Yet another Metal opera project sees the light of day. Wizard bassist and mastermind Volker Leson and Vain frontman Davy Vain have teamed up to give us a dramatic and emotional rendition of fantasy book "Chronicle Of The Immortal", written by famed German writer Wolfgang Hohlbein. That's the same guy that does the Asgard Saga together with Manowar, by the way. This collaboration has resulted in a varied, progressive and innovative mix of songs.

Delany spoils us from the beginning, opening with one of the album's best tracks, Blood And Ashes. There is something really special about this mesmerizing and melancholic song, the steady pulse of the composition really builds momentum, to be released in the fantastic chorus. The melancholic feeling shows to be a red thread running throughout the rest of the album. David Readman (Pink Cream 69, Adagio, a.o.) shows from the beginning, that he is a world class singer. This is a flawless track, flowing smoothly, painting grave images with its almost desperate and bitter-sweet feeling.

Here Comes Lonely has a somewhat simpler profile, which really fits well with the slightly more Sleaze Rock oriented vocals of Davy Vain.

The album contain three ballads (Love Tears, Eternity Is Yours and Shadow On Your Heart), all sung by Lana Lane. In my opinion it would have been a little more interesting and less predictable, if Lana had gotten to show her talents on some of the heavier stuff as well and one of the guys had been singing one of the ballads. Apart from that, Lana Lane's voice suits the bittersweet feeling of all three tunes well. Shadow On Your Heart is clearly the standout of the three.

The fantastic Incarnation once again shows David Readman in top shape. He is right up there with Jorn Lande, Dio and similar powerhouse vocalists, and he is definitely the star of the release.

Web Over London was the standout track after the first listen, and still stands out after many spins of the disc. Awesome, catchy refrain, great vocals, a tasteful dose of piano and just the kind of melody that gets glued to your brain from the first listen, this song is just pure ear candy.

Planets Turning is the only track that doesn't really do that much for me. While its melancholic feeling and progressive structure fits the album, it just ends up too messed up and weird for me, like it goes in too many different directions at the same time. Not a bad track, just nothing that really adds to the album either.

What the album succeeds in, is keeping the melancholic atmosphere throughout all the songs, thus creating a feeling of a complete story being told, without ever being "too much" or boring the listener. It is, in other words, a successful concept album. Many concept albums only succeed on the lyrical side, where the story is being told, but Blaze And Ashes is one of those, where the story is equally well communicated in the music, so you can actually not just read, but feel or hear the story in the music itself. That is the album's biggest strength. No doubt a lot of though went into creating this piece of work, and attention to details is evident.

Due to the music's melancholic edge you have to be in a very special mood to spin the album. It's not for every occasion, and it certainly isn't party music.

Another huge force is the three vocalists, all delivering splendid performances, especially David Readman, a true world class singer. Davy Vain and Lana Lane fit their parts as well. All instrumentalists does their job, without sticking out in any big way, it is clearly the vocals that are the driving force of the album. The album never gets the totally overblown feeling, certain other "Metal operas" can have, because there's no big orchestration, not even more than a few notes of keyboard in the compositions, and that gives the album a more stripped down profile. A crystal clear, fitting production graces the album, thanks to star producer Dennis Ward.

If you´re into melodic, slightly progressive Metal, you should definitely check this one out!

Written by Nina
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Show all reviews by Nina

Ratings

Nina: 6.5/10

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