Reviews 2011

[Jonny B]

There is one thing I notice when I look back to previous album of the years, and albums that probably should've been ATOYs; most are gothic in nature, but show some form of commercialism. Albums such as Within Temptation 'The Silent Force,' After Forever 'S/T,' Lacuna Coil 'Karmacode' and Sirenia 'The 13th Floor,' all these albums find a way to balance between commercialism and their classic style, without completely selling out to either side.

Unfortunately, a lot of these end up being transition albums, and the intricate balance between the artistic and the commercial gets lost quickly. Some shy away from commercialism, (when After Forever split and the artistic past was reincarnated as ReVamp.) and others charge right forth (Within Temptation's upcoming album,) And I rarely buy into that unless the band in question started commercial as soon as they were on major labels. (i.e. UnSun, Evanescence, Nightwish, etc.)

That said, I've hit a crossroads when it comes to writing reviews....I've run out of words to say. It's become outright difficult to come up with something new and creative when discussing albums. All I know, is there's a certain sound that I expect when I listen to certain bands. If they meet expectations, they get praise. If they don't, vice versa. As a fan of a very niche selection of titles, i.e. the transition albums, I feel that it may not be so easy to be pleased. With that said, I've decided to keep the original format. Album, title, followed by a quick review, or a long one depending on what I have to say.

[Jonny B]

Sirenia 'The Enigma of Life'
Have you ever sat down and listened to an album over and over again, and wonder, 'Wow, these tracks are good, but there's still something missing. What are they doing that is causing me to not like this album as much as I should?'

While I was talking about the aspect of balancing commercialism with the artistic, it's extremely rare when I say a gothic band should embrace their artistic side more than their commercial side. But I have to make an exception for Sirenia. They've taken a few stabs at commercial tracks in the past, but were mostly setup songs for greater artistic impressions. When I heard 'The 13th Floor', you couldn't define perfect balance between the two any better. I had hoped for more of that in 'The Enigma of Life.

But there is no such balance here. The tracks are either heavily artistic, or heavily commercial. The missing element is the balance between the two. The tracks are good, but there isn't a good flow to the album becuase there aren't any balanced tracks to transition from the commercial to the artistic.

But there's a lot to enjoy. 'The End of It All,' 'This Darkness' are the primary commercial tracks on this album, though the grunts defeat the purpose of going commercial.
'All My Dreams,' 'Fading Star,' 'Seaside Serenade,' and the title track demonstrate Sirenia at their artistic finest.
'Fallen Angel,' 'Winter Land,' and 'This Lonely Lake' were molded from the same formula, and while well-written, don't stand out in any way. And this is not the style that I expect from Sirenia.
I had hoped for more tracks like 'Darkened Days To Come,' which offers the clean male vocal to compliment Ailyn's beautiful voice. I think if they want to be more commercial in the future, the grunts may have to be ditched altogether in favor of this clean male vocal.

So overall, I was satisfied by the selection of tracks, but not for the overall flow of the album. Potentially, 'The Enigma of Life' could sound as good as 'The 13th Floor,' but I'm really gonna have to dicker with the track order in my spare time.

UPDATE: I figured it out, and I should've known all along! IT'S THE FREAKIN' KEYBOARDS! I KNEW I should've looked there first! Every Sirenia album always had these atmospheric swirling keyboard sounds to compliment the piano & strings they traditionally use. But, the atmospheric sounds are completely non-existent! It's just piano & strings! Who would've thought that such a simple missing element could mean such a difference?

...In addition, the track order still isn't that great. Still dickering with it, and will post a better track listing in the future.

Review Score: 87 / 100
Best Tracks: 'The End of It All,' 'All My Dreams,' 'This Darkness,' 'Darkened Days To Come,' 'Fading Star,' 'The Enigma of Life,'

The North American version has two bonus tracks: 'Oscura Reliadad' ('This Darkness,' gruntless, sung in Spanish,) and El Enigma de la Vida ('The Enigma of Life' acoustic version, sung in Spanish.) The European version is the Digipack edition, which also has 'Oscura Reliadad,' but has an English version of 'The Enigma of Life' acoustic version. I'm a sucker for gothic music sung in foreign languages, so I'm in favor of the cheaper North American release.

