Beauty of Gemina, The - A Stranger to Tears

And it starts with powerful drum beats to the sound of razor-sharp riffs, before understated electronic beats and chopped sequences come in and Michael Sele’s adjuring chant wafts across the lands of Galilee. He’s the narrator and guides through the story of which you can find a detailed explanation in the interview we did with him recently. ‘This Time’ however, draws upon a different stylistic source and swims through the waters of an electronic form of dark wave and dark or sinister is a perfect description for the mood in this track that retains a classic sound while not neglecting modern means to convey emotion apart from Sele’s moaning vocals. With ‘Psycho Flood’ marks another change in style and mood. It’s challenging with its almost ritual relentless drumming that won’t give you the fraction of a second to rest but with all harshness it undoubtedly has, it bears a sublime spirit with the classical choir and string sequences providing something like a resting isle in a raging sea. Even though ‘Psycho Flood’ admittedly has a club potential I believe that ‘Shadow Dancer’ is the better candidate for heavy rotation and packed dance floors. A straight beat and atmospherics waving through the song like a dense haze. ‘The Lonesome Death of a Goth DJ’ can be filed into the same category even it has much more punch and drive. And the atmosphere during the verses is almost creepy. A look into the booklet for the lyrics couldn’t hurt either as the song is dealing with a rather sad side-effect of the more and more commercially oriented Goth parties.