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 A powerful and beautiful history lesson.- |
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Today, it seems like there are many bands out there looking to the past to weave a conceptual album that is rich in a specific history, whether bashing or glorifying something specific about it. Of course, war seems to be the big topic button in Metal, primarily about specific events that were important to that band's region, or the most influential to that member that typically affected that country. Once again, Metal proves itself further useful as an education tool, as many fans of the styles often take away general knowledge they may not have known before. For the band's third full-length effort, Legacy & Death, Serenity follow the same educational but would never be used in a classroom premise by delving back into history to tell more then one specific tale. This conceptual piece happens to take a look at many pivotol and influential people throughout time, such as Christopher Columbus, Queen Elizabeth I, Sir Francis Drake, and more, in a beautiful, powerful, symphonic Power Metal meets Progressive Metal one hour plus effort. Honestly, had any of my History classes been this kick ass, I probably would have paid more attention in school. Serenity compose an album that is both moving and powerful through a stylish Symphonic Power Metal sound that is complimented with a suiting clean vocal style that sounds a little nasally, bordering more on a "Flower Metal" style of performance against a more epic sounding atmosphere. Many of the songs go by at a somewhat faster pace, but utilize the Symphonic aspects for a more epic sound, though some tracks have a much faster and more technical approach that contradicts the vocals that clash against the music in a manner that causes the two to end up complimenting each other perfectly. "Far From Home" is the perfect mixture of this heavier, faster, and technical sound, though retaining that epic approach, that feels like it should have a less nasal vocal approach, retaining a more deeper, richer, even forceful Power Metal style, and not something reminiscent of a style one would expect from Sonata Arctica. While the band does find great use with the Symphonic aspects of their music, it's clear that the keyboards that add that element to the music is only an additional layer. The guitars seem to take a main priority here, as they feel more the melodic and powerful basis for the band's Power Metal sound, with the keyboards only being added to emphasize the direction the guitars are taking the music, as well as to build the overall gradious scale of the material. "Heavenly Mission" isn't the first time this will become obvious, as "New Horizons" and "Far From Home" set this up superbly, but it's the first track that makes it so obvious. The song starts up with what can only be described as a simply epic Symphonic build up, hammering away at the listener and becoming more and more dynamic as it continues, only to drop out to a rather simple guitar chord with some background ambience from the keyboards. The emphasis for this song to build up from verse to chorus and further on, as well as to cast a beautiful atmosphere to the recording, is set more on the guitars and vocals, leaving the keyboards and the drumming to feel more like supporting elements to the recording. Of course, the drums also seem to shine over everything else as times, as some tracks seem to heavily rely on them, and the same can be said for the keyboards, but it's a different approach to composing anything for this style, and it makes Death & Legacy genuinely stand out in the rather saturated style. The album is set up nicely as well from the conceptual aspect. It seems that each interlude or introduction acts as the start of another historical figure that the band intends to follow, and the music they perform often reflects that individual, and the setting these introductionary tracks create. "Set Sail To..." manages to create an epic atmosphere that feels curious and majestic, matching the exploratory nature the lyrics portray. "Prayer (Interlude)" is more a spoken word segment that builds up the pieces to follow, which smoothly transitions into the war-based drumming and keyboards of the start to "State of Siege", which sets up the much harder and despairing Power Metal atmosphere for this chunk of material. These tracks do seem to focus a little more on the keyboards and other Symphonic elements at times, such as the violins really aiding the emotion of "Changing Fate", but the guitars do still steal the show, especially the opening solo on "State of Siege". Next you're transported to another native country through a tribal interlude track "Below Eastern Skies", clearly setting a Middle Eastern regional atmosphere for the song, though not carried into the actual songs after it, and "Lament (Interlude" is a spoken word track that doesn't do anything and just feels tacked on with "My Legacy" coming off as another track the band had recorded but had no place for on the album in a conceptual way. The album also features a number of female guest appearances of vocalists from various bands. Sadly, the press sheet included with the promo doesn't state who is on which track, but the guest list does feature Charlotte Wessels of Delain, ailyn of Sirenita, and Amanda Sommerville, a female singer and songwriter who recorded with a number of bands including Kamelot and After Forever. All three of these vocalists do a superb job and really add a lot of emotion through the duets they take part in, and it really just makes these tracks stand out the most. These performances are generally more on the lighter, less epic tracks of the recording, so it's almost given that they would push the emotional scale of the songs, but either way, the songs still come off as breathtaking as the others, if not moreso, and they wind up being a very welcome addition to the recording. It also makes things a little depressing considering how well they work, and how few of these guest appearances there are, though any more would really deter from the conceptual approach of the music. The only possible complaint I can truly compose about this album is that the band focuses on a number of different people, and the last two interludes/chapters kind of feel forced and cluttered. Had the band actually composed the album that these individuals had been intertwined somehow, though technically rewriting history, in more then a simple "they died in the end" kind of sense, it would have been a more fluid album. Even if Serenity had just taken one or two, and really sat down and expanded on the characters. The emotion in the music to reflect that individual's plight and struggles is there, and in the opening chapter for "Set Sail To...", you can't help but sit there and feel a connection to the person they are focusing on [who I assume to be Christopher Columbus, as the names are just given in the press release but no clarification as to what tracks are for who were not provided] due to the musical atmosphere the band manages to pull off. Aside that, the last two "chapters" of this conceptual piece doesn't really possess the same kind of atmosphere to match the characters, and while the songs are not bad, some of them just aren't as powerful or even catchy, though still are very emotional. "To India's Shore" has a bit of a remorseful emotion to it, but other then that it's just a solid typical Power Metal track. Death and Legacy is pretty much flawless. Sure, the end gets a little cluttered and the last two tracks just feel tacked on, but the heart of the album is obvious, and it really shows. Outside of "Lament", there isn't a single bad song on here, and the band's approach to creating that epic atmosphere for the album with other instruments and not solely relying on the keyboards to do it really places this release in a world of it's own. while the band's previous albums were bashed for being generic Power Metal albums, this one really raises the bar and blurs the lines of Power Metal and "Flower Metal", creating an over the top album that feels right, beautiful, and the closest thing to perfection this type of direction can get, leaving Death & Legacy to be an album that simply must be experienced. |
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Digital review copy of this release provided by: Napalm Records.
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