death metal](/source/Swedish_death_metal) "on the map." == Background == The album was recorded in less than a week in late 1989 at [Sunlight Studio](/source/Sunlight_Studio) in [Stockholm](/source/Stockholm), [Sweden](/source/Sweden).{{cite book |last1=Mudrian |first1=Albert |title=Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces |date=July 14, 2009 |publisher=Da Capo Press |page=110 }} The tracks "Left Hand Path", "Drowned" and "Bitter Loss" were written days before the band entered the studio, and Entombed guitarist Uffe Cederlund retroactively laments the tracks as sounding unfinished and "really sloppy".{{cite book |last1=Muridan |first1=Albert |title=Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces |date=July 14, 2009 |publisher=Da Capo Press |page=113 }} Entombed vocalist [Lars-Göran Petrov](/source/Lars-G%C3%B6ran_Petrov) recalls that some lyrics were changed in the studio, and that while tracking vocal takes, drummer [Nicke Andersson](/source/Nicke_Andersson) would stand behind him with a lyric sheet and point at which lines to sing.{{cite book |last1=Muridan |first1=Albert |title=Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces |date=July 14, 2009 |publisher=Da Capo Press |page=113 }} Uffe's guitar tracks were [panned](/source/Panning_(audio)) to the left and the right, while Hellid's guitar tracks were [panned](/source/Panning_(audio)) to the middle.{{cite book |last1=Mudrian |first1=Albert |title=Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces |date=July 14, 2009 |publisher=Da Capo Press |page=112 }} The band did not have a permanent bassist at the time of the album's recording, so the two guitarists took turns tracking basslines "every second song". It is unknown who tracked bass on which song, but Cederlund believes he may have tracked bass on "Drowned" and "Revel in the Flesh".{{cite book |last1=Muridan |first1=Albert |title=Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces |date=July 14, 2009 |publisher=Da Capo Press |page=113 }} (However, according to [the album's credits](/source/Left_Hand_Path_(album)) the bass duties were shared between guitarist Cederlund and drummer Nicke Andersson) The title of the album refers to the [left-hand path](/source/Left-hand_path_and_right-hand_path) belief system. Guitarist Alex Hellid found the term in [Anton LaVey](/source/Anton_LaVey)'s book ''[The Satanic Bible](/source/The_Satanic_Bible)'',J. Bennett, "Left Hand Legacy", ''Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces'', Albert Mudrian, ed., Da Capo Press, p. 113. but Nicke Andersson (who was the "big boss" in the band) made the final decision that it would be the album's title.{{cite book |last1=Muridan |first1=Albert |title=Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces |date=July 14, 2009 |publisher=Da Capo Press |page=113 }} The title track contains an interpolation of the theme from the 1979 [horror film](/source/horror_film) ''[Phantasm](/source/Phantasm_(film))'' at 3:54.Bennett, p. 118. The album artwork was created by [Dan Seagrave](/source/Dan_Seagrave). == Music and lyrics == The sound on ''Left Hand Path'' has been described as "monumental", combining the "extremity of [Earache](/source/Earache_Records)'s stable of British [grindcore](/source/grindcore)" with the "elaborate songwriting structures" of the [Florida death metal](/source/Florida_death_metal) scene. According to author Natalie J. Purcell, the album also features "[punk](/source/Punk_rock)-like and groovy rhythms offset with deep, [doom](/source/Doom_metal)-like sections". The album has drawn stylistic comparisons to [Napalm Death](/source/Napalm_Death), [Carcass](/source/Carcass_(band)), [Death](/source/Death_(metal_band)), [Obituary](/source/Obituary_(band)), [Morbid Angel](/source/Morbid_Angel) and [Godflesh](/source/Godflesh).{{Citation |title=Left Hand Path - Entombed {{!}} Album {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/left-hand-path-mw0000690770 |access-date=2024-12-30 |language=en}}{{cite book |last1=Purcell |first1=Natalie J. |title=Death Metal Music: The Passion and Politics of a Subculture |date=May 19, 2003 |publisher=McFarland |pages=58–59}} ''[Metal Hammer](/source/Metal_Hammer)'' said Entombed showed "a penchant for horror schlock and an underlying [punkiness](/source/Punk_rock)" on the album.{{Cite web |author1=Metal Hammer |date=2020-05-15 |title=The 50 best death metal albums ever |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-50-best-death-metal-albums-ever/5 |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=louder |language=en}} Joe Matera of ''[Decibel](/source/Decibel_(magazine))'' described the track “But Life Goes On” as an early example of "how [death metal](/source/death_metal) can indeed use [rock](/source/Rock_music) structures and still be completely intense,"{{Cite web |last=Pratt |first=Greg |date=2021-01-14 |title=Fight Fire with Fire: 'Left Hand Path' vs. 