Funeral Rain Press Corps

Genre: Gothic, Symphonic Metal
Label: Humid Records

It’s been a while since a musician shoved a link in my mailbox and asked me to review their work. Seriously, when I first started reviewing metal six or so years ago, that was all I ever had in my inbox! Unsigned bands trying to get me to review their material. Nowadays, I have to go around begging bands for that! I’m not sure what changed here. Either people caught on that General Blaspheme and I have no fucking clue what we’re doing here or… something far less logical. Either way, why am I complaining? (Thanks Joan!)

Trocaria plays a blend of gothic, doom-ish and digital-symphonic metal that comes off sounding half vampire love rock, half Draconian (minus the constant female vocalage). The “symphonic” bits sound like slightly better renditions of Castlevainia level themes. It was fun firing up the ol’ NES and playing Dracula’s Curse with The Dark Nears blaring in the background.

8-Bit references aside, Trocaria put up a fierce first offering with The Dark Nears. Everything here (aside from the much too electronic sounding drum machine) is on par with signed bands five or six years their senior. Vocalist Jon S.’s growls are a bit on the Muppet-ish side of things for the most part, but occasionally he slips into a scream that makes you forget that he kinda sounds like a cookie munching toe sock. The rest of the band consists of guitarist, bassist, keyboardist and programmer Joan Palmer. Truth be told, the best thing about this album are the interesting hooks she comes up with. Listen three minutes into the track entitled Suicide, and you’ll hear the bests riffing on the album. It’s damn good and really catchy as a cold.

Unfortunately, her bass work could be fantastic but I’d never know since I can’t really make it out. To be fair, my speakers are starting to take a shit so it could be my computers fault and not hers. Still on the unfortunate side, there’s very little song variation and the variations that are there are so subtle that they will more than likely go unnoticed.

Overall: While The Dark Nears isn’t a particularly great album, it’s still something I’d strongly recommend that you look up for a listen. There’s a lot of heart here and the musician’s bare their souls through every note and that alone is worth a tiny bit of your time. Also, there is A LOT of potential here that you should get on there ground floor for.

7/10

Trocaria On Facebook
Trocaria On ReverbNation 

Genres: Gothic Metal, Symphonic Metal
Label: Napalm Records

Truthfully, I’ve never checked out Leaves’ Eyes before, but with this album I was quite excited to. They are legends in their musical realm with a huge following, but it was the album artwork that really caught my eye at first, as it’s a gorgeous piece of art. Naturally, it seems to follow the symphonic/gothic metal conventions that some bands have taken with having a hot chick on the cover, but this hot chick is surfacing from underwater amid Celtic cross gravestones. Really cool looking.
The music is just as good as the cover art, with a wonderful singer backed up by a killer band. Heavy riffs put a strong backbone to the music with some really deadly leads overlaid. The keys aren’t just boring drones or background noise, or being used as an annoying weapon against the listener, but actually taking a major role inside of the music, working in concert with everything else. One of the biggest bonuses for me is songs that aren’t sung in English. I don’t know if that’s a usual thing for Leaves’ Eyes, but some of the songs on Meredead are in Liv Kristine’s native Norwegian. The use of traditional instruments (violins and the like) is a bonus too.
My favorite songs are “Kråkevisa”, “Meredead” (great guitar solo and keyboards in this song), and “Sigrlinn” (there’s some serious death growls in this song with the most vicious riffing on the album).
7.5 out of 10.

Leaves’ Eyes on Facebook.
Leaves’ Eyes on MySpace.

Here’s another old interview from Funeral Rain Zine’s infancy. Posted to the FRZ MySpace back in June 2009, my e-chat with Ailyn from Sirenia was, I think, one of the first big stepping stones for myself and FRZ. Enjoy.

For people who have never heard Sirenia, how would you describe the sound of the band?

I would say Sirenia’s style is Gothic Metal or Symphonic Metal, but maybe people think otherwise. I never listen to music and say “this band’s style is that one, that other band’s got this other style”. Does it matter the style when the music is good?

What of the lyrical themes? Are there any themes that seem to repeat, or are they more of a story or concept?

Morten composed the tracks from the album as he’s always done with all Sirenia albums, so the stories behind each song are only known by him and he never reveals his inspirations. He prefers each person to give the meaning they want. So I could give you my opinion, but I don’t want it to be like a statement of the real meaning, so I’ll keep it to myself.

You are in a band that has a strong history, even before it’s current inception. You are in a position that requires you to follow in the footsteps of three other frontwomen, who each have their own fans. Do you find this daunting at all?

From the beginning I knew it wouldn’t be easy, because the band’s got former singers and some people prefer them over me, but I don’t find it annoying, cos it’s usual. Each person has their taste and some think they like more former singers, but I’m not Fabienne, Henriette or Monika, we all have our own unique style. My singing being different from theirs doesn’t mean I’m better or worse, just I’m different. I’m just trying to give my best, so my band is happy with me and the choice they made when they selected me, and so people can like my work and be happy with it.

You yourself have a strong history in music, singing ever since you were 15. Could you give us a quick rundown of your music career?

I found I wanted to be a singer when I was about 12, but I just sang at home. I played my favourite singers of the moment’s songs and tried to imitate them, and that’s how I began with music. At 15 I told my mum I wanted to be a singer, and I got enlisted to a musical school, but for personal reasons I had to leave after just one year. Then sometime later I sang every year in my home town in a show they made to get funds for Alzheimer disease. I’ve also participated in contests, both nationally and internationally. In 2007 I was in the first Spanish edition of X Factor, and I was booted off the fifth. When I was out of the show I worked with some musicians from Granada, but the project didn’t work out because they wanted pop and I wanted Gothic Metal. Just after I left this project, I got the chance to be Sirenia’s new vocalist.

