Label: Massacre Records
Review by Tony Cannella
Okay, let’s get this out of the way first. The Spanish band Tears of Martyr bears a lot of similarities to early Nightwish. That is in no way meant as a derogatory statement. Nightwish has been hugely influential and some bands are able to take that influence and put their own cool twist to it and that is how I would describe Tears of Martyr as it relates to their second album “Tales”. Their sound is reminiscent of Nightwish from the first three or four albums and vocalist Berenice Musa has a wickedly gorgeous operatic voice and the thing I like about her the most is that she doesn’t go too over-the-top with it, she manages to keep it in check and to always fit the song. Her voice is like another instrument and it fits the music and doesn’t try to upstage it. She is a lot like Tarja Turunen in that way. That mini-rant out of the way, let’s delve into “Tales” the sophomore outing from Tears of Martyr.
The up-tempo power metal melody of “The Scent No. 13th” gets things off to a rousing beginning. Right away, the song reminds me of something from “Angels Fall First” by Nightwish. The next track “Golem” is fantastic and just a bit heavier than the previous one the band makes use of Berenice’s operatic style in combination with extreme male vocals to produce a great track. “Golem” also has a huge sound and an Arabian influence. “Mermaid and Loneliness” is a beautiful song which goes from ballad to mid-tempo. Berenice turns in a beautiful vocal performance here. Other highlights: “Vampires of the Sunset Street”, “Lost Boys” and “Fallen Hero”. I get it, the operatic thing has been done to death, but there is always room for another good one and Tears of Martyr are a good one. “Tales” may not appeal to every type of metal fan out there but if you are looking to fill in the void left by Tarja era Nightwish, then I could strongly – and I do mean strongly – recommend Tears of Martyr.
Rating – 90/100
Tracklist
- The Scent No. 13th
- Golem
- Mermaid and Loneliness
- Vampires of the Sunset Street
- Ancient Pine Awaits
- Lost Boys
- Fallen Hero
- Of a Raven Born
- Wolves and a Witch
- Ran Into the Forest
Line Up
- Berenice Musa – Vocals
- Miguel Ángel Marqués – Guitars & Vocals
- Adrián Miranda – Bass
- Doramas Párraga – Drums