As the dark haired beautys mysterious eyes stare out at you from Memoiras self-titled debut album cover, the thought that she might be a front woman of a goth metal band may never cross your mind. The genre of women-fronted metal/rock bands is often divided by and classified according to operatic symphony metal (Nightwish, Sirenia) and goth/alternative rock (Evanesence). Not surprisingly, Memoira does follow the stereotypical trend, but they do so by combining elements of both symphony and goth/alternative music.
- Memoria
Its clear that the band is influenced by the female-fronted bands mentioned above, but thankfully, unlike the bands above, the guitar riffs are much more fleshed out and have more of a progressive feel — it isnt just overused heavy chugging or an overabundance of synth parts. The keyboards on Memoiras album are also very fitting to the music, ranging from ethereal synth effects to classical piano.
There are some issues however with a few of the tracks. At times the vocals seem too soft and have so much reverb on them that its hard to hear the singers voice clearly. And it doesnt help that the male backup vocals arent mixed loud enough to be heard. Another bizarre issue is that the order of the tracks and some of the lyrics in the booklet do not match what is on the CD. Has this ever happened before?
Of course, as the genre is known for, some of the tracks start to sound alike due to the vocals. They are done well and the male backing vocals are skilfully sparse and thus not overused, but the songs start to get dull vocal-wise. Again, that is the case with the genre — these issues seem to always come with the territory.
There are nine tracks on the album, the first one instrumental. Tracks that stand out from the rest include Haunted, a great heavy track with wraith-like keyboard pieces and catchy vocal melodies from both female and male singers. Incurable has great guitar riffs during the chorus to pump you up and dreamlike lead parts during the verses which serve as a calm before the storm. Liberation is an interesting track — some of the verses are completely bass with very quiet vocals and some symphonic keyboards are used during the bridges.
The album is definitely a good start for the band and really appeases those interested in the genre. Memoira is similar to other female-fronted bands, but much heavier than most will ever let themselves become. This album is highly recommended for fans of Lacuna Coil, Evanesence, and Sirenia.
