Released By: Nuclear Blast Records
Release Date: August 23rd, 2024
Links: https://www.facebook.com/
Genre: Progressive/Symphonic Metal
Line Up:
Simone Simons – Vocals
Arjen Lucassen – Guitars, Keyboards
Rob van der Loo – Bass
Koen Herfst – Drums
Ben Mathot – Violin
Tracklist:
1. Aeterna
2. In Love We Rust
3. Cradle to the Grave
4. Fight or Flight
5. Weight of My World
6. Vermillion Dreams
7. The Core
8. Dystopia
9. R.E.D
10. Dark Night of the Soul
It’s always fascinating to see some of my favorite musicians collaborate on a new project and explore the kind of music they can create together. Two of my longtime favorites are Ayreon mastermind Arjen Lucassen and Epica vocalist Simone Simons. While they have collaborated before—with Simons appearing on a couple of Ayreon albums as a guest—I never would have expected a full album between the two. However, that’s exactly what has happened with Simons’ new solo album Vermillion, written and produced by Lucassen, who also performed guitars and keyboards. Naturally, as soon as the album was announced, it instantly became one of my most anticipated releases of the year. Though I was initially unsure about the pre-release singles and the overall album, it has grown on me a lot after several listens, and it definitely lives up to my high expectations.
When the album was first announced, I was curious to see whether its sound would lean closer to Epica’s cinematic symphonic metal, the more complex, progressive nature of Lucassen’s projects like Ayreon and Star One, or if it would be something entirely different. As a whole, it leans closest to the latter option, with most of the keyboard and guitar sounds likely familiar to Ayreon fans, though often used in a slightly different way. Lucassen forgoes his usual showy approach and instead opts for a more subdued, atmospheric direction. That isn’t to say there aren’t any epic or spectacular moments (there certainly are), but much of the songwriting feels dialed back compared to his usual work, with a huge emphasis placed on the voice of Simons, who sounds fantastic as always, utilizing both her clean and operatic vocals in large doses.
I would describe the album as primarily progressive, though it falls more on the melodic, ambient side rather than being overly complex or ambitious. Symphonic elements are present but in a much different way than fans of Simons may expect, as the orchestral sounds are all done by synths, and the music certainly isn’t as grand as her main band can get. However, the keys and choirs are often used to create a cinematic feel, along with Ben Mathot’s violin, a common element of Arjen’s music that really shines on this album. Many tracks are fairly soft for most of their duration, with occasional explosive moments mixed in, whether musically, vocally, or both. Instrumentally, the album is largely dominated by keys, though Lucassen doesn’t use his more retro-sounding keys too much this time around, instead leaning towards the spacey keys found on many Ayreon and Star One tracks. One rather different aspect of this album is the prominent use of electronic keys, which at times give the music a somewhat industrial metal feel, due largely to the keys but also because of some chunky guitars that appear in short bursts. The guitar work here is excellent, largely serving a secondary role on many tracks, though there are plenty of great riffs and some excellent lead guitar work. While solos aren’t too common, when they do appear, they’re beautiful and epic, as expected from Lucassen. Drums are fairly minimal on most tracks, largely calm and subdued, but when drummer Koen Herfst is asked to be more involved, he does a fantastic job. Obviously, Simons and her vocals are the main focus of the album, and she’s in fantastic form, with both her lead and choral vocals sounding amazing. The couple of guests who appear on the album are also in top form. Production is flawless, and everything sounds absolutely perfect, as expected from Lucassen. The songwriting is somewhat varied, with different flavors and tones throughout. As a rule, I find every even-numbered track falls on the softer side, with at least three clearly being ballads, while the odd-numbered tracks are all at least somewhat heavy in doses. Beyond that, there are clear differences between tracks, as I’ll mention below, and each track is excellent in its own way.
Opening the album is lead single “Aeterna,” one of the more typical Lucassen-sounding tracks. It starts with ambient, electronic keys before bursts of heavy guitar work slowly kick in. It’s a moody, slow-building track, with the verses reminding me of the overall mood and tone of the Ayreon classic “Into the Black Hole.” It builds up slowly in its first half, relying on atmospheric keys and the voice of Simons. The chorus is epic and features heavy choral vocals, but it isn’t overly catchy; it feels more like a mood setter. Around two-thirds of the way through, the keys suddenly pick up in intensity, heavy guitars kick in, and Simons goes all out with some epic, operatic choral vocals, leading into an awesome final vocal section where her vocals really shine. The first softer track is “In Love We Rust,” another track heavily reliant on electronic keys, particularly during the verses, which feel in line with the first half of The Universal Migrator, going for an ambient, melodic prog rock sound. Guitars kick in during the chorus, adding a bit of power, and it’s a very catchy, memorable chorus with excellent vocals and vocal melodies. There’s a fantastic, beautiful melodic guitar solo towards the end, which is my favorite part of the track, along with the chorus.
