Magica - Dark Diary review
| Band: | Magica |
| Album: | Dark Diary |
| Style: | Symphonic power metal |
| Release date: | May 2010 |
01. Anywhere But Home
02. Tonight
03. Never Like You
04. Wait For Me
05. Need
06. Release My Demons
07. On The Side Of Evil
08. My Kin My Enemy
09. Used To Be An Angel
10. We Are Horde
11. Dear Diary
12. Victory [digipack bonus]
Magica has always been a solid band releasing solid albums and Dark Diary is no exception, in fact it's a huge step forward for the band. They'll probably never top any charts or release anything ground breaking, but I find myself enjoying their albums often enough. Dark Diary is by far their heaviest release yet and would be most appreciated by fans of power metal with fantasy lyrics belted out by a nice female voice.
Dark Diary gets off to a fast start. The first track "Anywhere But Home" opens with Bogdan's enjoyable guitar work playing nicely off the keyboards and drums. The instrumentalists really set the stage nicely with an almost classic heavy metal feeling. Ana's recognizable vocals enter, as strong as ever, and the Magica sound is complete. This heavy feeling permeates the album throughout; sometimes it is supported by hard hitting drums, and other times it's in counterpoint to dreamy keyboards.
One problem with some of their previous albums is that the momentum starts to go part way through, yet Dark Diary does not let up. Even the somewhat slower tracks and ballads never stop the action for a second. It's on these tracks that Ana's vocals soften a bit and her smooth legato covers to music like frosting on a cake. Heavier music abounds and songs like "My Kin My Enemy" offer up memorable melodies with more epic instrumental work.
As I alluded to in the first paragraph, though enjoyable this album is nothing revolutionary in its genre. In the past some might even complain about the band's sound being too pop-like but this album's heavier quality is getting away from that pop feeling of the past and is definitely a step in the right direction with their songwriting. Production-wise, it's light years ahead of their previous album Wolves and Witches, but what I most enjoyed here are some epic moments, talented players, and good, high-energy power metal music. I'd definitely call this their strongest album thus far.
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Written on 24.09.2010 by
Susan appreciates quality metal regardless of sub-genre. Metal Storm Staff since 2006. Twitter: @HeavyMetalSusan |
Rating:
6.3
6.3
|
Rating: 6.3 |
I have a soft spot for frilly, other-worldly, majestic, symphonic metal (especially the female-fronted kind), adding bonus points if it has a good grasp of the genre's power metal roots. That is not what this album is. Did I just lie? Yes. To some listeners' ears it is exactly that description, but to me; it is not entirely composed of these expected (and attempted) aspects. To me, this album is an exciting exercise in piecing together impressive elements to give birth to a confusing contradiction. All the components of a screamingly fun ride are there for the taking, yet the twists and turns have not been placed in the right spots to ensure the optimum amusement. So, having said this, I sure don't feel like a liar. Read more ›› |
Comments
Comments: 7
Visited by: 197 users
| CyberSymphony Ollie Posts: 673 From: UK  |
I never really didn't got into any of Magica's albums. But this one isn't too bad, definitly their strongest one.
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| Dominus The Shooter Posts: 375 From: Argentina  |
This album is fantastic .I truly enjoy this album in its entirety
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| GT Coffee!! Posts: 5101 From: Denmark  |
Knowing your taste in music resembles mine in many cases I might enjoy this. I'll check it out some day
----  Dreams are made so we don't get bored when we sleep
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| mariano Posts: 369 From: Argentina |
I haven't listened the whole album yet, only a couple of songs from MySpace, and even though I liked the style of the band, I didn't like much the sound quality in general, but particularly the guitar sound is a little bit poor. It's like the guitarist uses a cheep amp or a crappy distortion pedal. Most of the times I discard bands/albums when they don't get a decent sound quality, and probably many people do the same, which it's sad in this case because they seem to be very talented. 
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| SKELETOR Posts: 21 From: Romania |
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