[Jonny B]

I have finally revised the track order to my liking.

(You can also find this post in the 'Reworking the Classics' forum.)

Sirenia "The Enigma of Life"

Original Track Order:

1.) The End of It All
2.) Fallen Angels
3.) All My Dreams
4.) This Darkness
5.) The Twilight In Your Eyes
6.) Winter Land
7.) Seaside Serenade
8.) Darkened Days To Come
9.) Coming Down
10.) This Lonely Lake
11.) Fading Star
12.) The Enigma of Life
13.) Oscura Realidad (Bonus Track)
14.) The Enigma of Life/El Enigma de la Vida (acoustic version. Euro version is in English. US version in Spanish.)


Most recent album from gothic/doom metal group Sirenia. I knew there was a lot to like, but I couldn't for the life of me figure out what was missing. Lack of atmospheric keyboards was minor, but I realized until later that it was the running track order that was really hurting this album. The problem is that the songs were either commercial or artistic, but there were very few songs that blended both seamlessly as it did in 'The 13th Floor.'

Of these tracks, 3 of the commercial tracks were molded from the same format and broke the album up really bad. These were 'Fallen Angels,' 'Winter Land,' and 'This Lonely Lake.' In this, I removed the latter two and kept 'This Lonely Lake.' It's the shortest song with the most commercial potential with it's memorable chorus and piano melody.

Next, I placed all the commercial tracks up front, and all the artistic tracks in back. Fans of the commercial aspects who are never in the mood for anything artistic can quit the album early. Likewise, the fans of the artistic side of Sirenia can skip the commercial tracks to get to the meat of the album....Then there are the hardcore fans who love Sirenia regardless of their style, who will embrace the commercial before getting enveloped and/or floored by the artistic side.

Tracks Removed

Fallen Angels
Winter Land
Seaside Serenade (This is a PAINFUL cut! I like the song...it just doesn't fit anywhere where it won't damage the flow of the running track order.)
The Enigma of Life/El Enigma de la Vida (acoustic version) (redundant track, as the only difference between the original and the acoustic seems to be a lack of bass and drums...and the lyrical language depending on the version of course....)

Revised Track Order
1.) This Darkness*
2.) The End of it All
3.) Darkened Days To Come
4.) This Lonely Lake
5.) All My Dreams
6.) Coming Down
7.) Fading Star
8.) The Enigma of Life
9.) The Twilight In Your Eyes
10.) Oscura Realidad (Bonus Track)

*This Darkness is a great track, my pick for the third single. But like 'Seaside Serenade,' doesn't fit anywhere in the album. So therefore, it becomes the leadoff track.

With this remix, you get Sirenia in its classic 9-track formula + the bonus track. IMO, this running track order improves the album to the point where it rivals 'The 13th Floor' for best Sirenia album. The revised track listing bumps 'The Enigma of Life' to a whopping 99 / 100!

[Jonny B]

I'm usually on the ball when it comes to getting reviews up as albums are released, but I've been busy with life. My reviews will be more sporadic than usual. So until I can get around to the reviews, I will post a list of 2011 releases as they come or will come.

