Label : Red Rivet Records
Review By Tony Cannella
From Indonesia comes the neo-classical, Symphonic Metal band Blodwen. On their debut album, “Black Symphony”, Blodwen displays their outstanding talent throughout the course of the 53-minutes worth of music featured here. First thing, guitarists should love this band. There is plenty of inspired Yngwie-esque guitar virtuosity going on here courtesy of Alexander Lexy. The vocalist Bernice Nikki is quite impressive as well. Okay, getting to the CD, this album is a bit of a throwback in style (and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way at all). It reminds me of a time when guitar heroes were prominent. From the opener “World As One” and the second track “Midnight Fairytales” (my favorite), Blodwen put their musical chops on full display. The third track “Cry Out to Me” is a mid-tempo number and it is also a huge highlight. “White Noise” is an instrumental that lasts about 3-minutes and it reminds me of something that might be heard on Yngwie’s “Marching Out” or “Trilogy” albums. “Pengakuanku” is up next and is sung in Indonesian. The pace picks up on “Into The Darkness” and vocalist Bernice Nikki really shines through and really sings her heart out on this one. Other highlights include: the beautiful ballad “Flower Song” and “Night – Black Symphony”. Overall, I thought this was a very good release. Blodwen strike a perfect balance between musicianship and good songs. It is not all about musicians trying to show off. The solos make sense in the framework of the songs. On “Black Symphony”, Blodwen delivers a powerful metal opus that should appeal to musicians and non-musicians alike.
Rating – 89/100
Tracklist
- World as One
- Midnight Fairytales
- Cry Out to Me
- White Noise
- Pengakuanku “My Confession”
- Into the Darkness
- Flower Song
- Night – Black Symphony
- Your Wings (Japanese Version)
- Two Notes
- Your Wings (Romantic Guitar Version)
- Night – Black Symphony (Orchestra Version)
Line Up
- Bernice Nikki – Vocals, Keyboards
- Alexander Lexy – Lead Guitar, Keyboards
- Marcellus – Rhythm Guitar
- Vhan Tandi – Bass
- Ronald Mikhail – Drums
Links
MySpace * ReverbNation * Facebook * Twitter