Ravenword
Transcendence

Blue Roses are interesting flowers, and it is those that open the new, and first, album by Italian band Ravenword.  They are from a place hard hit by the Covid19 disease so perhaps they will cheer up a little if they get a positive review, because that is what they get. Not because of the pointless fact that the name is inspired by The Raven written by Edgar Allan Poe, it would have been more fun if it was Ravenwood from Indiana Jones that was the inspiration – but I say leave such things to the imagination, the more mystery, the more fun. The cover art is good, it could spark an interest for the beholder.

Melodic and female fronted, a bit symphonic perhaps. The keys are almost magical and the vocals really good in the tradition of similar female fronted band to which you can add Nightwish, Epica, Withing Temptation and many more, add to that Mularoni’s skills of creating a soundscape that is really strong and you have a great production in Transcendence. It is a well put together album where they break off with slower songs and ballads to give the album a flow and dynamics, but it doesn’t fully help as the album still feels a tad on the longer side. The Swansong would have finished this album brilliantly but it goes on for a while after that, and you cannot help thinking about murdering some darlings.

It is a fairly fresh and modern album; sure, it doesn’t come up with many surprises but it has enough personality to stand on its own feet. It is a great album; it has this flaw that it could have been shorter and the phrase “less is more” cannot be repeated enough when it comes to music and artists. It is better to leave the fans wanting more than the other way round – this album is slightly let down by the sense that the last three or four tracks doesn’t do much for the entirety of the album, they are not poor songs but their presence feels indifferent at best. I think that opening Blue Roses isn’t just the interesting flower; it is the greatest and most memorable track on this album that has more than one memorable track. Had it only ended in a swansong rather than in a bleeding moon it would have been terrific.

If you like the female fronted variety, I am quite sure that you will like this one, it is a strong album with strong tracks and good energy. Too bad they didn’t have the murdering ability and the understanding that less if often more, over an hour playing time is very rarely a good thing and this does not represent an exception to that rule. I give them five blue roses for their effort, but they need to think more about the swansong next time around.

HHHHHHH