Albums Reviewed
Alyson Avenue "Changes"
Amaranthe "S/T"
Robin Beck "The Great Escape"
Benedictum "Dominion"
Halestorm "ReAnimate" EP
Imperia "Secret Passion"
Krypteria "All Beauty Must Die"
Leaves' Eyes "Meredead"
Sirenia "The Enigma of Life"
Visions of Atlantis "Delta"
Within Temptation "The Unforgiving"

Albums to be Reviewed
Factory of Dreams "Melotronical"
Jaded "Higher" EP (indie artist)

2011 New Releases TBD
Delain (It's looking for 2012 for this one)
Evanescence
Fiona
Lita Ford "The Healing"
Forever Slave
Lacuna Coil
Lullacry
Nightwish (50/50 chance of very late 2011 release)
Tacere
We Are the Fallen (DVD)

[Jonny B]

Visions of Atlantis 'Delta'
After two fairly solid efforts in 'Cast Away' and 'Trinity,' I was hoping for more of that consistency, given they took 4 years to write a new album. But 'Delta' is a major letdown. Many of the songs sound like they were forced together, like a band that's running out of ideas. New female singer Maxi Nil is a clean vocalist with some operatic moments, but not a lot of power. In addition, her style also seems to clash a lot with Mario Plank's vocals, and when singing together it just doesn't sound pleasant. It really shows on the one decent track, 'Elegy of Existence,' that these two don't mix well. I think the group really messed up when Melissa Furlaak quit the band. It's unfortunate for me to say, as I really enjoy the previous works of Visions of Atlantis, but there's nothing here but a lot of generic symphonic power metal here, and because of the clashing vocals, 'Delta' is very forgettable.
Review Score: 64 / 100
Best Tracks: 'Elegy of Existence'

[Jonny B]

The post regarding Within Temptation 'The Unforgiving' has been removed. Refer to the '2011 In Review' Topic for my final opinions.

[Jonny B]

Halestorm "Reanimate"
A covers EP, in which the songs here were chosen based on an online survey done by the band, with the highest voted songs getting picked for covers. This album is solid evidence that social networking is killing the way songs or albums are made.

Here are my reasons, Track By Track:
Slave To the Grind -- Lzzy Hale did an awesome job in making this song listenable. However, I'm not a fan of the second Skid Row album in any way, shape, or form. '18 & Life' and 'I Remember You' were also options, better options I might add.
Bad Romance -- If you need to listen to everything that is wrong with American music today, you need only look to Lady Gaga. Pop music and processed vocals. Halestorm gave the song a rock edge, but even their version kept the auto-tuned vocals, something that Lzzy doesn't require for singing.
Hunger Strike -- An outright bad song to begin with. Halestorm did nothing to change my mind.
Out Ta Get Me -- At least the fans chose a 'couple' rockers. Excellent Guns N Roses cover.
All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You -- The ultimate cliche of cliches: A Heart cover, and not even one of their better tracks.
I Want You -- One of the many thousands of Beatles covers out there....Ugh.

Halestorm had an opportunity to put their stamp on some good-'ol classic hair metal songs and deliver a cracking covers EP. Maybe even shed some light on the more obscure ladies of rock that she grew up listening to....But thanks to the wonderful world of social networking, it doesn't happen. The Reanimate EP is definitive proof that the fans, and social networking in general, should have no word when it comes to making the decisions on a band's direction.
Review Score: 58 / 100

I can only hope the next studio album of originals doesn't deviate like the covers album did.

[Jonny B]

Amaranthe "S/T"
I'm wavering on this one. I like everything about this one...except the vocals. Amaranthe uses male vocals, female vocals that border on power-pop, and grunts/screams. The problems: The clean vocals are mostly processed, even though the singers can sing perfectly fine without them. And the grunts/screams have no artisitc role other than to make the songs heavy. Nothing but strikes on my list.

And yet, they somehow find a way to take every philosophy on vocals that I despise, and make them work.

Musically, if In Flames and Dragonforce got married and had a daughter, she would sound like Amaranthe. Fast-paced thrash metal, death grunts here and there, power metal choruses, and poppiness in the vocals to give the album a contrasting style. However, like a lot of thrash metal, all the songs tend to sound a bit the same.

If you need a reason to check this out, you need only look at the single 'Hunger.' This song has a very good chance to compete for my song of the year.

Review Score: 80 / 100

...For now, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt on the review score...I think due to the nature of the vocals, it's gonna take more listens for me to determine weither I'm completely sold on this.

