Customer Reviews

Arcana

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Edenbridge, the Austrian band relatively new on the symphonic rock block, features rock guitarist Lanvall and vocalist Sabine Edelsbacher -- the latter being one of the more attractive female vocalists around these days.

Speaking of Sabine's voice...

Her voice is pleasant, although slightly limited in range. In other words, her voice doesn't seem to change much, hovering close to a respectable upper mid-range, even though the music pounds and soars behind her. Despite its beauty, Sabine's voice is the weakest link, in my opinion, like she's holding back the songs somehow.

But that's only a small gripe. Overall, Edenbridge is delightful music. Their sound is Bostonish in some spots -- over-the-top rock that has a majestic cadence...and Stratovarius-like in other areas with its rapid-fire neo-classical arrangements.

Arcana is Edenbridge's second CD (Sunrise in Eden being the first). I like the opening track, "Ascending," and the second track, "Starlight Reverie." But the ballads ("A Moment of Time" and "Velvet Eyes of Dawn") seem to lack originality and memorability. Maybe it's because Sabine's voice doesn't lift the song above a ho-hum level. Maybe the songs just lack compelling melody.

The Sensory label says Edenbridge has created a unique sound they call "angelic bombastic metal," which they define as soaring guitarwork, symphonic keys, breathtaking vocals, and a powerful rhythm section.

I'll grant them that. This is bombastic metal, all right. And Sabine's voice is certainly angelic.

However, there's nothing particularly earthshattering about Edenbridge's songs. I didn't say "Wow" after any of them ended (the way I did after hearing After Forever's Decipher CD...or the track "Freedom" off Stratovarius' Infinite CD). This is pleasant metal with a better than average lead vocalist.

What I like most about Edenbridge is that they're a welcome respite from the sonic onslaught of bands like Iced Earth, In Flames, Nevermore, Opeth, Therion and others of that ilk.

So when you want to feel uplifted, happy and entertained, Edenbridge is just what the doctor ordered. Just don't expect much more than that and you'll be A-OK.

This is Edenbridge's second release and they haven't really changed that much from their first - Sunrise In Eden. But that's OK because the music was perfect anyway, Sunrise In Eden was so good that it was impossible to improve on it. However, it makes Arcana feel like just an extension to Sunrise... nothing new has been added to the band's sound.
Lanvall, the megalomaniac curly-wig of the band is an extremely talented musician. He plays lead, rhythm and acoustic guitar plus keyboards and does all the composing. All of the songs contain at least one guitar solo and they are all amazing!
This album has a very happy atmosphere - not anything that would make you kill yourself, which makes this CD a refreshing addition to my otherwise wholly gloomy collection.
This album is very operatic, power metal - which is what you wopuld expect from the mystical cover artwork (done by the same guy who does the Nightwish covers) and the names of the songs (especially "Fly On A Rainbow Dream"!).
Sabine's voice is operatic, but not as powerful or as strong as other female vocalists in this genre (eg Tarja Turunen, Floor Jansen etc). She may not have a very wide vocal range, but her voice is still beautiful and fits well with the music.
It is very hard to pick a favourite track from this album, there are no "filler tracks" and no tracks that make me scramble for the "skip" button. But i would have to say my favourite is Arcana, 10 minutes long and simply quite exquisite really.

Arcana was the very first album I had for Edenbridge... I bought it because of the cover art and assume that Edenbridge would be my kinda music.. Indeed it is my kinda music.. I love the entire album due to the fact that it is symphonic , bombastic, melodic and yet heavy in certain parts.... Songs are catchya nd memorable to listen to.. I never got bored of listening to Arcana over and over again... Sabine's voice is truly great.... I would love to see Edenbridge live at least to experience the powerful band.....right in front of me.... The entire band is just superb... Their craftmanships will speak for itself for a very long time.... I 've got all of their albums now... Edenbridge live on!!!!

This album is great. The first time I heard the title track I got goosebumps (this is a rare event). The vocals are angellic but not operatic like those of Tarja of Nightwish fame. The sound the band creates is full and well produced. The guitar ranges from faster power metal stylings to slower "Gilmouresque" passages. The overall effect of the music is very emotional, giving the listener the feeling that the band really cares about the music they are playing. If you like the European Power Metal style with a progressive rock flavour, you will like this record. It really is a pity that great bands like this get zero radio airplay, when all the no-talent nu-metal bands get tons of exposure.

I heard "The whisper of the Ages" on Pandora and I *love* that song. The lyrics are kind of silly, but the beautiful vocals and guitar / keyboard sequence towards the end of it really caught me. Based on how much I love that song, I bought the album but was somewhat disappointed. Again, the lyrics struck me as rather lofty without any real substance unless you're into epic mystical imagery (which I'm not). That kind of kills a song for me unless it has enough musical substance to back it up and this album with the exception of "Whisper of the Ages" (which is a bonus track only on certain editions of Arcana), the opening title "Ascending" and "Fly on a Rainbow Dream" lacks. Just not really my taste, but again if you enjoy mystical imagery paired with a symphonic metal sound, you might check it out.

The little slip-on that comes on the outside of the case reads boldly "Angelic Bombastic Metal." This statement, truly, only stands for roughly half the songs, if even that. However, even the mellower songs are amazing.

The singer's voice is beautiful and the guitarist has some skill indeed. It's a wonder many don't listen to this band and/or haven't heard of them, especially if they're into bands like Nightwish and the like.

