The title says it all! Opinions expressed here are those of the authors. Personal tastes may vary, and we are cool with that.

Sunday, June 5, 2011

New Find: Liv Moon

Because I have a crappy memory, I have no idea where on the interwebs I found this band, so if it's one of the blogs I frequent and you're put out that I don't remember you, let me apologize.

Anyway, Liv Moon is a Japanese symphonic power metal band fronted by a Swedish-born singer named Akane Liv, who also, according to various sources, is part Polish, Korean, and Japanese.  She's lovely to look and she's a treat to listen to. In March of this year, Liv Moon put out their third album since their inception in 2009, entitled Golden Moon, and it is a very difficult album to find if you're not in Japan or Asia.  Luckily, I found a decent torrent on some obscure site that luckily didn't give me a virus, and I've been playing this steadily for a few days now.

Akane trained at the Takarazuka Music School, which is attached to the Takarazuka Revue, which is an all-female Japanese theatre troupe.  As one might expect from someone with that background, Akane's voice is extremely dramatic, and so is the music contained in Golden Mood.  At times, it's so dramatic it's hard to take seriously - but I got over that quickly as I got lost in the music.  Despite some English song titles, the album is sung in Japanese, so I can't comment on lyrical content or themes, but the CD is a treat to listen to and I highly recommend giving it a try.  Akane is not a one trick pony; as you go through the tracks, you'll hear how versatile her voice is and that she has a hell of a lot of range.

Here is Liv Moon with the song and video that introduced me to them, the title track "Golden Moon."  As The Protagonist of Black Wind Metal pointed out to me, there is a "Dies Irae" influence in here.  Enjoy!

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