A new release by Lacrimosa always comes with extremely high expectations and “Revolution” is not an exception. Throughout Lacrimosa’s successful career, the band’s absolute mastermind Tilo Wolff has spoiled us with irresistible baroque musical style, high quality musicianship and strong creative force. As the previous albums, “Revolution” is a passionate an intricate work of art that deserves an attentive listening in order to fully appreciate each facet of its musical complexity and to capture the inner beauty of each melody.  All the metalheads out there would also be glad to know that “Revolution” features Mille Petrozza from Kreator on guitar and Stefan Schwarzmann from Accept on drums.

“Irgendein Arsch ist immer unterwegs” is the undoubtedly majestic opener of this album. Do not waste your time trying to pronounce the title correctly, instead you should relax and savor each and every note of this highly symphonic song. The introductive piano melody is definitely theatrical but never pretentious and even when distorted guitars kick in everything keeps on flowing like a daydream.

On “As the world stood still for a day” Anne Nurmi delivers a flawless interpretation with delicate angelic vocals. This is a soft melodic track but there is a solid classic metal rhythmic section to support the stellar orchestration.

“Verloren” has a distinct metal vibe that dominates the rhythmic section. The main guitar melody is quite catchy and raw but everything gets polished by the layers of classical orchestrations. Tilo Wolff’s vocal style is very raspy, at times desperate, and certainly matches the overall highly dramatic and somber atmosphere.

“Feuerzug” is an odd yet interesting track. It is introduced by the beautifully decadent piano melody of “Interlude” but it changes mood quite drastically. There is still some classical melancholic orchestration but the song’s main theme is influenced by Nordic folklore.

“Refugium” brings back some much needed somber melodies. This is basically a piano and vocals piece that relies on Tilo Wolff’s passionate interpretation and on the uncontaminated beauty of the sound of a classical piano.

“Rote Sinfonie” is the most complex track on the album as it is full of attractive style variations and intense musical surprises. The delicate violin melody at the beginning serves as a stunning intro and a declaration of intent, as this song is a lengthy ambitious symphonic piece. In fact, the musical core here is classical as the orchestra plays always a dominant role, yet there is still a lot of goth and metal influences in the guitars style. Nevertheless, the classical side filled with majestically somber orchestrations and exquisitely captivating piano melodies is the inevitable highlight of the song.

The title track has a much more modern appeal with dark gothic rock melodies, highly distorted groovy guitars and eerie atmospheric synths. The guitar riffs are more rocking and powerful while the extremely addictive chorus is certainly the catchiest moment of the whole album.

Lacrimosa is the one and only band who is capable of blending harmoniously the aesthetic perfection of classical music and the obscurity of gothic metal. “Revolution” embodies all the elements you need to achieve a passionate addictive collection of songs that is destined to satisfy even the most demanding listeners.

 

With her latest release “Raise Your Fist”, the legendary metal female icon Doro returns to the scene full of energy and good intentions. The thirteen songs included on this album showcase a great passion for metal and a wide range of classic rock/metal guitar riffs. The opening track “Raise Your Fist In The Air” is a straight to your face metal anthem. Doro’s vocals are harsh in true rocker style, the chorus is a little redundant while the lead guitar offers a great musical support with a super dirty sound and loads of shredding. “Take No Prisoner” and “Little Headbanger” follow the same exact style and could end up being repetitive.

“Coldhearted Lover” is less dynamic with slower rhythm breakdowns. The chorus and the main old school guitar riffs are certainly catchy but not very original.

“It Still Hurts” is a well composed ballad that will grab the listeners’ attention immediately due to the excellent vocal duet featuring Lemmy from Motorhead. Doro and Lemmy succeed in the creation of a passionate performance that fits the melancholic atmosphere while the songwriting is quite simple and accessible to a wide audience. “Engel” has a romantically symphonic appeal. The main catchy melodic piano theme is emphasized by classic keyboards layers which also create a dramatic atmosphere. Doro’s vocals add a huge dose of tragic passion well accompanied by a highly melodic pleasant guitar solo.

Doro delivers a similar performance on the other romantic semi ballad “Hero” which features exquisite guitar melodies but the songwriting here is more predictable than “Engel”.

“Free My Heart” is another powerful and touching ballad with a lovely keyboards arrangement. Here Doro switches between raspy rock and clean vocals and delivers a highly emotional performance.

“Grab The Bull (Last Man Standing)” features Gus G from Firewind on guitar. This is a mid paced track rendered more aggressive by Doro’s strong screams. Gus G enriches the standard songwriting style by delivering a killer guitar solo filled with high quality shredding and creativity.

“Raise Your Fist” certainly doesn’t bring exceptional novelties in terms of songwriting but it’s a well organized album that will please Doro’s fans and classic metal lovers in general.