"Starlight Reverie," "Color My Sky," and "Suspiria" are among the heavier and faster tracks, but like the mellower songs as well, they really keep the atmosphere of beauty that you can just feel virtually emanating from every imaginary pore of this disc.

Likewise, the production on this CD also gives it even more of the aforementioned atmosphere by being somewhat below par. Even still, the album still manages to maintain a genuine fullness throughout the entire playtime.

This disc comes with two bonus tracks which, odd for such songs, appear right in the middle of the album. However, they are so well placed and sound so good they seem to just be another part of the album and you may not even think about the fact that they are indeed extras, but rather parts of the original and the whole.

If you like intricate music or even just music with a female vocalist, this is a must, along with similar sounding albums, such as Within Temptation's "Mother Earth" or Nightwish's "Century Child" (granted the former of the two is a lot less on the bombastic side). Both feature female vocalists and beautiful, top-notch symphonic metal.

*****5 stars*****

Hailing from Austria, Edenbridge is a fairly unique band in the "metal band with female vocalist" genre. Their particular sound, self-described as "angelic, bombastic metal" is somewhere between Nightwish and melodic rock diva Lana Lane. The music is lush and melodic, with a heavy emphasis on keyboards, and falls squarely in the Helloween/Angra power metal category. The only thing remotely goth-like about this band is their wardrobe. The vocals, which are provided by the lovely and talented Sabine Edelsbacher, are a breath of fresh air in a genre where every female singer seems determined to be a glass-shattering opera star.

Arcana is the band's second album, and is one of their best. All of the trademark elements from Sunrise in Eden are present - well-orchestrated songs, Sabine's incredible voice, and the "sunshine and light" approach, which is a pretty rare thing to find in a metal band (it's pretty much just Edenbridge and Freedom Call at this point). This time around though, Sabine seems a lot more comfortable with her voice, which has more power, better control, and more range. The main drawback remains the fact that the songs tend to sound very similar.

Edenbridge is definitely not for everyone. They are well worth checking out, particularly if you're a fan of bands like Nightwish, After Forever, et al and have grown tired of the opera metal style. If you prefer your metal to be dark and aggressive, or crave progressive metal technicality, you may want to skip this one.

These guys were brave enough to record an amazing album that would definitely draw comparison to Nightwish mainly due to female vocals presented here. Chances are that they will blow you away with your first listen. The singer does an outstanding job; Tarja she is not, but her voice isn't opera like, it is angelic and at the same time more down to earth and her range is just impressive. The band overall is very skilled and they certainly know how to play good music. And man, I just love the sound of the guitar in here...
Now down to songs. The intro and opener are OK, as Starlight Reverie sets the tone for the album. You kind of get an idea what the rest is like after hearing the first half of it. Things change for even better with The Palace, as the singer and the band in general really show what they are capable of. There are several songs like this one on the album that are extremely melodic with catchy chorus: The Whisper Of Ages, Into The Light and majestic title track. A Moment Of Time should convince the entire crowd how good can the girl sing and faster songs like Color My Sky or Suspiria show a heavier side of Edenbridge. The weakest song must be Fly On A Rainbow Dream: I find it being too sweet and predictable for my taste. And believe me, even this song will leave some of you folks speechless.
To conclude my review, I would like to warn you to get an image of Nightwish out of your head before you listen to Edenbridge cause it might spoil the fun. You need to hear it with a free mind to believe it. And trust me, it is worth it.

"Edenbridge," which seems to bill itself as a gothic-styled fairy-tale darkwave metal outfit, is a pale, watery imitation of MUCH better groups.

As other reviewers have mentioned here, the songs skew more toward the "rock" side of the spectrum, rather than the "metal" side. This in and of itself is not a bad thing, but there's something about this music that simply doesn't work. The keyboards add a ridiculous and hokey touch to the music, resulting in a carnival-like sound that seems incongruous with the message being delivered in the vocals.

I suppose I should have guessed it, based on the "medieval" theme of the "Arcana" title, but the lyrics are profoundly hilarious... unless you're one of those self-styled "goth" types, I suppose, in which case you already dwell in your own fantasyland and are no doubt scrambling to press the "Not Helpful" review button as fast as you can at this very moment.

For the rest of us, these fairy-tale lyrics are annoying and humorous. Any time a band makes liberal use of the word "elysian," you know you're in trouble.

Finally, the lead singer Sabine is weak, plain and simple. When compared to the jaw-dropping vocals found on Nightwish's "Wishmaster", or The Gathering's "Mandylion", or even (shudder) the bland, limited-range vocal stylings of Evanescence, this CD falls short. She's trying to emulate Tarja from Nightwish, but her voice lacks power, depth, clarity, and any sort of range. If you like shrill singing in basically one octave throughout the entire course of an album, you will adore this CD.

In conclusion, there are FAR better bands out there right now doing this sort of "melodic metal" thing. These other bands are excellent musicians, write interesting and creative songs, rarely pen such laughable lyrics, and feature gifted lead vocalists who sing very well. Check them out, instead.

No i didn`t fall asleep last night with this CD
in my hands like I have with CD`s in the past
but this is still very good, maybe not Great but
Better than bands like The Gathering or Lacuna Coil.
The production is exellent and the female vocals as good as she looks(beautiful) . Its kind of symphonic at times and then it can turn bombastic like Blind guardian.
I have to say that I am very Happy with it
This band have great depth and style and progressive Know how.
Get this CD its very good.