Therion – “Les Fleurs du Mal” (2012)

Label : Adalruna

Review by Tony Cannella

Whether you like the avant-garde metal band Therion or you don’t, there is no denying that they have done things their own way since they were founded by Christofer Johnsson in 1987. Going back to their debut EP “Time Shall Tell” in 1991, Therion has morphed from a Death Metal band to an experimental symphonic metal juggernaut and with their latest opus “Les Fleurs Du Mal”, the band marches on. 2012 marks the 25th anniversary of Therion and “Les Fleurs Du Mal” is part of commemorating such a milestone. The album title is based on Charles Baudelaire’s writings and poems and the title “Les Fleurs Du Mal” (English translation is “Flowers of Evil”) is the title of a collection of poems from Charles Baudelaire. Therion’s avant-garde approach is happily intact throughout this 15-song 45-minute effort. As always Christofer Johnsson has surrounded himself with some top tier musical talent, including vocalists Lori Lewis (she sounds amazing as always) and metal veteran Thomas Vikström. Some of the strongest moments are: “Poupee De Cire, Poupee De Son”, “Initials B.B.”, the hypnotic “Mon Amour, Mon Ami” and “Lilith”. The whole thing is quite grandiose and is simply huge in sound and scope. One thing Therion has proven over the years is that they are not afraid to take chances and they do exactly what they want. For better or worse, “Les Fleurs Du Mal” is another shining example of this.

Rating – 83/100

Tracklist

Poupee De Cire, Poupee De Son
Une Fleur Dans Le Coeur
Initials B.B.
Mon Amour, Mon Ami
Polichinelle
La Maritza
Soeur Angelique
Dis-Moi Poupee
Lilith
En Alabama
Wahala Manitou
Je n’ai Besoin Que De Tendresse
La Licorne D’or
J’ai le mal de Toi
Poupee De Cire, Poupee De Son

Line Up

Thomas Vikström – Vocals
Lori Lewis – Vocals
Christofer Johnsson – Guitar
Christian Vidal – Guitar
Nalle Påhlsson – Bass
Johan Kullberg – Drums

Links

MySpace * Facebook * Twitter * Site

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Mar 29, 2012

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Therion – “Sitra Ahra” (2010)

Label : Nuclear Blast Records

Review by Tony Cannella

The band Therion has been in existence since 1987. In that time they have continued to evolve and progress into one of the leading Avant-Garde, Symphonic metal bands ever. The band has gone through a myriad of line-ups with the one constant force being Christopher Johnsson. Therion return with their newest symphonic metal experience, “Sitra Ahra”, and the band continues their evolution and growth on their new output. Where to begin? There is a lot to sift through on “Sitra Ahra”, which is the case on most Therion albums. I suppose the thing that always fascinated me about Therion, is just the hugeness of their sound, and that absolutely holds true on “Sitra Ahra”. Joining Mr. Johnsson for this album are three singers, Snowy Shaw and Thomas Vikström provide the male vocals, while Aesma Daeva singer Lori Lewis is the female vocalist. There is no denying that the scope on “Sitra Ahra” is simply huge. Songs like “Sitra Ahra”, “Kings of Edom”, the 10-minute “Land of Canaan”, the all-out metal fury of “Din” and the 7-minute closer, “After the Inquisition: Children of the Stone” all represent where Therion is headed in 2010 and beyond. Female vocalist Lori Lewis provides an operatic style to the songs, while the male vocals alternate between traditional metal singing and a more extreme, gothic style. Featuring a playing time of an hour, Therion always manage to keep things interesting and moving along at a rapid pace. It is amazing to me how Therion continually are able to produce such good quality material after all these years. With “Sitra Ahra”, Therion has delivered quite an epic piece of work and a worthy addition to their legacy.