 

It is quite impressive that “MMXII” is the fifteenth studio album released by legendary Killing Joke. In terms of music style and execution, this album manages to effortlessly blend the band’s obvious post punk roots, the fierce intensity of industrial and the dark introspective side of gothic rock. This is supposed to be an apocalyptic album as the lyrics mainly concern the environmental and economical issues of our time. Yet, there is a lot of optimism and hope for restoration and redemption.

“Pole Shift” is an atmospheric and emotional musical piece with soothing distorted guitar riffs and several keyboard layers. The vocals style here is mainly melodic, disillusioned and monotone at times.

“Fema Camp” revolves around an obsessively recurring super catchy guitar riff. Overall, this is a straight forward rock song with a captivating dark aura and very raw acidic vocals.

“Rapture” and “Corporate Elect” are faster groovy tracks highly influenced by the band’s punk roots. The basic guitar riffs and the easy rhythm make these songs very accessible even if there is a lingering unmistakable darkwave vibe.

On “In Cythera” the overall rhythm slows down, the extensive use of atmospheric electronic effects enrich the melody, the guitars have a more modern hyper polished sound and the vocals become calm and comforting.

“Trance” has a cool harmonious rhythm with a quite modern electronic approach. The steady guitar sound is dirty, the simplistic rock melody flows spontaneously while the instrumental breakdown is more rough with a clear industrial influence.

“On All Hallow’s Eve” is a slower track that revolves around a darker atmosphere with tons of electronically generated sound. There is a significant style change in the chorus which falls in between rebellious punk rock and angry industrial.

“MMXII” is a must have for Killing Joke’s faithful fans because it features the band’s original line up and it shows that the infamous creative force is still alive

After an attentive listening of Rotting Christ’s latest release “Kata Ton Daimona Eaytoy” nobody will ever doubt the intense talent of this prolific Greek band. The astonishingly creative songwriting and the evidently flawless musicianship showcased on this album makes each and every song a memorable spiritual visionary journey. The palpable connection to various ancient myths and folklore renders the lyrics and the music style even more interesting.

“In Yumen-Xibalba” will blow you away with its darkly majestic energy and the gloomiest chanting delivered in true pagan fashion. It seems impossible to find adequate adjectives to fully describe the creepy wall of sound created by the irresistible guitar work or the intense galloping rhythm that leaves you feverish and breathless. In terms of music style, this feels like a tribute to Celtic Frost with the addition of an overdose modern black metal. This main musical core is consistently followed throughout the album, yet it is interpreted and enhanced in multiple manners.

You might not be able to remember the title “P’unchaw Kachun – Tuta Kachun” but you will not forget the enchanting mix of dynamic breathtaking drumming and melodic lead guitar riffs. Obviously, the omnipresent chants enhance the gloomy atmosphere and add a cruel epic battle vibe.

“Grandis Spiritus Diavolos” has a surprisingly catchy blackened rock style filled with layers of ravenous guitar riffs built around an operatic choir. The Gregorian style chant crafts a mystical atmosphere that effectively flows into a highly melodic guitar solo.

The same mystical atmosphere becomes dramatic and acquires a blasphemous feeling on “Kataton Demona Eaftou”. The main musical core involves an accurate fusion of arduous black metal and catchy rock enriched by furious raspy vocals and an energizing melodic guitar solo. The ex novo touch of creativity is provided by an epic style layer of bagpipes.

“Cine Iubeste Si Lasa” is an intoxicating magnum opus that proposes a hallucinating interpretation of a Romanian folk classic. I could listen to this track all day long and still crave for it as under a spell. Classical dramatic piano harmonics embrace the majestic lyrical female chant reminiscent of arcane pagan hymns. The minimalist, yet powerful, vocal duet is tragically addictive and the operatic choir emphasizes the gothic aspect of the song.

“Iwa Woodoo” is an incendiary guitar driven straight forward track with loads of catchy riffs and powerful growls. There is a very effective slower melodic breakdown that shines for a brilliant captivating guitar solo and the return of the ominous Gregorian chanting.

“666” is the darkest lullaby bringer of visionary nightmarish slumbers. The first part of the song revolves around a cathartic atmosphere with obsessive riffs stripped of drumming and fury. The vocals deliver a highly dramatic chant full of grief and despair that naturally evolves into a grandiose spiritual hymn surrounded by a blast of frenetic blackened rock with super tight magnificent guitar riffing.

With “Kata Ton Daimona Eaytoy” Rotting Christ delivers a serious masterpiece filled of grim emotions and outstanding musical qualities. Regardless of personal musical taste, anyone interested in good music will inevitably fall in love with such perfect album.

