Who'd have thought that Blue Oyster Cult would turn out to be a constant in a changing world? On HEAVEN FORBID, the group's first album in over a decade, the once-and-future thinking man's heavy metal band sounds exactly as you remember them--slightly spooky, slightly pretentious, and with more cool guitar riffs than you can shake a stick at. There's a new rhythm section on board here, but the group's three core members--singers/guitarists Eric Bloom and Buck Dharma, along with keyboardist Alan Lanier--still know how to invest metal cliches with genuine atmosphere. Standout tracks here include "See You in Black" (an anti-domestic violence screed, of all things), and the genuinely haunting, almost-pop ballad "Harvest Moon." "Still Burnin'," a sequel to the band's classic "Burning for You," however, was probably ill-advised.

Rovi