Lost in the Light

The transparent lack of originality concerning these female-fronted symphonic metal acts should be a critical flaw, but the bottom line is that a lot of these acts pull off Nightwish/Epica emulation with a lot of verve and finesse. One name that immediately comes to mind is The Fall of Eve, but Winter's End is another competent act, this time hailing from the United States, often criticized for riding in the coattails of European trends. The most important cog in this particular automaton are of course the vocals, and Jessica Frost has a tender, yet broad inflection with a trained operatic tone. I would say that she sounds closer to Tarja than Simone Simons, although her inflection is less exaggerated and easier to digest piecemeal. Winter's End also falls prey to the oft-lame "beauty and beast" paradigm regarding the forced inclusion of lame male vocals to play off the female crooning. Thankfully these sections are kept to a minimum, but they still exist.

Riffing is usually empty background fodder when it comes to acts like this, but Winter's End at least has a competent grasp on the melodic metal base, which should siphon some accretion of influence from power, traditional and other metal subgenres instead of playing the rote, cyclical power metal template done to death. Many bands struck from the same mold end up with corpulent modern groove riffs in an attempt to force-inject heaviness into the entire affair, but it doesn't gel with the vocals that well. Winter's End don't pull it off perfectly either, but they do alright. The biggest problem is how stock most of Lost in the Light sounds. The programmed synths seem impressive at first but it lacks that corporeal feel and verisimilitude. The grand piano sections have a more personal, downplayed feel to them that adds to the tender appeal of the music, but the bombastic intervals on songs like "Equinox" do little to impress. Capable sure, but nothing we haven't heard many times before.

And I suppose that I shouldn't throw Winter's End under the bus regarding this alone, since they are a fairly recent upstart trying to grab their piece of stylistic real estate in a field where it is at a clear premium. A good vocalist and decent songwriting proves that there is some potential here, especially if the band can up the production values. That isn't to say that Lost in the Light sounds weak, but there is something lacking regarding the depth of their sound. It all just sounds a bit too clean, sterile and manufactured. Adherence to genre cliches is also a bit worrying, including the exotic, Middle Eastern flair of "Elysium," which is like an unspoken requirement for symphonic metal bands I guess.

Regardless, I enjoyed Lost in the Light well enough to warrant a lukewarm recommendation. At the very least, I will keep an eye on this band and check out what comes next.