Moonlyght - Shining review
| Band: | Moonlyght |
| Album: | Shining |
| Style: | Progressive metal |
| Release date: | March 2008 |
01. Middle
02. Falling
03. Downfall
04. Malediction
05. Hazard
06. Messiah
07. Perils
08. Penitent
09. Radiance
10. Parallels
Moonlyght was a progressive melodeath metal band hailing from North America's oldest European city, the French settling of Québec. They disbanded in 2008 with the departure of vocalist/guitarist Roby, yet they did release their second full-length post-mortem, Shining. And just as the formation's debut, this last album can rightfully be considered as one of the greatest and brightest gems of Canadian metal history.
Shining closes a short yet magnificent career from a widely unknown band. Unlike its slower and folksier predecessor, Shining is a melodeath thunderstorm of intertwining riffs and varying beats ever evolving from one brilliant track to the other, and within a same song as well. One is easily reminded of Finnish extreme power metallers Wintersun on more than one occasion, due the blast beats, neo-classical shred guitars and clean/harsh vocals, but also because of the heteroclite blend of progressive, death, folk and black metal that characterizes this Quebecker combo. No weird or unexpected idea is put aside, from the Orphaned Land-inspired breakdowns and sparse gentle female vocals of "Radiance" to the eclectic use of violin, cithara or electronic FX that successfully enhances every track.
The vocals are the only weak point of this album. Roby's English can sometime be very annoying: his Quebec-French accent, though not as much as on the band's debut, is very strong. But he is a very versatile vocalist, his black metal rasps are quite enjoyable and he can sing, not to mention his impressing guitar skills, which are central to this band's oomph! factor.
On the whole, a very strong, original and enjoyable album that's been on my top lists for years and will probably remain there as long as I have any interest in metal. As a matter of fact, the only thing I hate about Moonlyght is their disbanding? Warmly recommend stuff for fans of fast-paced melodic extreme metal and prog lovers alike.
Highlights: "Middle", "Downfall", "Messiah", "Radiance".
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 9 |
| Songwriting: | 10 |
| Originality: | 9 |
| Production: | 9 |
Written by MétalNoir | 02.12.2011
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Comments
Comments: 8
Visited by: 70 users
| Milena gloom cookie staff Posts: 4603  |
I was really warmed up for this until I read about the accent, but I guess I'll give it a go sometime 
---- 7.0 means the album is good
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| Assassiyoun Posts: 45 |
Written by Milena on 02.12.2011 at 21:55 Do not let that deter you from listening to this album, it is not that bad I think. From what I see on your profile, you seem to enjoy prog, melodeath and power. I don't see why you would not like this album at least a bit. I am glad that I saw them live at least once before they disbanded. Their first album is one of my favorite album of all time but this one is also very strong, faster as the reviewer wrote. Another gem made in Québec.
---- "Wer mit Ungeheuern kämpft, mag zusehen, dass er nicht dabei zum Ungeheuer wird. Und wenn du lange in einen Abgrund blickst, blickt der Abgrund auch in dich hinein." - Friedrich Nietzsche
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| Milena gloom cookie staff Posts: 4603 |
Written by Assassiyoun on 02.12.2011 at 23:42 It won't, don't worry seeing someone care enough to write a guest review is a good enough rec for me
---- 7.0 means the album is good
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| MétalNoir Fils du Lys Posts: 847  |
Written by Milena on 03.12.2011 at 03:26 Not to mention my undeniable musical tastes  Seriously, this is one of those bands that must have been either very badlucky or too lazy to become famous.
---- Notre destinée n'est pas encore tracée....
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| Risto Wandering Midget Posts: 1115  |
The band is back together and writing a new album. I guess Myspace is valid enough: http://www.myspace.com/moonlyght
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| Troy Killjoy perfunctionist staff Posts: 21306  |
Written by Risto on 06.12.2011 at 00:05 Fixed the profile accordingly.
---- "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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| MétalNoir Fils du Lys Posts: 847 |
Written by Risto on 06.12.2011 at 00:05 OMFG are you serious? A dream come true for me 
---- Notre destinée n'est pas encore tracée....
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| Risto Wandering Midget Posts: 1115 |
Written by MétalNoir on 06.12.2011 at 02:47 I initially spotted it from Youtube comments when checking this out and then saw it confirmed everywhere. They're not going to do any live shows though because Roby doesn't like it, studio only project. This is very solid by the way, "Malediction" is awesome. Thanks for the review!
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