Artist: Lyriel
Title: Paranoid Circus
Genre: Gothic Metal
Release Date: 1st April 2010
Label: AFM Records
Album Review
The album starts off in great style with a spoken intro in English, German and French followed up quickly with a harsh driving track 'Welcome' featuring great vocals from Jessia Thierjung and a Stirling accompaniment. The driven hard medieval sound continues with 'Like a feather in the wind'. 'The Regret' slows things down a lot, with it's meandering disjointedness whilst 'Elderberry and Lavender' is all double peddling and killer riffs. Track six, aptly named 'Lullaby', is exactly that, with a tragic beauty about it, and one of the most intricate tracks on the album. With an almost Viking, anthemic quality to it 'Foeman's Bride' is next diversifying the heftier stuff a little, and the drumming, oh the drumming is to die for! 'The Wolf' with it's spoken intro in German is atmospheric, giving another insight into this most talented and divergent of bands with a galloping track worthy of anyone's listening.
'So long' has a limping rhythm to it, reminiscent of old dances and times gone by with overlying tunes countering the vocal. The vocalist it should be noted here is really something to write home about and it's showcased nowhere better than in 'My unawakened Soul' which is brief but pure perfection. With this album being named after this track, I had high hopes for 'Paranoid Circus' and I wasn't disappointed with it's staccato riffs and intricate vocals that runs perfectly into 'Wheel of Fortuna', a folk sounding tune metalled to death to fantastic effect. 'The Way to Nowhere' has a dark, brooding quality about it, all clashing cymbals and orchestral overlays being as it is the briefest of links to ' Another Time' with it's nagging violin duelling with the vocalist as it does. By utter contrast to anything else on the album we have 'Conclusion' with it's musical box eeriness playing us instrumentally out of the main body of the album.
There are two bonus tracks, an epic orchestral version of 'Paranoid Circus' which has to be heard to be believed as it's breathtaking and the Machin8 remix of 'The Regret' which gives a surreal electronic edge to this most beautiful of tracks. I often find bonus tracks superfluous and irritating on albums but both of these well and truly deserve their place doing nothing but adding extra dimensions to an already excellent album. To say I'm blown away by these guys is an understatement. There is not a bad track on the album, nor is there any discernable flaw in the mix, this is really a 10 out of 10 album from start to finish. Can't wait to see them live.
Tracklist
01. Opening
02. Welcome
03. The Feather In The Wind
04. The Regret
05. Elderberry And Lavender
06. Lullaby
07. Foeman’s Bride
08. The Wolf
09. So Long
10. My Unawakened Soul
11. Paranoid Circus
12. The Wheel Of Fortuna
13. The Way To Nowhere
14. Another Time
15. Conclusion
16. Paranoid Circus (Orchestral Version)
17. The Regret (Machin8 Remix)
Line-up
Jessia Thierjung – Vocals
Linda Laukamp – Cello
Oliver Thierjung – Guitar
Markus Fidorra – Drums
Martin Ahmann – Keyboards
Joon Laukamp – Violin
Tim Sonnenstuhl – Bass
Website
http://www.lyriel.net
Cover Picture
Rating
Music: 10
Sound: 10
Extras:-
Total: 10 / 10
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