It’s no surprise that the UK’s CRADLE OF FILTH were destined for major label-dom. Having already amassed a legion of fans from the underground to your neighborhood mall, CRADLE OF FILTH have always been poised to join MARILYN MANSON atop his shock-rock throne. And that may soon be a reality with the release of their major label debut. But what may come as a bit of a surprise is that the band’s Sony Music debut shows not a hint of corporate interference. While the core of the band’s sound may have lost a pinch of its once vampyric savagery, Damnation and a Day still spews forth grandiose metal in tried-and-true CRADLE OF FILTH fashion. Picking up where Midian left off, Damnation and a Day is the slashing gothic-tinged extreme metal with the familiar array of blast beats, SLAYER-meets-IRON MAIDEN riffing, and Dani Davey’s rapid-fire banshee yapping and death growls. Many of the tracks also present a heavier edge not previously utilized by the band. The album peaks just before the midway point with the tasty and refreshing hooks of “Better to Reign in Hell” and “Serpent Tongue”. Despite the comforting notion that the FILTHIES haven’t “sold out” (if they haven’t already that is), the album unfortunately finds itself lurking in the same musical forests its predecessors dwelled in in the past. Damnation and a Day is littered with much of the same filth, sounding too much like an extension of their past two releases. Now that the band have officially graduated from the underground, we can only hope that CRADLE OF FILTH continue to up their musical craft. Damnation and a Day is a start, but oh Dani, give us some more magic! (Red Ink/Epic)