[Jonny B]

Leaves' Eyes "Meredead"
There are some bands where you feel they've found the winning formula, and then they do something completely different and ruin a good thing....Then there's Leaves' Eyes, where you know there's potential, you keep hoping they'll take the next step, and then they never do. ''Meredead" is more of the same old same old from the band: folk-tinged gothic metal. But in this case, it's a lot more folk then I'd ever prefer to hear; there just isn't enough metal here to keep me interested. In addition, the vocals are a lot safer than usual. Liv Kristine barely uses the high end of her sorprano. In addition, there's but a single grunt track in the bunch. Vocally, it's more listener friendly, but musically, there isn't a lot here that hasn't already been offered. Even the one potential single 'Velvet Eyes,' falls well short of another 'Elegy.'
Review Score: 70 / 100

[Jonny B]

I've been having life problems lately. Between that and the plethora of below-average albums, I took a break from reviewing.

This is a brief review list of stuff I haven't posted yet, no scores, no frills. Suffice it to say, even the better albums from this list still aren't that great.

Alyson Avenue "Changes"
I've been avoiding melodic rock lately, because as each year passes, the room for originality in the genre shrinks, and it's starting to leave little margin for error. When I think of Alyson Avenue, I think of their debut album 'Prescence of Mind,' which had strong 80's style production, killer in-your-face guitar riffing, lots of keyboards, and of course, the great Anette Olzon...some of these elements were missing in 'Omega,' but Anette's prescence was still pronounced, and kept the follow-up on the level. And now, all of these elements are missing in 'Changes.' Thin production. unhooky generic songs, and the new singer just doesn't have any power. Nightwish took a long enough break that Anette Olzon could've fronted this start-to-finish, and not just as a backing vocalist. And what happened to 'I Am Your Pleasuremaker?' The best track had been posted on their myspace site since forever and then it was excluded?

Robin Beck "The Great Escape"
It makes me laugh that fans are still looking for 'Trouble Or Nothing 2.' My response: 'It was called "Livin' in a Dream." Meanwhile, follow-up 'The Great Escape' doesn't quite have the power of said previous album, but it's still a solid AOR effort start-to-finish, on-par with 'Do You Miss Me.' even if the pace of the album doesn't differentiate much.

Benedictum 'Dominion'
With this being my first taste of Benedictum my first impression isn't a good one. The singer has potential to be a strong voice in rock...but the band behind her really sucks. Utterly terrible songs. I'll leave it at that. I just don't get why Frontiers would sign such crap when bands like Shiva, Tacere, and Lullacry remain unsigned, and bands on their roster like Two of a Kind remain in limbo...

...

Apparently, nobody's heard of Halestorm. If you need to know how to write a good rock album, start there.

...

Imperia "Secret Passion"
The much long anticipated 3rd album from Imperia is the first of the remotely gothic albums I've listened to all year, outside of Sirenia, that has been remotely listenable. This is a fairly solid album that is reminescent of the 'Mother Earth' days of Within Temptation, but with more kick, and a slight commercial appeal without completely selling out. Most of the album takes a slower, classic goth type pace that doesn't differentiate very much thereafter, mixing crunchy guitars with softer, keybaord & vocal driven verses. Speaking of which, vocals are improved in many areas, though sometimes I find myself yearning for a stronger voice to put some of the choruses over the top. However, overall, a step better than 'Queen of Light.' It's refreshing to see a band improve themselves without overstepping their boundries. However, I could do without the final track 'Mistress.' That was a big WTF if I ever heard one.

Krypteria 'All Beauty Must Die'
I consider Krypteria to be a poor man's Lullacry. There was promise in 'My Fatal Kiss;' it had heaviness, and some good memorable songs and hooks. With 'All Beauty Must Die,' this potential exists here as well, as most songs seem memorable enough, but I don't think Krypteria knows how to put those songs over the top (hint hint more keyboards, heavier guitar distortion.) But one thing I do know; they STILL can't write an epic song, and should quit trying to. Stick to the 3 to 4 minute songs....I'm still flipping a coin on this one, but in spite of a few fillers, Krypteria has delivered an album that is better than most of the field so far...that's not saying much.

