Elysion - Someplace Better (2014)

Originating from Athens, Elysion is a gothic metal band with some symphonic elements. Someplace Better is their second album and the band has produced a great collection of songs.

Elysion's music will be instantly familiar to fans of the genre and they will be compared to Within Temptation and Lacuna Coil, in fact Christianna's vocal tone is often similar to Christina's from Lacuna Coil, but to simply compare them to those band is unfair because Elysion have managed to craft excellent song that have their own voice and personality.

Someplace Better is full of really catchy songs that are creative and melodic. The guitar riffs drive the songs with well measured electronic elements giving the music texture and shape. Christianna's vocal lines are great and she makes really good use of layered vocals and harmonies. 

Overall, Someplace Better is a great release for fans of the genre that has enough personality to stand out from the pack. It offers a great collection of songs and the album is instantly pleasing. 

Rating: Good Vibrations

Sirenia - Perils of the Deep (2013)

Sirenia has been around for a long time. In fact, Sirenia main man Morten Veland was one of the founders of Tristania. The band has been too unstable in terms of band members and singers and this has affected their output, but this is the third album with singer Aylin and it's a killer. 

The album opens with a beautiful intro playing on classical music, opera and gothic sounds. The second track is Seven Widows Deep (see the video below), which is one of the highlights of the album and is a perfect example of all the best Sirenia has to offer. Brutal riffs, soaring vocals, strong harsh vocals, choral arrangements and symphonic flourishes. The song is heavy, dark and strong but also melodic and beautiful.

This is Sirenia's most varied album. It harks back to the sound of their older albums but also explores new ground. Ditt Endelikt fo instance is a surprisingly straight forward and uplifting rock song with catchy hooks and licks and Morten Veland singing clean. On the other hand Stille Kom Doden is a twelve minute long song with an assured doom tone that also delivers the most beautiful melodic passages of the album. 

Both Morten Veland and Aylin have obviously worked incredibly hard the last two years. The songs are top notch and Aylin's voice has grown enormously. This is a killer album that should make Sirenia fans happy but will also hopefully propel the band to the next level. They certainly deserve it. 

Rating: Heavy Rotation

Tristania - The Darkest White (2013)

Tristania has been around for a long time and the band carries the heavy burden of creating two albums that blended perfectly, doom, death, black and gothic metal in a powerful and epic scale with a symphonic base. 

Unfortunately, fans compare their recent output to their early albums and complain but with so many band members leaving, the band is now a completely different beast. Darkest White is a great album that wavers between some brutal moments (as we would expect from the band) and more melodic gothic songs. 

My personal highlights include the powerful opener Number (see the video below), the gothic Himmelfall,  the anthemic Requiem, the surprisingly uplifting Diagnosis and the gentle, melodic Lavender. Overall, I find that the more melodic moments work better but as usual Tristania knows how to get the balance between heavy and powerful moments and quieter melodic passages right.

It's not their best album. I'm sure that many will still miss the old sound and moan the absence of Vibeke, but Tristania is not looking back and this album is packed with great songs.

Rating: Good Vibrations