OPEROSE – “Oceans Of Starlight” (2020)

Lion Music

Review by Tatianny Ruiz

OPEROSE, the glittering progressive symphonic metal band from the UK is back alongside rising opera lady Jennifer Coleman for the release of the album ‘OCEANS OF STARLIGHT‘, which will be officially released on February 7, 2020 through LION MUSIC RECORD LABEL.

Adding the cathartic power of metal to the magnificent mastery of the opera, OPEROSE brings us in ‘OCEANS OF STARLIGHT‘ a duel of titans thanks to the vast and mature musical genius of Joe McGurk as opposed to the magic created by Jennifer and her absurd and fine vocal composure, so to come across  the meteoric profusion of tracks like “Battle Swan” will take you to a complex musical surface that even imposing names in classical music like Simon Rattle or Josef Krips would be intrigued by.

There are many layers being developed on each track and you will find both the traditional symphonic metal being performed and the more developed elements that together offer timeless passages and precious moments of uplift, an album to conquer something beyond the mere symphonic metal fans. The progressive transparencies in the instrumentation is another strong point of emphasis in this new work, OPEROSE has become true masters in this, which makes the title track “Oceans of Starlight” impacting to the ears until it falls on “Lost Horizon” and its fascinating obliquity.

I always emphasize the large number of names in this genre, but one thing is that you have a long menu of offers at your disposal and another is to find something tasty and unusual and “This Life of Mine” proposes this experience of flavors, and although there are more paced moments here and there, the inherence of epic scenes with an almost cinematic drama takes our breath away from “On Sleeping Tides” and “Octavian“. Of course, for those who enter the parallel world of classical music, this should not be surprising, but OPEROSE works with a certain sweetness and additional mystery and this brings us musicians being highlighted in many points, something that I value a lot, it is necessary to listen to where the drums are on, and Steve Hauxwell pepperes things up often with full speed and resourcefulness for Mike Bridge’s bass. It is also necessary to recognize the atmospheric amplitude of guitarist Joe McGurk, remembering that in OPEROSE he practically rules the bandstand.

‘OCEANS OF STARLIGHT‘ is a delicious and magically addictive album, although its live performance still raises some future doubts due to the high level of orchestration, but on the whole the melodies arise and rise in an aspect of extreme professionalism as well as each  instrument being arranged at fair levels, something that pleases me a lot, the passages of time strongly outline the melodies and even the moments when the most visceral metal reigns the entire band sounds masterful, making the journey to the exit in “The Actium Suite” an intense hearing of floating voices and sumptuous atmospheres that easily captivate the listener.  OPEROSE is certainly following a very safe route now, reformulating its own structure and managing a very unique identity in this universe spaced from symphonic metal and even considering this a short album if we think about its eight tracks, we can still conclude that the future  of these musicians can easily put them in a more favorable position, we hope they do not lose their way as surely the future may surprise us even more.

Rating – 95/100

Tracklist:

1. Battle Swan
2. Oceans Of Starlight
3. Lost Horizon
4. This Life Of Mine
5. Nothing Left
6. On Sleeping Tides
7. Octavian
8. The Actium Suite

Line Up:

• Jennifer Coleman – Vocals
• Joe McGurk – Guitar
• Mike Bridge – Bass
• Steve Hauxwell – Drums

Links:

Operose Official FB Page
Operose Official Website