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posted 1 year ago
* While Heaven Wept - “Vast Ocean Lachrymose” (2009)

Label : Cruz Del Sur Music

Review By Tony Cannella

From Virginia, While Heaven Wept have been around since around 1994. They play progressive metal and their line-up includes current and past members of Brave, Twisted Tower Dire and October 31 among others. Their newest release is titled “Vast Oceans Lachrymose” and it is a welcomed treat for those of us who love complex, epic progressive metal in the vein of John Arch era Fates Warning. The songs on “Vast Oceans Lachrymose” definitely harkens back to the majesty of those early Fates’ records, whilst still carving out a niche for themselves in today’s metal landscape. Male vocalist Rain Irving handles all of the lead vocals and he certainly has a strong and powerful voice. The keyboardist for this project is Michelle Schrotz who also happens to be the lead vocalist for Virginia progressive metallers Brave, here she also contributes harmony vocals. I was drawn in from the very first track, the 16-minute “The Furthest Shore” really sets the mood and vibe right away. Next is “To Wander the Void” and this is something of an homage to Fates Warning - great lyrics and harmonies help to make this a worthy tribute and one of the best songs on this disc. The band quicken the pace with the next track “Living Sepulchre”, that segues into the moody track “Vessels”. The CD is completed with two instrumentals. “Vast Oceans Lachrymose” and “Epilogue” are a great way to end things. The lyrics are somewhat ambiguous and can be interpreted in different ways, which was another check in the plus column for “Vast Oceans Lachrymose”. I was shocked to find out that While Heaven Wept have such an extensive history. “Vast Oceans Lachrymose” is actually their third full-length release and the 6-songs and 42-minutes worth of standout material should appeal to fans of classy, progressive metal, that still maintains it’s heaviness. Besides, anyone who sites John Arch era Fates Warning as an inspiration is okay in my book. Regardless, While Heaven Wept are not a band that will appeal to all the trendy, mall metal fans, but if you are looking for something that really does have a lot of heart and integrity than check this band out.

Rating - 90/100

Tracklist

  1. The Furthest Shore
  2. To Wander the Void
  3. Living Sepulchre
  4. Vessel
  5. Vast Oceans Lachrymose
  6. Epilogue

Line Up

  • Rain Irving - Lead & Harmony Vocals
  • Scott Loose - Guitars
  • Tom Phillips - Guitars, Keyboards & Harmony Vocals
  • Michelle Schrotz - Keyboards & Harmony Vocals
  • Jim Hunter - Bass
  • Trevor Schrotz - Drums

Links

MySpace * Facebook * Twitter * Site

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posted 1 year ago
* Brave - “Lost in Retrospect” COMPILATION (2009)

Label : Femme Metal Records

Review by Tony Cannella

It’s hard to believe that it’s been 12 years since Virginia’s Brave released their first recordings.  Back then they were known as Arise From Thorns (having adopted their current moniker in 2001 for the “Waste Deep in Dark Waters” EP). In that time the band have released 4 full-length CDs and 2 EPs, yet they have still managed to fly a bit under the radar. They have just released a comprehensive compilation CD titled “Lost in Retrospect”. Their music can be described as progressive rock and metal with a touch of the avantgarde. But really this is a band with several different layers and that makes them hard to categorize. The songs - for the most part - are presented in reverse chronological order. The first three songs are taken from the band’s 2008 album “Monuments”. Right off the bat you get a sense of diversity of Brave. The second track “Driven” is one of my favorite songs the band has ever recorded. It’s heavy, yet melodic and very catchy. Check out the excellent guitar solo on this one. It just plain rips and the vocal work of Michelle Loose can’t be denied as well, her vocal style is somewhat unique and it blends well with the music. The 2004 EP “Passages” is represented with “Words”. This song features some impressive changes. Three songs from 2002’s “Searching for the Sun” - arguably the band’s best release - are up next. “Before Nightfall”, “Trapped Inside” and “Candle in the Dark” are all solid choices. “Before Nightfall”  in particular is very memorable. It’s really a pretty sounding song that is a bit of a ballad, but it is has more to offer than your standard ballad.  4 songs are included from when they were known as Arise From Thorns, giving fans a glimpse into their early material, and you can clearly see how the band has progressed since then. The best is saved for last with the 10-minute epic “Passages” from the 2004 album of the same name. This song really ends things with a bang. It is one of the most mature things the band has ever recorded - what a way to end things. The inclusion of violin on a number of tracks is also a nice touch.At 14 songs and 69 minutes long, “Lost in Retrospect” serves its purpose as an audio history lesson. The music on this CD just goes to show how criminally underrated a band Brave has become, as well as serving as a good starting point for anyone looking to get into this band. I could go on and on about this band but instead of me just babbling on, I would encourage anyone who likes what they hear on this collection of songs to seek out their back catalog.

Rating - 80/100

Tracklist

  1. Something to This
  2. Driven
  3. Hold On
  4. Words
  5. Before Nightfall
  6. Trapped Inside
  7. Candle in the Dark
  8. Dark Waters
  9. To Dream Again
  10. Surrender
  11. To Dance by Moonlight
  12. Remember the Stars
  13. Bluer Skies
  14. Passages

Line Up

  • Michelle Loose Schrotz – Vocals & Keyboards
  • Scott Loose –Guitars
  • Matt Kozar –Guitars
  • Suvo Sur - Violin & Keyboards
  • Ben Kelly – Bass 
  • Trevor Schrotz – Drums 

Links

MySpace * Site

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* Weeping Silence - “End of an Era” (2008)

Label : Sleazy Rider Records

Review by Tony Cannella

“End of an Era” is the debut full-length from the Malta based Gothic/Doom/Progressive metal band Weeping Silence. Even though, “End of an Era” was originally unleashed upon us in 2008, this is a CD that is definitely worthy of a review. “End of an Era” has a playing time of 6-songs and 42-minutes worth of music. The songs contain long, epic, sweeping arrangements.  The songs are heavy, while still having a dark, mournful quality to them, some of the songs even feature violin. After the intro “Mourning Reign”, the band launch into the 10-minute “Deep Regret”. This is a strong opener that showcases the passionate vocals of Rachel Grech combined with the melodicism of Weeping Silence. “Tell Me Why” (9 minutes), “Crystal Images” (10 minutes) and “Darkness in My Heart” (11minutes) continue the big, epic nature of this CD, before the 1-minute outro, “End of an Era” brings the CD to a close. Stylistically, I would say that Weeping Silence remind me a bit of the Virginia based prog-metal band Brave. “End of an Era” is a great debut release from this Maltese band. Whatever you may thing of long epic songs, Weeping Silence are a band that certainly put a lot of hard work and sincerity into their debut and the length of the songs do nothing to hinder the enjoyment of “End of an Era” it only enhances it..

Rating - 88/100

Tracklist

  1. Mourning Reign
  2. Deep Regret
  3. Tell Me Why
  4. Crystal Images
  5. Darkness In My Heart
  6. End of An Era

Line Up

  • Rachel Grech – Vocals
  • Mario Ellul – Guitars
  • Toni Farruggia – Guitar
  • Allison Ellul - Keyboards
  • Sean Pollacco – Bass 
  • Angelo Zammit – Drums  

Links

MySpace * ReverbNation * Facebook