How was recording the new album for you? Did you have time to get to know the band before recording, or were you pretty much thrust into the role?

The album’s recording was real fun. In the studio there were just Morten and I, and we had so much fun during the recording process. It was easier than I thought it would be. At first I was slightly worried because it was the first time I was in a studio to record something so important as a Sirenia album, but just as the music started it was easy. Morten’s music gives so many things so I just had to let myself go into what I was listening.
When we began recording I already knew the band members, because in the second audition they were all there. Also, before the album’s recording we had a couple of shows.

The first single from the new album, entitled “The Path to Decay” has a great video, directed by Patric Ullaeus. How was working with Patric for you and the band?

Working with Patric was really great for us, he’s a charming person and very professional. Also, Patric’s been on the industry for so long and he’s worked with many big bands, so he’s got a lot of experience in this. So for a band like us it was great to work with someone like him because he understands our vision of things. Even before seeing the results of the video shooting we knew we would be happy with the final result.

Other than the kinds of music you perform, what do you listen to? Are there any particular bands you’d like to namedrop as favorites or influences?

Since I began singing, I listen to all kind of music styles, I don’t like to concentrate in just one style. Listening to all this, I get the chance to learn things that I wouldn’t if I just listened to just one of them. There are a lot of bands and vocalists that I like, so I can’t start saying which ones or we would never end!

I’ve read that you happen to love videogames. What kind of consoles do you prefer, and what’s your favorite game at the moment, and your favorite game of all time?

I love videogames, but lately I don’t have time to play, but for long travels I usually take my PSP so I can get distracted. At the moment I like a lot of games, but my most favorite videogame from years ago is Final Fantasy 7.

I’ve also read that you’re a fan of The Lord of the Rings, the books and films. What else is on your reading/watching list?

Yes, I am a big fan of The Lord of the Rings. Before the movies were shot I already had read the books a couple of times. I love everything that’s written by Tolkien, even I can’t remember exactly how many times I’ve read each book or seen every movie. I like to read all kind of stuff, but I love fantasy books, with fiction, action, etc…

When: Saturday October 15, 2010
Where: Starlite Room, Edmonton, Alberta

Long story short, I was intending to attend this show, in support mostly of Sonorous Odium, the direct support to Samandriel, but after checking the headliner’s music, I became a fan of them as well. Unfortunately, I was not going to be able to attend simply due to money. I had none.
Thankfully, a friend of mine is friends with Jeff B., the keyboardist of Samandriel, and he was able to hook me and Mrs. Blaspheme up with a guest list spot. So to begin this review: thank you Randee and Jeff!
Now, the show! A band from Calgary, Viathyn, opened up the night’s festivities, and did they kick ass! Unfortunately for them some technical difficulties plagued them and the vocals weren’t quite loud enough, but they impressed me enough to go and grab their CD from the merch booth. Proggy, folky, and technical as hell, Viathyn are going to be a force to reckon with. If you’re into stuff like Opeth, Eluveitie, Korpiklaani, and Finntroll, you might be into these guys.
The second band, Sonorous Odium, are some local favorites. Technical melodic death metal, I guess would fit their genre. I’ve been a fan since I saw them headline a show at New City. Fans of Swedish death in general should give Sonorous Odium a listen. They’ve got an EP out that you can expect a review of soon.
Finally, Samandriel took the stage, and despite having to follow Sonorous Odium’s set were undaunted. And they took home the win. Again, some technical difficulties affected the first couple minutes of their set, but they were soon smoothed over and a nearly flawless victory was achieved. Symphonic gothic metal is Samandriel’s forte, and Doneka’s voice is strong, full, and rich. Hoop’s death growls and bass work add a diversity to the band who, if this show is indicative, have a very bass-heavy live set. If you’re into Within Temptation, Lacuna Coil, The Gathering, etc., Samandriel will probably turn your crank as well. Give them a listen at MySpace, and if you’re interested order a copy of Awakening.
In all, it was a great night; new CDs in my collection, and some good live music. I hope to see all three bands again soon. Hopefully next time I’ll take the damn camera!

Genre: Gothic Metal, Pop, Rock, Symphonic Metal
Label: Candlelight Records

Oh Sarah. You look angrier in your promo pictures for this album, but you’re still just as gorgeous sounding as the Angtoria album, and your work with Cradle of Filth. I’m so glad I got to hear this.
Those that don’t know Sarah Jezebel Deva, she’s been the female vocals on all the CoF albums, and has had a successful album with her band Angtoria. And now she’s going (mostly) solo, with friends playing the music but it’s all her pretty much. And man does it show her voice’s range. She goes from sounding like Siouxie Sioux to… well, Sarah Jezebel Deva.
And the album itself is not really a genre specific album, hopping around a little with more rock-influenced songs, and epic sounding stuff too, with some poppy elements, and a cover of Meredith Brook’s “Bitch”, which I really like. I’m definitely a fan. My favorite songs are “The Devil’s Opera”, “Your Wonderful Chair”, and “Bitch”.
I agree with Chase on this album, the songs definitely do stick with you after you’ve listened to them. Very catchy, very good.
8.5 out of 10.

Sarah Jezebel Deva on MySpace.