...

Weither or not I post more brief reviews later, I'm not sure. My ambition level has run really low. Most of my efforts will go to the albums I'm anticipating the most. Nightwish and Delain if they finish before the year is over, Evanescence, Lacuna Coil, Forever Slave, and the We Are the Fallen DVD confirmed for later this year. My review ambition will be concentrated on those albums when they're complete. Most other posts will be quick posts that will either recommend an album or to warn to avoid an album.

[Jonny B]

New Stream of Passion album 'Darker Days.' Album plays a lot like 'The Flame Within' in terms of overall structure. Only 'Darker Days' lacks a potentially good single. This album will please established fans otherwise.

[steelerfanmike]

[b]Benedictum[/b] [i]'Delerium'[/i]
With this being my first taste of [b]Benedictum[/b] my first impression isn't a good one. The singer has potential to be a strong voice in rock...but the band behind her really sucks. Utterly terrible songs. I'll leave it at that. I just don't get why Frontiers would sign such crap when bands like [b]Shiva, Tacere,[/b] and [b]Lullacry[/b] remain unsigned, and bands on their roster like [b]Two of a Kind[/b] remain in limbo...


The band behind her sucks? Utterly terrible songs? Jeez...

[Jonny B]

Benedictum 'Dominion'
With this being my first taste of Benedictum my first impression isn't a good one. The singer has potential to be a strong voice in rock...but the band behind her really sucks. Utterly terrible songs. I'll leave it at that. I just don't get why Frontiers would sign such crap when bands like Shiva, Tacere, and Lullacry remain unsigned, and bands on their roster like Two of a Kind remain in limbo...


The band behind her sucks? Utterly terrible songs? Jeez...

I could've just copied and pasted Andrew's review and reverse the opinion between the singer and the band. But long story short, they should've remained unsigned.

[steelerfanmike]

Because you heard one album that you didn't like? Because their style is something you clearly don't like? Now that's objective.

[Jonny B]

Because you heard one album that you didn't like? Because their style is something you clearly don't like? Now that's objective.

I didn't say I was a professional either. Had some of my better reviews of the past wowed music magazine publishers enough to actually be paid for my work (and I have sent a few of my best reviews to publishers to try to land a gig way back when, and got no answers,) then maybe I would be more 'objective' regarding the content of stuff I don't like.

Have you read any of the other reviews, or just pointing out one grossly lackluster pointless rant?

I'll level with you. My reviews tend to reflect how life is treating me at the moment. And right now, life hasn't been very good. When I'm down, you get a Benedictum-type rants. When things are well, you get Sirenia-type reviews. Look back at my past reviews if you care to bother. It's a roller coaster ride of inconsistency, and it's reflective of 1.) Not being picked up by a music magazine, 2.) Not getting ANY promos from anyone (I've had to buy and/or borrow everything I review, and I don't have the money to take as many chances on music as I once did.) and 3.) Life situations where every card is seemingly stacked against me and even my best efforts to improve life isn't changing anything.

I'll say it again, my energy is being saved for future releases. I'll be more objective when those albums come out. I've heard clips of the Evanescence comeback and they sound really promising.

[Jonny B]

Not much posting lately because there's been a lull in female rock. Didn't stop me from looking around for material to listen to...

One group I tripped over, Omega Lithium, is completely avoidable. Think ambient goth with more guitars but a slight hint of electronica...and completely devoid of a catchy hook or a decent vocal.

On the other hand, I heard what was 'almost rock' on of all places, the Top 40 station. It was definitely guitar driven, and the singer had a little bit of a rock attitude...but still with lyrics a little too poppy for my liking. But none-the-less, Orianthi is still better than the Avril Lavignes and Kelly Clarksons of the US music scene, but still not quite as good as Halestorm.

