Paradise Lost have unveiled the cover for their 14th album, The Plague Within, due for release on June 1 via Century Media.
The artwork was created by Polish artist, illustrator and architect Zbigniew M Bielak, who has previously worked with Watain, Ghost and Entombed AD.
Bielak reveals he was inspired to become involved in the project after being a longtime fan.
He says: “Since their late 80s inception, through sombre abrasiveness of their debut and harrowing sadness of groundbreaking Gothic, the unparalleled icons of gloom, Paradise Lost grew deep into all things murky and dreadful in modern music.
“Duncan Fergado’s artwork for their debut remains one of my favourite covers, so having heard that with The Plague Within the band harks back to days of old, was – to say the least – a thrilling incentive to pick up the commission.”
Late last year, keyboardist Adrian Erlandsson hinted a return to their vintage sound had already revealed itself through demos for the project before the band hit the studio in November.
After collaborating with the group, Beilak explains the final result captures the essence of the album, describing it as “a portrait of hopeless decrepitude of mental illness – which is what The Plague Within deals with thematically – where the tormented Sisyphus struggles to push his burden back up the slippery walls of a long frozen illusion.”
The follow-up to 2012’s Tragic Idol was recorded at London’s Orgone Studios with Ghost and Cathedral producer Jaime Gomez Arellano.
Last month, Paradise Lost performed at Norway’s Blastfest. The group are next set to appear at Poland’s Castle Party and Germany’s Summer Breeze festivals.
