Nova

Only one year after their first official disc, the band came up with a new record. Basically, nothing has changed: Stephanie Luzie sounds as good as on the last record, the topics about nature and environment are the key eleents of this record and the symphonical or folk instruments still sound more innovating than the weaker guitar parts. Only two things changed with this album: the sound and production is better than on the first record and you can clearly listen to the fresh vocals but the songs are not as catchy as the older ones. at lest, the sing along parts have been erased from this record.

There is another problem with the new album. After the introduction, the first two songs sound really weak and like ordinary Symphonic Metal without soul but later on, the album gets better and more diversified. "Riven" is the first song that is quite diversified, very well sung and where every single instrument is audible and easy to distinguish. Short and sweet songs like this one or the modern and yet atmospheric "When the ice breaks" add something new and straight to the band's universe and those ones are the highlights on this record. My favourite tracks are though the folk orientated, dreamy and insightful ballad "Green lake's ground" as well as the inspiring and tender "Stars are falling" with its great violin parts and catchy chorus.

Most of the songs have the problem that they have a very interesting introduction or beginning just to build an ordinary and cheesy average Symphonic Metal song upon it. The cover version of "Crucified" surprises with spoken word parts and adds something completely new to the band's sound but in the end the same lines are endlessly repeated and destroy the interesting flow. "The marching of the Fey" begins like a bombastic film score just to turn into another average goth pop song. "Firebird" begins with some nice bass guitar lines, a very dark sound and some harsh vocals before Stephanie Luzie begins with her part and all the heaviness and atmosphere falls down. That's why it is difficult to enjoy most of the songs on this record as a whole.

All in all, only the sound got better on this album while interesting musical elements are just small patterns and not profoundly developped. The band could have created something fresh and diversified but they didn't have the courage to do this. Let's hope that they will honour their creativity and imagination a little bit more on the following effort. From a personal point of view, I slightly prefer the first album but this one isn't a bad one, too.

Sometimes as a metal fan I find myself wondering if I am becoming up myself. When I find myself frowning on certain Gothenburg metal bands for being too melodic, or power metal acts for not having enough riffs among other things, it sometimes does cross my mind that maybe – just maybe – I'm developing into a crusty old elitist.

There is one particular subgenre that I often find myself berating for its increasingly commercial leanings, and it takes sharp reminders that are provided by segments of the CD that is under review here to put my mind at ease that I am at least listening with an unbiased ear.

That subgenre would be gothic metal, or to be more specific, female fronted gothic metal. Increasingly in recent times it seems to my ears that bands pegged under this particular heading are nothing more than pop rock with a slightly thick guitar tone. Minimal riffs, zero lead guitar and lifeless drumming simply building a foundation for an attractive young woman to sing some sugary choruses. A certain formerly-respectable Dutch band's recent output certainly falls into this category if you ask my opinion.

And yet I on occasion find myself wondering if I am just being too stuffy, and expecting things I shouldn't expect from the subgenre, or that I am just imagining crucial differences between the likes of Epica and their more commercial counterparts.

To finally get around to the CD I'm supposed to be reviewing here, it can be said that Atargatis' 2nd full-length CD 'Nova' shows both sides of the coin, and while it thankfully stays on the credible side often enough, it is something of a relief from a reviewers point of view to hear the good and bad elements of the style collected together.

In this sense, 'Nova' is something of a curious collection. They are fronted by Stephanie Luzie, now the only founder left in the band, and her voice is clearly the main focus of proceedings, and the band seem to be at present sitting at the crossroad between powerful symphonic gothic metal and tamer, pop-centric rock music.

The first full song, "Ebon queen" gives something of a false hope for the CD, driven by proper guitar riffs and sustained double-bass drumming. The low-pitched, slightly hoarse vocals of bass player Lord Lornhold provide a nice counterpoint to Luzie's, semi-operatic tones and the song is a dynamic and energetic opener.

Unfortunately, things take a bit of a dive for a few songs into more obviously commercial territory, particularly on the 'obvious single' "Riven", which is very bland and chorus driven, and even features the obligatory guest male vocalist to sing a verse and provide backing vocals on the chorus. Similarly, the song "Crucified", a cover version originally done by Army of Lovers, isn't given much of the full metal treatment, and its pop heritage remains on full display.

It is a shame that Atargatis have chosen to bow to this aspect of the style on occasion, as when they are playing full-on metal songs the results are often highly satisfactory. The CD picks up strongly towards the end, particularly on the "Marching of the fay", with its power metallish, almost Rhapsody-like chorus chant, and the fast and aggressive "Firebird", which features some growled male vocals that compliment the song nicely.

So while I couldn't completely endorse 'Nova' to those who only like their gothic metal to be more guitar driven, those who found themselves rolling their eyes at the opening paragraphs of this review will most likely be far more impressed. Certainly as a compare and contrast exercise it provides an interesting listen (and at least goes to show beyond any real doubt that there is a serious difference between the likes of Epica and Random Eyes), but for my own tastes it is too uneven a CD to come strongly recommended.

(Originally written for http://www.metalcdratings.com/)