 

Lacrimas Profundere has a talent for producing lovely easy tunes that makes you feel lightheaded. Far from being an ingenious masterpiece, “Antiadore” is a straightforward collection of trendy gothic rock/metal, or goth n’roll, songs a la HIM. I always think that in a messy and complicated world there should always be space for those little rock songs that do not require to rack your brains in search for a deeper meaning.

“My Release In Pain” starts with a charming piano melody bringer of that exquisite Nordic melancholy that melts our hearts. The clean sore vocals remind of Ville Valo immediately and probably that’s why we absolutely love them. The main melody and the catchy chorus are just an array of sweet sad notes that deliver some genuine emotions.

“What I’m Not” brings the groovy desperation of romantic failures. There is a mid paced dark rock core sustained all the way through with minimalist polished guitar riffs and extremely somber vocals.

“All For Nothing” is a semi ballad with a recurring pleasant harmony. It’s all about the sadness, the end of love or the lack of a brighter future. Lacrimas Profundere sticks to that musical recipe that can never be wrong, therefore the band keeps it darkr and plays it safe with the usual soft rock guitar riffs.

The title track still holds that romantic melancholy even if the approach is harder and more dynamic in terms of guitar riffing and drumming. The chorus instead is not very satisfying as it sounds quite dull compared the main melody.

On “Abandon” the guitars have a metallic sound that delivers a heavier groove while the keyboards display a vintage music style. The whole atmosphere is still decadently romantic with intense vocals in bohemienne fashion.

“Head Held High” is definitely a pure tribute to Ville Valo’s legacy. This is a mellow somber ballad with dominant atmospheric layers of keyboards, cliché guitar solo and heartbreaking vocals.

On “My Chest” it’s all about tears and agony, so it is definitely an irresistible sad song. Love is cruel and there’s no hope, but those charming groovy riffs flowing so smoothly will make you feel much better. I cannot stop loving Rob Vitacca’s baritone style vocals that here are particularly cold and contagiously unhappy.

There is nothing extremely complicated or astonishingly unique, nevertheless “Antiadore” is one of those sweet guilty pleasures that you are doomed to love even if for a brief moment in life.

 

 

The amazing rock icon Sebastian Bach has many reasons to celebrate his musical resurrection. “ABachalypse Now” is a special token of appreciation for the multitude of Bach’s faithful fans all over the world. This is a massive CD/DVD package that includes live footage from three different concerts in 2012: Hellfest in Clisson, Club Nokia in Los Angeles and Graspop Metal Meeting in Dessel.

Obviously, this is a collectors’ item but it is always a great pleasure to watch and listen to Bach’s legendary live performances.

This release includes all the Skid Row’s beloved classics such as “Slave To The Grind”, “Big Guns”, “18 & Life”, “I Remember You” and “Youth Gone Wild”, as well as “TunnelVision” from the latest solo album.

Since Sebastian Bach is an absolutely passionate and entertaining performer, I would totally recommend “ABachalypse Now” to all the fans out there and especially to those who never had the pleasure to attend a Bach’s concert.

 

Considering that Visions Of Atlantis has been around since many years, I would expect a mature album at this point. The latest release “Ethera” unfortunately doesn’t bring a much necessary innovative songwriting. Every song is quite harmonious and listenable but this music recipe has been used and abused before by numerous other bands.

“The Ark’ is an easy simplistic song. There are all the smooth rock/metal riffs and the more alternative keyboards arrangements that you can expect by such a band.

On “Machinage” the vocals feel a bit forced and awkward in the attempt of providing a blast of energy to resurrect the dull rhythm.

“Vicious Circle” is a semi ballad with a monotone structure on which Maxi Nil’s vocals represent the only convincing moment. The other soft ballad “Cave Behind The Waterfall” has a more spontaneous feeling with an array of pleasant arpeggios but the songwriting is still very predictable. Even if Maxi Nil delivers a strong passionate performance, the song simply fails to be memorable.

“Tlaluc’s Grace” has a bit of power metal vibe in the guitar work that adds a dynamic energy. Yet, the vocal duet in the chorus lacks catchiness and harmony.  The same issue occurs on “Clerics Emotion” where the vocals create a deep contrast that just doesn’t fit the symphonic core.

On “Burden Of Divinity” the happy smooth and mellow guitar sound seems too dominant and ends up clashing with the safe mid pace tempo.

On “AEON 19^th” Visions Of Atlantis manages to create a lovely dreamy atmosphere with sweet piano melodies, a touch of violin and thoughtful vocals. The songwriting remains a bit unoriginal as it resembles the style and structure of almost every female fronted band out there. Certainly, “Ethera” has a consistent music style but nothing really stands out and there is an evident lack of creativity throughout the album.

 

I will never comprehend what turning point event has caused Tristania to change dramatically its music style and join the pool of cloned female fronted bands. The new album “Darkest White” is stripped of any gothic attitude, consistent musical direction and creative force. All that remains is your average redundant and monotonous collection of easy songs that will be forgotten tomorrow.