'Like an Everflowing Stream' |url=https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2021/01/14/fight-fire-with-fire-left-hand-path-vs-like-an-everflowing-stream/ |access-date=2024-12-30 |website=Decibel Magazine |language=en-US}} and Chris Krovatin of [Kerrang!](/source/Kerrang!) said "the band’s use of catchy melodies with a gross, gravelly [guitar tone](/source/Tone_(musical_instrument)) showed the world how excitingly sweet death metal could be."{{Cite web |date=2019-07-20 |title=The 15 greatest death metal albums of the ’90s |url=https://www.kerrang.com/the-15-greatest-death-metal-albums-of-the-90s |access-date=2025-01-18 |website=Kerrang! |language=en}} Andy O'Connor of ''[Spin](/source/Spin_(magazine))'' said: "''Left Hand Path'' thrusted Autopsy’s grime-ridden brutish credo into harsh light, revealing the burning skeleton within."{{Cite web |last=O'Connor |first=Andy |date=2023-07-25 |title=The 15 Best Swedish Metal Records |url=https://www.spin.com/2023/07/the-15-best-swedish-metal-records/ |access-date=2025-08-29 |website=SPIN |language=en-US}} The album has been noted for defining the style of [Swedish death metal](/source/Swedish_death_metal) by being the earliest known album to feature the heavily [distorted](/source/Distortion_(music)), "down-tuned, saw-like guitar sound", also known as the "Sunlight sound", which would later become a staple for the regional scene thereafter. According to Joe Matera of ''[Guitar World](/source/Guitar_World)'', it "sounded like a swarm of [bees](/source/Bee)."{{cite book |last1=Purcell |first1=Natalie J. |title=Death Metal Music: The Passion and Politics of a Subculture |date=May 19, 2003 |publisher=McFarland |pages=58–59 }}{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=Invisible Oranges |title=Entombed - Left Hand Path |url=https://www.invisibleoranges.com/entombed-left-hand-path/ |access-date=2024-12-30 |website=Invisible Oranges - The Metal Blog |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |author1=Joe Matera |date=2020-06-12 |title=How Entombed and Sunlight Studios gave birth to death-metal guitar tone |url=https://www.guitarworld.com/features/how-entombed-and-sunlight-studios-gave-birth-to-death-metal-guitar-tone |access-date=2024-12-30 |website=guitarworld |language=en}} The guitar tone was achieved using guitars tuned to B standard tuning through a [Boss HM-2 Heavy Metal](/source/Boss_HM-2) pedal with all the controls set to max. These guitars were panned to the left and right channels, while a third guitar using a [Boss DS-1](/source/Boss_DS-1) distortion [pedal](/source/List_of_distortion_pedals) was placed in the [center channel](/source/center_channel) along with the bass. Entombed guitarist Leif "Leffe" Cuzner (who had previously played guitar in [Nihilist](/source/Nihilist_(band))) has been credited as the "creator" of the Swedish death metal guitar tone.{{Cite web |date=2019-06-06 |title=Interview: Alex Hellid of ENTOMBED |url=https://www.antiheromagazine.com/interview-alex-hellid-of-entombed/ |access-date=2022-12-26 |website=Antihero Magazine |language=en-US}} Cederlund remarked: "Everybody had that pedal, but Leffe was the guy who cranked everything to 10 first. That pedal is a really bad distortion pedal, but everybody had it because it was the cheap pedal to buy back then." [Andersson](/source/Nicke_Andersson) elaborated "yeah, there's four knobs on it. One of them is all [mids](/source/Audio_frequency), and if you put that on 10, that's how you get that sound. If you just have the regular [Boss](/source/Boss_Corporation) distortional [pedal] (the orange one) there's only high and low [...] first we thought the sounds was his guitar or his speaker, but it was his pedal. When we found that out, Uffe started using one too. Then [Dismember](/source/Dismember_(band)) bought the same pedals."{{cite book |last1=Muridan |first1=Albert |title=Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces |date=July 14, 2009 |publisher=Da Capo Press |page=112 }} A [Peavey](/source/Peavey_Electronics) Studio Pro 40 [combo amplifier](/source/combo_amplifier) that was being used by the band was said to have played a "pivotal role," as well.