Half guilty pleasure, half awesome record, Dead End Kings is the 9th full-length effort by 90's goth doom legends Katatonia. Representing a (polarising) corner-stone on their career, Dead End Kings marks a change from heavier doom to a more polished, pleasing sound. And, although the music is sometimes pandering, I found myself enjoying it nonetheless.
(Originally written on Nov. 13th 2020 for RYM, updated on Sep. 12th 2026)
If you were to ask people to name a Katatonia release, I expect most would reply with Brave Murder Days. That album is astonishing, to say the least: the low-fidelity nature of the recording, Mikael Åkerfeldt's (of Opeth fame) hauting deep growls and the inceptional cavernous aesthetic that is so popular in extreme music nowadays all coalesce to portray what the band is remembered by. Furthermore, the dead bird on the cover is very aesthetically pleasing (surprisingly), and perfectly reflects the music: cold, dark, lingering, still, funereal, decaying.
At the same time, it is probably difficult to ignore that Katatonia, at some point, made a turn to a more polished sound, that might even be described as "poppier". Among the records released during Katatonia's "polished" era is Dead End Kings. While definitely sounding more commercial than any release by the band up to that point (the songs are generally more uptempo than Katatonias's older releases, and feature a more standard song structure with catchy choruses), there it is still a coherent experience in Dead End Kings, centering around cold, dark and lingering feelings. The newfound antithetical cheerfulness of the songs must have made some crowd pleasers among the fans of the band.
That said, I don't think everyone will enjoy this. And that much is understandable: this is another example of the very well know "soft turn" that heavy bands often take later in their careers. If you are looking another instance of good old Katatonia doom, Dead End Kings isn't it. If you are, however, into emo-ish guilty pleasures, this album might please you.
Final Verdict
A solid and enjoyable album, but not essential. There are better records out there that deserve a place in your collection.
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