Speaking of which, Halestorm is recording for their new album, but there's no announcement as to if it will be done before the year is over.

And there's announcement of a new Issa album later this year. First album was excellent, one of the better albums of melodic rock in general. Sound samples of the upcoming album show she ain't slowing down.

In addition, Evanescence finally announced that they're releasing a third album this fall. But, it was brutal to hear them perform their single live on MTV, because they're a terrible live band. But, sound samples from their studio release show a lot of promise.

Lacuna Coil have delayed their next album until the beginning of next year. And the new Nightwish could just get out in time to close the 2011 year.

That's all from here. Stay thirsty for the ladies of metal!

[Jonny B]

I got the rare privilege of listening to an 'advance copy' of the new Evanescence album, and I have to say, it's fantastic. I plan to post a review sometime after the official release date. I loved it enough to pre-order the 'Say You Will' bundle from their official website, and I rarely pre-order music, let alone in a merch bundle.

[Jonny B]

http://forums.melodicrock.com/phpBB/vie ... 57#4614757

Probably one of the most extensive review I've ever written, so much that I posted it as its own topic.

[Jonny B]

Got my hands on three more albums. But I've been working a lot of hours and haven't had time to sit down and listen to them. But there will be brief reviews in the near future.

[S2M]

Got my hands on three more albums. But I've been working a lot of hours and haven't had time to sit down and listen to them. But there will be brief reviews in the near future.

Hopefully, 2 of them are Fiona, and Robin Beck

[Jonny B]

Got my hands on three more albums. But I've been working a lot of hours and haven't had time to sit down and listen to them. But there will be brief reviews in the near future.

Hopefully, 2 of them are Fiona, and Robin Beck

Robin Beck has already been mentioned on a brief review. But yes, the new Fiona is one of them.

[Jonny B]

Issa 'The Storm'
I don't know if it was something I overlooked on the first album, but does Issa sound a little too poppy for the music she's singing in this sophomore album? The problem is the more I hear this album, especially tracks like 'Looking For Love,' 'Two Hearts,' 'Black Clouds,' 'We're On Fire,' and 'What Does It take,' the more I wish it was Robin Beck, Erika, Aina, or Fiona singing instead. The two things that seem to be missing are the layers of vocal harmonies, and the rockier more aggressive vocal from 'Signs of Angels' that I enjoyed on the debut. She sounds too 'power pop' for me on a few songs. (you already know my beef against this genre. I can do without 'Take A Stand,' 'Invincible,' and 'Too Late For Love.') Issa needs to be more aggressive on vocals. And the music needs to rock harder, and have more vocal layers and harmonies.
Review Score: 73 / 100

[Jonny B]

Trillium 'Alloy'
Another gothic project from Frontiers Records? I'm impressed that they're still stepping over their usual boundries to try new things. Gruntless, to my surprise; unusual for a Sander Gommons project. The songs have quite a bit in common with Stream of Passion because a lot of the songs have a lot of experimentation, but with occassional signatures of the After Forever sound. There's a lot of potential here, and Amanda Sommerville sounds even better than she did on the Kiske/Sommerville project. There's good songwriting, but not awesome songwriting. 'Mistaken' in particular could be a hell of a single if the vocal melodies were a little catchier. 'Scream It' has a nice guest vocal appearance by Jorn Lande, giving the song a Masterplan feel. 'Into the Dissonance' is the best of the laid-back songs. Subtle verses going into a heavy, if not over-the-top, chorus. There's a lot of potential with this project, but it's gonna take another album or two to really refine the songwriting....If you're someone who has like the gothic/symphonic genre but can't stand grunts, Trillium may be worth picking up; it's one of the few gruntless albums in the genre.
Review Score: 84 / 100
Best Tracks: 'Mistaken,' 'Scream It,' 'Into the Dissonance'

[Jonny B]

