The final new band member was vocalist Messiah Marcolin, who phoned Leif Edling to sing an a cappella version of "Solitude" as an audition.

[5] The song "Samarithan" was originally written during the recording sessions for Epicus Doomicus Metallicus, but was rejected by former group member Mats Ekström.

[13] Åkerlund would go on to make music videos for other Swedish bands like Whale and Roxette, as well as international musicians such as Metallica, U2 and Lady Gaga.

In a contemporary review, Metal Forces editor Bernard Doe called the album "an essential buy for any true metal fan" and lauded Candlemass for mixing "some early Black Sabbath (circa Master of Reality), some early Rainbow (circa Rising) and some Metallica", and adding "plenty of their own original style to produce a unique sound.

[20] In a modern review, Metal Storm staff writer remarked the progress made by the band from their debut album in making "more complex and atmosphere/emotion-evoking" music and called Nightfall a "masterpiece.

"[19] AllMusic's Eduardo Rivadavia review compared the album favorably to the group's previous work, stating that it "managed to break even more new ground by introducing the operatic bellowing of new vocalist Messiah Marcolin, whose religious lyrics found the perfect match in the slow, grinding power chords written by bassist Leif Edling."

He found the work "cohesive", despite Candlemass "can't resist thrashing out just a tad" on the songs "At the Gallow's End" and "Dark Are the Veils of Death"[2] Canadian critic Martin Popoff wrote that Nightfall sounds very similar to Candlemass' debut album and its style is a mix of "the slowest portions from Tony Iommi's first five years riffs", Trouble's "sleepiest moments" and St. Vitus' "downer ideas".