“Number” is a recycled memory of what Tristania used to be. The main heavy guitar riffs are a ghastly reminiscence of the iconic song “Libre”. The growls and the keyboards arrangements work nicely together but the female vocals have no place to fit in so they are somehow forced into the song’s structure.  It would have been better to just keep it instrumental.

The title track is another attempt to step back in time and for this reason it is inevitably the only strong moment of the album. The old style growls are fierce and add a nice empowering energy to the catchy guitar riffs.

There is hope for a brighter future on “Himmelfall” with that lovely slightly melancholic mood filled of vintage rocking guitars. The clean vocals are soothing and spontaneously layered on softer guitar melodies. Unfortunately, the weak female vocals are thrown in suddenly and randomly resulting in the disruption of the musical flow.

“Requiem” and “Diagnosis” have no musical quality as they revolve around repetitive monotone vocals, sloppy open chords and the absolute lack of catchy harmonies. Honestly, Tristania doesn’t even seem to make a real effort to write a fancy song.

“Scarling” will be remembered for that awkward moment in which the vocal duet chorus has no reason to exist but is forced on purpose inside the song in a “cut & paste” fashion.

Disturbingly that “oh so awkward moment” happens again. Hence, what seems to be the same chorus, almost note by note, is slammed inside “Night On Earth” in a quite clumsy manner.

“Arteries” starts with a more sincere and heavier approach but again the “oh so damn awkward” chorus doesn’t fit the main music style nor the mood, so it is forcefully encased in the song structure.  It feels like two completely separated songs are suddenly attached to each other without any gradual tempo or style changes.

At the end of the album a great sadness pervades my heart as I mourn the official loss of one of the most talented bands in the metal scene.

Atrocity can be easily considered a cult band, therefore there is a huge fanbase eager to listen to the new release “Okkult”. Often, Atrocity has been praised for its musical innovations, but “Okkult” feels like a collection of many favorite metal styles with a supernatural and macabre conceptual theme.

“Pandæmonium” has an unexpected black/gothic metal style full of hellish drums and devilish guttural growls. The highly symphonic keyboards and the operatic ominous chorus create a dark vampiric atmosphere that immediately reminds of Cradle Of Filth’s work.

“March Of The Undying” continues to illustrate the twisted symphonic nature of this album. The vocals are maybe too raspy to incorporate the epic musical theme while the operatic chorus is a necessary accessory to define such concept.

“Haunted By Demons” kicks in with an eerie intro that rapidly gives way to a “happier” guitar driven theme. The gothic features just linger in the background as the focus shifts to some vintage thrash guitar work.

On “Murder Blood Assassination” the main core is nothing out of the ordinary as it is all about super fast predictable guitar riffs. The harmonious keyboards passages and the soft piano outro seem to fit awkwardly among all the traditional heavy metal riffing. Even the polished technical guitar solo gets somehow lost in this instrumental mixture.

“Necromancy Divine” proposes again the eerie intro followed by the brutally tight riffing.  Ghastly chanting and nasty venomous growls follow as expected. This track also features a fascinating breakdown that delivers the creepiness of vintage horror movies.

On “Satans Braut” the guitars carry a cold metallic sound but the rhythm has the modern Germanic catchiness of Rammstein. The tempo is slowed down with a rock attitude that makes this track absolutely radio friendly.

The most symphonic piece is probably “La Voisine”. The atmospheric theme here is more dominant than the brutal energetic guitar riffs. The keyboards arrangements are incredibly soothing yet gloomy, while the melodic death metal core flows quite naturally accompanied by exciting guitar solos.  Overall, the instrumental concoction is able to portray the sinister song’s concept.

“Okkult” revolves around very traditional guitar riffs that are certainly easy to remember but fail to bring a true creative vitality. At the same time, this album has a modern blackened mood that is definitely new for a band such as Atrocity.

 

 

It seems that Delain has been acquiring a great deal of popularity since last year’s release “We Are The Others”. In order to please the ever-growing fanbase, Delain is releasing a compilation entitled “Interlude”.  Unfortunately there are only two brand new songs, so this mini album seems like a way to keep the audience’s interest as the band prepare to tour as main support for Within Temptation.

“Breathe On Me” is not different from any other Delain’s song. The chorus in particular is the same as the hit song “We Are The Others”. The song structure is extremely simplistic and you can barely hear the guitar work.

The other brand new song is entitled “Collars And Suits”. Here the lead guitar is actually distinguishable but the songwriting doesn’t show any deviation. The melodic piano breakdown followed by the obvious chorus is just too predictable to attract the attention of a wider fanbase.

If you’re a big fan you will easily appreciate the new piano driven ballad version of “We Are The Others” as well as the various live versions of some previous songs.