{{Cite web |author1=Joe Matera |date=2020-06-12 |title=How Entombed and Sunlight Studios gave birth to death-metal guitar tone |url=https://www.guitarworld.com/features/how-entombed-and-sunlight-studios-gave-birth-to-death-metal-guitar-tone |access-date=2024-12-30 |website=guitarworld |language=en}} The album’s lyrical themes involve [morbidity](/source/morbidity) and [existential dread](/source/existential_dread). According to Chris Krovatin of [Kerrang](/source/Kerrang), “While ''Left Hand Path'' uses much of the same subject matter as the records of its [American counterparts](/source/Florida_death_metal), [...] it moved away from the [bloody mess](/source/Graphic_violence) of most of the era’s death metal, instead favoring a sense of grim [decay](/source/Decay_chain).”{{Cite web |date=2019-07-20 |title=The 15 greatest death metal albums of the ’90s |url=https://www.kerrang.com/the-15-greatest-death-metal-albums-of-the-90s |access-date=2025-01-18 |website=Kerrang! |language=en}} == Reception and legacy == {{Music ratings | rev1 = [AllMusic](/source/AllMusic) | rev1Score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}{{AllMusic |class=album |id=left-hand-path-mw0000690770 |tab=Overview |label=Entombed: ''Left Hand Path'' |last=Birchmeier |first=Jason |accessdate=28 September 2016}} | rev2 = ''[Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal](/source/Martin_Popoff)'' | rev2score = 3/10{{cite book |last1=Popoff |first1=Martin |author-link1=Martin Popoff |title=The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 3: The Nineties |publisher=[Collector's Guide Publishing](/source/Collector's_Guide_Publishing) |year=2007 |location=[Burlington, Ontario](/source/Burlington%2C_Ontario), [Canada](/source/Canada) |isbn=978-1-894959-62-9 |page=140}} | rev3 = ''[Entertainment Weekly](/source/Entertainment_Weekly)'' | rev3score = C{{Cite magazine |last=Browne |first=David |author-link=David Browne (journalist) |date=January 25, 1991 |title=Death Metal new releases |url=http://ew.com/article/1991/01/25/death-metal-new-releases/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180109064013/http://ew.com/article/1991/01/25/death-metal-new-releases/ |archive-date=2018-01-09 |access-date=2023-12-27 |magazine=[Entertainment Weekly](/source/Entertainment_Weekly)}} }} According to Jason of [AllMusic](/source/AllMusic), ''Left Hand Path'' was an "accomplishment" in the [death metal](/source/death_metal) genre, and "foreshadowed the pivotal role that [Scandinavia](/source/Scandinavia) would soon play in the evolution of the then-burgeoning genre."{{Citation |title=Left Hand Path - Entombed {{!}} Album {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/left-hand-path-mw0000690770 |access-date=2024-12-30 |language=en}} ''[Metal Hammer](/source/Metal_Hammer)'' named the album one of the best metal albums of the 1990s, saying, “''Left Hand Path'' remains one of the most gruesomely perfect pieces of [Swedish death metal](/source/Swedish_death_metal) ever committed to tape. [...] Most importantly, the Swedish sluggers’ stellar debut showed the [Yanks](/source/Florida_death_metal) didn’t have the monopoly on white-hot death metal. Bands are still ripping it off 30 years on.”{{Cite web |last=Metal Hammer |date=2020-03-26 |title=The 100 best metal albums of the 90s |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-100-best-metal-albums-of-the-90s |access-date=2025-01-18 |website=Louder |language=en}} ''Left Hand Path'' was ranked No. 82 on ''[Rolling Stone](/source/Rolling_Stone)''{{'}}s "100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time".{{cite magazine |last1=Weingarten |first1=Christopher R. |last2=Beaujour |first2=Tom |last3=Shteamer |first3=Hank |last4=Kelly |first4=Kim |last5=Smith |first5=Steve |last6=Spanos |first6=Brittany |last7=Exposito |first7=Suzy |last8=Bienstock |first8=Richard |last9=Grow |first9=Kory |last10=Epstein |first10=Dan |last11=Considine |first11=J.D. |last12=Greene |first12=Andy |last13=Sheffield |first13=Rob |last14=Bergrand |first14=Adrien |last15=Christe |first15=Ian |title=The 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/the-100-greatest-metal-albums-of-all-time-113614/entombed-left-hand-path-1990-117422/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |accessdate=21 March 2020 |date=21 June 2017}} In August 2005, ''[Decibel](/source/Decibel_(magazine))'' inducted ''Left Hand Path'' into the Decibel Magazine Hall of Fame, naming it the first "proper" [Swedish death metal](/source/Swedish_death_metal) album, with the "buzzsaw" guitar tone being crowned as the legendary "Entombed sound".