Today Xandria's new album is released in Spain, Sweden, and Finland. The rest of Europe follows tomorrow and North America gets it's hands on it March 6. But, thanks to my review gig over at Black Wind Metal, I got a review copy! And let me tell you, this is one awesome fucking album. I was so impressed, and I think fans of the symphonic power metal genre are really going to be impressed, too. My review for Neverworld's End can be read here.
Also for Black Wind Metal, I reviewed the new Diabulus in Musica album, The Wanderer. I was only so-so on that. That review is here.
Finally for BWM, I reviewed Meden Agan, who hail from Greece. This is a band I encourage you all to pay some attention to, because they are absolutely brilliant. Their newest album, Erevos Aenaon, is so impressive, and I think Iliana, their operatic vocalist, is going to become a powerhouse on the scene. That review is here.
I've come across some great shit lately, and some not so great shit, but I'm always game for new stuff no matter what! So here is an update of some of my reviews that are appearing on other sites.
Beyond the Bridge's The Old Man and the Spirit. Excellent stuff! Progressive metal from Germany, featuring both a female and male vocalist. I'm not the biggest prog fan ever, but I was really blown away by this this. What a great find!
the not-so-fabulous sophomore album by Voices of Destiny, Power Dive. Ugh. Not great, IMO, but others may really dig it.
This last week has been great in terms of discovering new bands. I'm lucky to write for two web zines so I not only find out a lot from my fellow writers, but I also have access to promo copies of new albums, which is a lovely bonus.
Band #1 I've discovered recently is Arven, and their debut album Music of Light. I just did a review of it for Sonic Cathedral and you can read it here. This almost all-girl band (the only male is the drummer) has some great material, and I totally recommend them if you like melodic, sort of medieval-y, sort of folky metal with great lyrics and catchy songs.
Another band I got really excited about is Weeping Silence. Hailing from Malta, this Gothic sextet is really, really good. I reviewed their most recent offering, Theatre of Life on Black Wind Metal, here. I love Gothic metal and this album is a great example of what this genre is really about, which is not poppy, watered down crap. WS is currently working on another album due out in 2012. Can't wait!
From Greece, we have Meden Agan. This is impressive stuff - symphonic power metal with a real opera singer, not a popera singer. It's moody, it's bombastic, it's rich - it's fantastic stuff. Singer Iliana, who is, like, 21, is an amazing vocalist with pipes along the lines of Chiara Malvestiti of Crysalys: powerful classical soprano sound that is just beautiful. I highly recommend checking them out. You can read a review of their album Erevos Aenaon on Sonic Cathedral here, written by my colleague Doctor T.
Narwhal Tusk is from Russia. I'm in the process of tracking down a copy of their CD, but they do have four songs available for free download on their Reverbnation page. I love what I've heard so far and look forward to hearing more.
My latest review for Black Wind Metal is of the new Nemesea CD, The Quiet Resistance. And you can see that I have very little good to say about it, too!
As I mentioned here, I'll be contributing CD reviews to Sonic Cathedrals' web zine, but I have also been invited to contribute to Black Wind Metal's site as well! The Protagonist, who co-founded the site, invited me last week, and today my first CD review was published there. It's a review of Dama's debut album, Eirwen, which I've blogged about here before and to which I am still steadily addicted. You can go here to read it.
Today Xandria's new album is released in Spain, Sweden, and Finland. The rest of Europe follows tomorrow and North America gets it's hands on it March 6. But, thanks to my review gig over at Black Wind Metal, I got a review copy! And let me tell you, this is one awesome fucking album. I was so impressed, and I think fans of the symphonic power metal genre are really going to be impressed, too. My review for Neverworld's End can be read here.
Finally for BWM, I reviewed Meden Agan, who hail from Greece. This is a band I encourage you all to pay some attention to, because they are absolutely brilliant. Their newest album, Erevos Aenaon, is so impressive, and I think Iliana, their operatic vocalist, is going to become a powerhouse on the scene. That review is here.
Upcoming: Voices of Destiny, Meden Agan, and Setanera on Black Wind Metal, and Battle Beast on Sonic Cathedral.
As I mentioned here, I'll be contributing CD reviews to Sonic Cathedrals' web zine, but I have also been invited to contribute to Black Wind Metal's site as well! The Protagonist, who co-founded the site, invited me last week, and today my first CD review was published there. It's a review of Dama's debut album, Eirwen, which I've blogged about here before and to which I am still steadily addicted. You can go here to read it.
