Band:	Delain
Album:	Lucidity
Style:	Symphonic metal
Release date:	September 04, 2006
A review by:	Dream Taster

01. Sever [feat. Marco Hietala]
02. Frozen
03. Silhouette Of A Dancer [feat. George Oosthoek]
04. No Compliance [feat. Sharon Den Adel & Marco Hietala]
05. See Me In Shadow [feat. Liv Kristine]
06. Shattered
07. The Gathering [feat. Marco Hietala]
08. Daylight Lucidity [feat. Marco Hietala]
09. Sleepwalker's Dream
10. Day For Ghost [feat. Liv Kristine & Marco Hietala]
11. Pristine [feat. George Oosthoek]
12. (Deep) Frozen [feat. George Oosthoek] [bonus]
13. Silhouette Of A Dancer [acoustic version] [Japanese bonus]
14. Frozen [acoustic version] [US bonus]
15. See Me In Shadow [acoustic version] [US bonus]
16. No Compliance [Charlotte version] [US bonus]

In the dawn of Symphonic Gothic Metal, bands like After Forever and Within Temptation impressed everybody with their poise and out-of-this-world female singers. Nowadays, their monopoly is long over with countless acts following in their footsteps. After leaving Within Temptation for health reasons, founding member and influential keyboard player Martjin Westerholt decided to show the world how to do things right with his new venture called Delain. Another Dutch female fronted band, Delain waited debut-album was simply called Lucidity.

The formula has been used many times. Beautiful female vocals with a female choir, lots of keyboards, well-chosen breaks in song structures, streamlined guitar sound with the occasional impressive bits? However, it is done so well on this album that it cannot be ignored for its simple lack of apparent creativity. Some elements might still be surprising, but what separate Lucidity from other albums is its homogeneity in song quality. Every single track is a keeper.

Westerholt was able to involve his professional network with guest musicians such as iconic singers Liv Kristine Espenaes Krull [ex-Theatre of Tragedy, now with Leave's Eyes] and his former angelic vocalist Sharon den Adel. Needless to say, this adds even more to the value of Lucidity. However, I firmly believe that their young singer Charlotte Wessels would have been able to carry the whole album alone on vocals.

It is polished, layered, arranged but skilfully produced. Of course, having one killing hit does not hurt; 'No Compliance' would be it for me. Guest-starring Finland's best singer Marco Hietala [Nightwish] and no other than Sharon den Adel, this song is the perfect representation of Lucidity, characteristic but brilliant.

To fully pass the test, Delain had to be able to record at least one standout ballad. 'See Me In Shadows' would fulfill this purpose easily. They manage to avoid sounding cheesy while really going emotional.

Martjin Westerholt left Within Temptation with reasons, and this debut album underlines how much his former band must miss him. Delain's Lucidity might just be 2006's best symphonic metal album of the year. Crafted in vintage Dutch symphony know-how, this album is sure to open doors for Delain and it should rank high on every Symphonic Gothic Metal fan wish list.