{{cite web|last1=Chase|first1=Jesse|title=Entombed – "Left Hand Path"|url=https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2005/08/01/entombed-left-hand-path/|website=[Decibel](/source/Decibel_(magazine))|date=August 2005 |accessdate=11 May 2018}} It has been called "the pinnacle of Swedish death metal," and ''[Invisible Oranges](/source/Invisible_Oranges)'' hailed the title track as "one of the greatest [metal](/source/Heavy_metal_music) songs ever composed."{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=Invisible Oranges |title=Entombed - Left Hand Path |url=https://www.invisibleoranges.com/entombed-left-hand-path/ |access-date=2024-12-31 |website=Invisible Oranges - The Metal Blog |language=en-US}} ''Metal Hammer'' named ''Left Hand Path'' the 9th best death metal album of all time, calling it "brutal and dark" and "full of genuinely great tunes", and said the band's songwriting was "sharper", "catchier" and "more memorable" than most other acts in the genre.{{Cite web |author1=Metal Hammer |date=2020-05-15 |title=The 50 best death metal albums ever |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-50-best-death-metal-albums-ever/5 |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=louder |language=en}} In 2021, Greg Pratt of ''[Decibel](/source/Decibel_(magazine))'' wrote: "Entombed excelled on ''Left Hand Path'' in a lot of different ways: it's trailblazing, it has tons of atmosphere—even the raging parts take the listener places beyond just a total beatdown—and it has killer songwriting placed within an extreme metal framework. And some of these points Entombed really don't get enough credit for. For my money, the band ramped it all up a notch next time out on ''[Clandestine](/source/Clandestine_(album))'', but for today’s purposes, ''Left Hand Path'' is as perfect a Swedish death metal album as there was in 1990."{{Cite web |last=Pratt |first=Greg |date=2021-01-14 |title=Fight Fire with Fire: ‘Left Hand Path’ vs. ‘Like an Everflowing Stream’ |url=https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2021/01/14/fight-fire-with-fire-left-hand-path-vs-like-an-everflowing-stream/ |access-date=2025-08-21 |website=Decibel Magazine |language=en-US}} In 2023, Andy O'Connor of ''[Spin](/source/Spin_(magazine))'' included the album in his list of The 15 Best Swedish Metal Records. He wrote: "Entombed’s debut, ''Left Hand Path'', may be the most copied Swedish metal record ever. When people refer to the 'buzzsaw' guitar sound, this is what they’re talking about. If you know it, you lust for it, and have likely tried to emulate it too. [...] Many bands in Sweden and abroad have taken from this album — few came close."{{Cite web |last=O'Connor |first=Andy |date=2023-07-25 |title=The 15 Best Swedish Metal Records |url=https://www.spin.com/2023/07/the-15-best-swedish-metal-records/ |access-date=2025-08-29 |website=SPIN |language=en-US}} == Cover versions == Two songs from the album were covered by Belgian death metal band [Aborted](/source/Aborted_(band)): "Drowned" for the re-release of ''[The Archaic Abattoir](/source/The_Archaic_Abattoir)'' and "Left Hand Path" for the EP ''[Coronary Reconstruction](/source/Coronary_Reconstruction)''. == Track listing == {{Track listing | total_length = 39:16 | all_lyrics = Nicke Andersson, Alex Hellid | all_music = Andersson, Uffe Cederlund, Leif Cuzner | title1 = Left Hand Path | length1 = 6:41 | title2 = Drowned | length2 = 4:04 | title3 = Revel in Flesh | length3 = 3:45 | title4 = When Life Has Ceased | length4 = 4:13 | title5 = Supposed to Rot | length5 = 2:06 | title6 = But Life Goes On | length6 = 3:02 | title7 = Bitter Loss | length7 = 4:25 | title8 = Morbid Devourment | length8 = 5:27 | title9 = Abnormally Deceased | length9 = 3:01 | title10 = The Truth Beyond | length10 = 3:28 }} {{Track listing | headline = CD bonus tracks | title11 = Carnal Leftovers | length11 = 3:00 | title12 = Premature Autopsy | length12 = 4:26 }} == Personnel == '''Entombed''' * [Lars-Göran Petrov](/source/Lars-G%C3%B6ran_Petrov) – vocals * Uffe Cederlund – guitar, bass * Alex Hellid – guitar * [Nicke Andersson](/source/Nicke_Andersson) – drums, bass '''Technical personnel''' * Tomas Skogsberg – production, engineering * [Dan Seagrave](/source/Dan_Seagrave) – cover art * Micke Lundstrom – photography * David Windmill – design == References == {{Reflist}} {{Entombed}} {{Authority control}} Category:1990 debut albums Category:Entombed (band) albums Category:Albums with cover art by Dan Seagrave Category:Earache Records albums --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Left Hand Path (album)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left_Hand_Path_(album)) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left_Hand_Path_(album)?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.