One of the tracks I was most interested in hearing was “Cradle to the Grave,” featuring Arch Enemy vocalist Alissa White-Gluz. Fans hoping for a more traditional MDM sound may be disappointed, as it falls more into industrial territory, with heavy yet subdued guitars, slow tempos, and a heavy reliance on electronic keys. The verses, in particular, are very minimal in their instrumental work, relying heavily on keys and vocals. The chorus does get heavy and intense, with White-Gluz delivering some deep, powerful growls along with some very emotive clean vocals, which she also utilizes during the second verse, where she duets with Simons. Overall, it’s a fantastic track and one of the best on the album, though maybe not what some folks may be expecting. After that more intense track, things calm down again with “Fight or Flight,” the first full ballad of the album. It starts with soft guitar work, mixed with small doses of electronic keys during the opening verse, though this section is largely dominated by the soft, smooth voice of Simons. Heavy, distorted guitars kick in for the chorus, where the vocals get a bit more powerful and intense. There’s a brief but epic solo in the middle, leading into a bridge with some of the best vocals on the album, followed by a nice violin solo and then the final run through the chorus, which is fantastic.
Star One fans are sure to enjoy “The Weight of My World,” which certainly feels like it could have come directly off Victims of the Modern Age, with a slow, chunky main riff that dominates the track. The opening verse features some distorted vocals, clearly sung in a foreign language (either Dutch or German, I think, but I could be wrong). Regardless, they soon shift to operatic vocals, and then Simons switches to her normal voice during the chorus, which is fun, upbeat, and melodic, as the chunky guitars contrast nicely with some fantastic vocal melodies and light, energetic keys. Once again, “Vermillion Dreams” serves as a breather following that more intense track, leading in with some very orchestral-sounding keys, which help give the song a cinematic feel. This sound is accompanied by more electronic keys throughout the verses, which are slow, ambient, and do a good job of setting the mood for the chorus, which is catchy and melodic, while also having a cool marching beat from the drums, perhaps the most memorable aspect of the track. The drums get especially intense right at the end, during an excellent closing vocal section.
Perhaps my favorite track on the album is “The Core,” which is also one of the heaviest. It features some intense, powerful death growls, and while no guest is listed for the track, out of the two guest vocalists on the album, it certainly sounds closer to Mark Jansen. Regardless, it’s a track that alternates nicely between dark and heavy, light and melodic. The heavy guitars are used in bursts during the verses, along with more melodic leads, while the chorus alternates between clean vocals, growls, and even some epic operatic vocals during later runs. The song gets more intense and epic as it progresses, with more intense drums used in bursts. It also has a mix of slow passages and slightly upbeat passages, particularly in the chorus, with the melodic, cleanly sung passages being more upbeat, while the rest of the track remains slower. Another song that offers a nice contrast of soft and heavy elements is “Dystopia,” the heaviest even-numbered track on the album, while still largely being a light, vocal-driven, and atmospheric track. It’s dominated by light, ambient keys and vocals, occasionally interspersed with chunky, somewhat djent-sounding riffs during the verses, while the chorus is soft and fairly subdued. The highlight of the track is a fantastic guitar solo towards the end, which starts soft and beautiful, then becomes heavier and more intense as it progresses.
Another highly anticipated and intriguing track is “R.E.D,” the track for which Jansen is officially credited as a guest vocalist. It’s another somewhat surprising track, not sounding much like Simons and Jansen’s main band at all. Instead, it goes for a more atmospheric, industrial metal sound, dominated by electronic keys during the verses, which set the mood nicely for an intense chorus featuring chunky guitars and some rather chaotic-sounding keys. Simons carries the verses with her beautiful voice, while Jansen delivers his trademark growls during the chorus, featuring more chunky guitars and some rather chaotic sounding keys. Simons carries the verses with her beautiful voice, while Jansen delivers his trademark growls during the chorus, which creatively uses different variations of its title initials in rather ominous ways. There’s a fantastic, more melodic vocal section towards the end, with some slight heaviness to go along with more upbeat keys, and Simons goes all out with her operatic vocals, to make it a highlight. Closing out the album is “Dark Night of the Soul”, a soft, beautiful piano ballad, where the violin comes into play early and often, and is one of the highlights of the track, along with the Simons who sings softly throughout, and as always, she excels on a track like this where the beautiful tone of her voice gets to fully come out. Instrumentation is effective, but fairly minimal, and the chorus is rather subdued, but excellent as it serves as a perfect showcase for Simons.
I was curious to see how Vermillion would turn out, knowing it was made by two of my favorite musicians in the world, and thankfully it ended up easily living up to my expectations, and being yet another fantastic work for fans of Arjen Lucassen and Simone Simons to enjoy. Musically, it’s largely similar to the likes of Ayreon and Star One, though it’s a bit more subdued a lot of the time, relying heavily on electronic keys and obviously the voice of Simons, who sounds absolutely fantastic as usual. Many of the tracks took a few listens to grow on me, but over time I’ve come to love all of them, and as a fan of both artists, I’m very pleased with this album. Whether or not they ever do anything like this again remains to be seen, but for now, I’m glad this album exists, and I obviously look forward to hearing new material from Simons and her main band next year, as well as whatever Lucassen does in the future.
Ratings: 9/10
Written by: Travis Green
My Global Mind – Staff Writer
Travis Green is a Canadian based writer for My Global Mind, with a particular passion for power metal, as well as an interest metal in all its forms.
About Author
