Label : Black Logde Records
Review by Tony Cannella
For those who are lamenting the demise of the guitar hero, then I have got a band for you. They are called AREA51 and hail from Japan. They have been in existence since 2003 and the two main forces behind the band are vocalist Kate Cain and guitar god to be Yoichiro Ishina. Their second album – which came out in 2008 – is titled “Daemonicus” and is a whirlwind of a CD with angelic vocals provided by Kate Cain in conjunction with soaring neo classical, melodic metal arrangements and great leads played by Yoichiro Ishina. On “Daemonicus” Kate Cain wrote the majority of the lyrics and even though the song titles are listed in English, the songs are sung in Japanese. The intro track “Introitus” start off the 10-track, 58-minute CD and segues into the powerful “Les Anges”. The next track “Ashes” has an early Yngwie Malmsteen vibe to it but this is also one of the faster paced songs on “Daemonicus”. Following the all out guitar frenzy of the previous track, AREA51 follow that with the beautiful ballad, “Venus (Croix Eternelle)”. Lead vocalist Kate is a very flamboyant front person. In addition to her great vocals she also adds a lot to the visual presentation of AREA51. There is plenty of cool interplay between the guitars and keyboards that recall some classic bands like Rainbow and Uriah Heep. The final song is the 16-minute epic “Lord Knows” in which Kate Cain is joined by one of the most accomplished American singers Rob Rock. This song is unique in that the lyrics were co-written by Kate and Rock, so Kate’s parts are sung in Japanese and Rock’s in English.The thing I liked most about “Daemonicus” is not necessarily the guitar gymnastics supplied by Yoichiro but it was the songs which are obviously the main focus of the band. With “Daemonicus”, AREA51 combine the best of ALL worlds, outstanding musicianship with some great, well crafted and memorable songs.
Rating – 90/100
Tracklist
- Introitus
- Les Anges
- Ashes
- Venus (Croix Eternelle)
- Close To…(You and Me)
- Crimson
- Despair
- Just Like a Prayer
- Requiem
- Lord Knows
Line Up
- Kate Cain – Vocals
- Yoichiro Ishina – Guitars
- Takeshi Ochi – Keyboards
- Kensuke Imai – Drums
Links
MySpace * Facebook * Twitter * Site