Amberian Dawn – Re-Evolution Review

2 shares Facebook2 Twitter LinkedIn Email Released By: Encore Music Release Date: Out Now!!! Genre: Symphonic Power Metal Links: http://www.amberiandawn.com/   Line Up: Capri – Vocals Tuomas Seppälä –...

amberian dawn_cover

Released By: Encore Music

Release Date: Out Now!!!

Genre: Symphonic Power Metal

Links: http://www.amberiandawn.com/

 

Line Up:

Capri – Vocals

Tuomas Seppälä – Guitar, Keyboards

Emil Pohjalainen – Guitar

Kimmo Korhonen – Guitar

Jukka Koskinen – Bass

Joonas Pykälä-aho – Drums

 

Tracklist:

1. Valkyries

2. Incubus

3. Kokko – Eagle Of Fire

4. Lily Of The Moon

5. Come Now Follow

6. Crimson Flower

7. Circus Black

8. Lost Soul

9. Cold Kiss

10. River Of Tuoni

11. Charnel’s Ball

 

Here we have a first: Me reviewing a compilation album of sorts. I usually find compilations rather pointless, as I’ve always preferred listening to albums as a whole instead of treating them as collections of songs that can be separated from each other and still work as well, but in this case I had to make an exception. Finnish symphonic power metal band Amberian Dawn surprised their fans late last year when they announced that vocalist and lyricist Heidi Parviainen would be leaving the band. They took no time with not only announcing her replacement Capri, but also revealing plans for a compilation featuring re-recorded songs from all four of their full length albums. Well, that compilation has now been released, and is titled Re-Evolution. As a longtime fan of the band, I was both excited and curious to hear it, to see if the band could still be as strong as ever with a different singer, as Heidi’s amazing operatic vocals were one of the reasons I loved all their albums so much. It has taken several listens to fully sink in, but at this point I can safely say Re-Evolution is as strong a new beginning as I could have possibly hoped for.

For those who have never heard an Amberian Dawn album before, the band is somewhat similar to the much more famous Finnish band Nightwish, though right from their first album they managed to set themselves apart and by the time their third album End Of Eden was out, they had fully established their own distinct sound. Their songs are fairly short and their compositions are generally straight-forward, but there’s also a lot of layers to their music, so you could listen to the same song several times and notice new elements to it each time. With their most recent release Circus Black, they introduced a full orchestra which brought their sound to a whole new level and ended up forming the foundations for their finest work to date. This has carried over to Re-Evolution, as the band has re-recorded roughly 75% of the music, and the orchestral sound has been added to the older songs to make them even more exciting than they were before.

In many ways this album represents a new beginning for the band, and while the actual compositions all remain the same, and the songs should all be instantly recognizable to those who have heard the original versions, the music does sound a bit different. On the whole, there’s a much lighter feel to the songs now, which serves to make them even more epic than before, though also a bit less atmospheric. In fact, at this point they sound less like a typical symphonic band and more like a traditional power metal band dressed up with all kinds of different symphonic elements. The musicianship is as strong as ever, and the already impressive guitar work stands out quite a bit more now with the new mix.

As for the songs, the band has picked very well, as many of my favorites are here, though it does seem a bit weird to me that only one song from End Of Eden made it. The only only small complaint I have has to do with track placement: Even for a compilation album it’s a little awkward to have the title track of Circus Black thrown in the middle, as it was clearly designed to be an opener. Also, I feel Charnel’s Ball isn’t a particularly strong closing track. But again, those are two small things, and as someone who doesn’t listen to many compilations, I probably am being a little picky.

I have deliberately saved the most important part of this review for last: The new singer. In what I think is the right move, they have picked someone who sounds much different than her predecessor, so you don’t have to directly compare the two as much. Where Heidi had a very smooth but somewhat limited operatic style, Capri is much more versatile, and though she is classically trained and she does get to show that in quick bursts (especially on her version of the title track for River Of Tuoni), for most of the album she sings much more powerfully, and she brings a new energy to songs like “Valkyries”, ‘Kokko – Eagle Of Fire”, and “Lily Of The Moon”. Indeed, the band wanted to give their songs more of a metal feeling than ever before, and with Capri now in the lineup, they have accomplished this. Most importantly, she’s an extremely talented singer, and in her own way she pulls off every song on this compilation just as effectively as Heidi did, which makes it more a simple matter of preference as to which singer you like more. Personally, I love both, though I can already feel Capri growing on me more and more each time I listen to her, since lately I’ve been more in the mood for her style of singing.

All in all, Re-Evolution represents the beginning of a new era for Amberian Dawn, and is both a great place for newcomers to start with the band, and an indication of what existing fans can expect to hear from the band moving forward. I, for one, am quite excited to hear how awesome their first whole new album with Capri will be.

 

 

Written    by    Travis

Ratings    Travis    9/10

 

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