Fiona 'Unbroken'
Female AOR is becoming a rarity lately, isn't it? It's also becoming even more rare for me to invent new words to praise a great album from anything AOR or Melodic Rock, because of the oversaturation of the genre. At this point, it comes down to how well the artist or group manipulates the formula. That said, when Fiona Flanagan comes out of nowhere and releases her first album in 20 years, sometimes it's worth the wait. New album 'Unbroken' screams classic comeback, mixing harder moments of 'Squeeze' with the hooky AOR moments of 'Heart Like a Gun.' It also helps to have Tommy Denander backing up the songwriting. He's one of the names in melodic rock that continues to make solid contributions regardless of which artist or band he's working for. If the 3rd track was removed ('I've Released You') and the album was backed by a million-dollar budget (production here is sub-par) then it would be a perfect comeback album. Amazing that Fiona still sounds this good even after being out of music for so long. Capping off the best tracks ('Loved Along the Way,' 'Broken,' 'Salt on my Wings,') is an excellent cover of Prophet's 'Everything You Are,' a song that I have high regards for in AOR ballads, and Fiona's version is pretty damn good.
Review Score: 92 / 100


....

You know what would be really sweet? May I suggest a reissue of 'Heart Like A Gun' with all of her contributions to the 'Hearts of Fire' soundtrack for bonus tracks?

[Jonny B]

I have posted the new Nightwish album 'Imaginaerum' as it's own topic.

http://forums.melodicrock.com/phpBB/vie ... 08#4626308

[Jonny B]

Nemesea 'The Quiet Resistance'
There was a time when I once felt the dutch gothic scene was the strongest of the gothic scenes in Europe. Apparently, Nemesea has been around almost as long as some of the more well-known groups of their nation, but because of strong competition, I may have overlooked them. But nowadays, that strength has waned a bit (Within Temptation sold out, After Forever broke up, ReVamp is on hold, Stream of Passion has stagnated, Epica keeps repeating themselves, The Gathering should've quit 10 years ago, Trillium needs longer to develop, and Delain is delayed for another year...Imperia is the only Dutch group that wrote a decent album this year, but it was still below the normal standard for what I expect from The Netherlands.) In fact, the Dutch gothic scene is pretty weak right now...it's opened the door wide open for say, a more modern band, to take the Dutch scene by storm. Not that modern/nu-breed is a bad word...it just usually associated with pathetic singers and below-average songwriting...but if say, you took that style, infuse it with talented European musicians, and front it with a killer female singer....

Enter Nemesea a dutch group that has more in common with an American modern rock band than it does with anything remotely gothic. But the hooks here are amazing. Skip the lame intro and get into 'Caught in the Middle,' and 'Eternity,' BIG chorus hooks here. There are no punches held back...until the next track 'If I Could.' ...very average. Almost borders on power-pop...stick to metal. 'High Enough' is the modern rock sound to a tee. 'Say' has slight influences of the once-prominent Dutch gothic scene before going back to the big chorus. Harmonies, heaviness, and a few keyboards; this is what I look for. 'It's Over' beats Evanescence at their own game. My pick for the second single. After hearing 'I Live,' I'm learning that I don't like modern ballads with female singers...again it almost comes off as a power pop thing which I'm not fond of...but it picks back up again with 'Stay With Me,' again you can hear the gothic influences in the keyboards and the modern influences and fused seamlessly with the big choruses.

From this point on though, the songs get a little too experimental. 'Rush,' 'Release Me,' are only saved by the chorus. '2012' is the clunker of the album. And I don't know what they were thinking with 'Allein.' I don't know what kind of vocal style you'd call the verse, but even grunts would've been better. The chorus is pretty good.

So for a first-impression, this is an overall damn good album. If I could delete the last 4 tracks, Nemesea 'The Quiet Resistance' would be the best overall album I've reviewed so far this year....it's the common theme of 2011...awesome albums if the clunkers were dropped.

Review Score: 87 / 100
Best Tracks: 'Caught In the Middle,' 'Afterlife,' 'Say,' 'It's Over,' 'Stay With Me,'