Neverland successfully marry Heavy Metal and orchestra in a special harmony. A collaboration between the Turkish band
Dreamtone and Greek vocalist Iris Mavraki has resulted in this new band and an impressive debut.
The music is an interesting blend of styles where elements from Power, Heavy and Progressive metal are combined with a full symphony orchestra, guitar solos that flow rather than assault and both female and male vocalists. This makes for a varied and atmospheric journey that can be explored many times. Unfortunately the album peaks too quickly.
Several guest stars appear through the album. Hansi Kürsch of
Blind Guardian delivers a fine performance in the memorable
To Lose the Sun and embodies the song with a hint of melancholy that only he can provide. This is the one song that stands out right away and unfortunately the album never quite reaches the same heights again. One thing the album lacks is more standout moments like this one song. It does however survive on a consistent high quality throughout.
Production-wise the music suffers from distortion in several songs, most apparent in
Mankind is a lie. It is as if parts of the album have been mastered too loud and this is a real shame. Besides this the production is good and gives room for all instruments.
Other guests include Tom Englund of
Evergrey and Mike Baker and Gary Wehrkamp of
Shadow Gallery but none make as big an impact as Hansi Kürsch.
Being a big fan of both, I enjoyed Mike Baker's appearance on the title track as well as Tom Englund's emotional performance on
World beyond these walls where he hits just the right tone. Overall a superb choice of guest singers.
Iris takes the spotlight on several occasions.
Everlasting Tranquility and
Mountain of Judgement unfolds her voice in all its splendor and on several other tracks she is roaming around in the background adding small details.
I'm guessing that Gary Wehrkamp appears on
Mountain of Joy where the second guitar solo has a much sharper bite than is the case on the rest of the album. An interesting aspect is how the guitar solos flow along with the music throughout the album. It works very well and adds to the albums atmosphere and warmth.
Some fantastic melodies and atmospheres can be enjoyed here, but in the end something unique is lacking to bind it all together. Reversing Time is still a great debut and a valiant attempt at creating something new. It will be interesting to hear how the band develops.
Written by
Steen Wednesday, March 26, 2008
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