Silje Leirvik – “With the Lights Turned Out So Beautiful” (2012)

Label : Autumnsongs Records/Burning Shed

Review by Davide Torresan

Silje Leirvik is a Norwegian singer-songwriter and this “With yhe Lights Turned Out So Beautiful” is her debut album. You know so little about her since she’s still a rather unknown artist, especially outside her native country. The songs she has composed in the demos of 2006 and 2007 are really a rare beauty. Her sweet and gentle voice but at times a bit dark matches perfectly with the sound of the piano or the cello. Her skills as a singer allowed her to win several music awards and in 2006 she joined the Norwegian rock band Madrugada on tour. 2012 was the right year and she focused on her ideas, gathered over the years in her first album. It became really important the collaboration with the producer and composer Rhys Marsh who played most of the instruments in this record. Continue reading »

Silje Leirvik

Interview by Robert Brady

In a country that is notorious for its biggest musical export being Black Metal, Norway has also been building a great legacy of producing some of the top female vocalists, artists and musicians in the world. In modern time in the heavy metal and hard rock community, Norway has produced Liv Kristine ex-Theatre of Tragedy and current frontwoman of her own band Leaves Eyes, probably one of the most beautiful and undisputed powerful operatic vocalist in ex- Tristania soprano Vibeke Stene, Carmen Elise Espenæs of Midnattsol and on the pop side Marion Raven.

Aythis – “New Earth” (2011)

Label : Twilight Records

Review by Luisa Mercier

Aythis is the side project of Carline Van Roos, already known for being the frontwoman of doom-metallers Lethian Dreams, which releases I had the pleasure to listen and review some time ago. In this project, Carline expresses her ambient side, leaving outside guitar and metal noise, focusing on atmosphere, lush sounds, synth, keyboards, vocals without renouncing to a quite gloomy mood.

The opener and title-track points out towards this direction and will leave you with a feeling of melancholia that following “Ether” will only enhance. The song has some Medieval feeling, reminding me of Arcana and other neoclassical acts. Vocals are soaring and solemn and mix with the orchestral synth sounds that will leave you under the impression to be in an ancient cathedral. At least til the moment when a flute comes in and a more ethnic/folk feeling takes over. Continue reading »

Arcana – “As Bright As Thousand Suns” (2012)

Label : Cyclic Law

Review by Luisa Mercier

New Arcana record is another long dream, a foggy dream into oniric landscapes opened by a track meaningfully called “Somnolence”. Five years after “Raspail”, the band is back with an album that is even more far away from their main inspiration, Dead Can Dance, and draws from India, Buddhism, from the roots of humanity, though retaining their gothic/dark flavour.

As for the intro, also “Medea” (with an amazing Ann Mari), “Inceptus”, “Infinity” and “The Fading Shadow” are ethnic tinged tracks with the hypnotic percussions of Mattias Borgh made even darker by  Sergio Gamez e Nùria Luis.
Vocals by Ann Mari, Cecilia and Peter Bjärgö are ethereal, light and are just an accompaniment to music, an embroidery that is needed to get the final masterpiece. Arcana once again managed to create an album balanced between darkness and light, shadow and brightess, at the top of dark ambient scene. Continue reading »

Arcana – “Emerald” EP (2012)

Label : Cyclic Law

Review by Luisa Mercier

Arcana is a legendary name in neoclassical-ethereal, medieval sounding music and now are back after some years of silence with this 3 track EP..

The songs are classic Arcana.  In “As The End Draws Near”, male vocals chant over a rich layer of ancient music, mesmerizing the audience while female opera vocalising enrich the texture of the track.

“Cage” is a beautiful duet, really ethereal that brings you in another dimension.
Last song, “Precious Stone” is another piece of hypnotizing beauty, where female vocals leads us into a world that existed centuries ago.  If you are an Arcana fan, this release will not leave you disappointed. Continue reading »