Black Knight Symfonia - Heavenly chaos 3.5/5
Reviewed: 3-1-10
Tracklist:
1. Glorification of the dead
2. Dark era
3. Chevalier noir
4. Dragonland
5. Emerald kingdom
6. Voyage initiatique
7. Eternal life
8. Akasha
9. Hell on earth
10. Despair
11. Eternal life (bonus track; instrumental version)
12. Dragonland (bonus track; orchestral version)
|
We've got another debut here and it's 'Heavenly chaos' from Black Knight Symfonia, a band formed just 2 years ago (2008). Surprisingly, the band contains only 3 members; for starters, Michaël (aka Saga) is the band's guitarist/bassist, and he also provides the orchestral arrangements. I should mention that he's also part of the bands Folkearth and Folkodia, but the 2 other members of this band are unfamiliar to me, and they are female vocalists Adelaïde (aka Arya) and Anaïs (aka Nymphadora). The band used a temporary studio drummer (under the name Leviathan), so Saga basically handles most of the band's musical side. As for the vocalists, Arya sings in the classical/operatic (soprano) style, while Nymphadora sings in a more regular style. Saga also provides some death/black vocals however, so this is another "beauty and the beast" style band, though Arya is definitely the most present.
Musically, the band wanders through many styles, including symphonic metal, gothic metal, power metal, atmospheric metal and even epic metal. In fact, there are a few musical segments on this CD that remind me of Lordian Guard. That said, I don't want to give you a specific overall band comparison that could lead you into thinking this band is something they're not, so in addition to Lordian Guard (and keeping in mind that their similarity is minor), the bottom line is that Black Knight Symfonia could appeal to fans of everything from Nightwish, to Epica, to Tristania. Plus, there are a lot of instrumental parts on this CD (adding a different dimension), and there are even some neo-classical moments. Really, this band has gathered a wide variety of influences, ideas and styles.
Although this CD contains quite a variety both musically and vocally, it does have a solid flow and it all works. However, I do want to emphasize that this is not an upbeat and exciting CD, and instead is dark and emotional. So this may be one of those CDs that you have to be in the right mood for, and it has kinda been that way for me, at least some of the time. Regardless, it's a well done debut that's consistent and I consider it to be more than just a promising start.
CLINT
MORE REVIEWS... FULL REVIEWS
MORE REVIEWS BY CLINT... CLINT
MAIN -
A -
B -
C -
D -
E -
F -
G -
H -
I -
J -
K -
L -
M -
N -
O -
P -
Q -
R -
S -
T -
U -
V -
W -
X -
Y -
Z -
MISC
Email: metalcdratings@yahoo.com
