Storm [Import]

Theatre of Tragedy | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 10, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Afm Records Germany
• ASIN: B000EMGHQ0
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #175,313 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Can you see the storm getting closer now?" It is with words like these Nell will capture you with her beautiful, outstanding and powerful voice. "STORM" is Theatre of Tragedy's latest offering, the sixth album from Norway's biggest and most influencing Gothic Rock-act. Even though Nell has been with the band for over two years now, this is the first album with her as the front-lady, together with Raymond and the rest of the band. And somehow the whole album is kind of a comeback, although Theatre of Tragedy has never really been away. Theatre of Tragedy made music history in the mid nineties with albums like "Velvet darkness they fear" and "Aegis". Never before had a band combined a dark male voice with enchanting and bright female vocals to this extent. And no-one could have guessed that this mixture would cause such a bright variety of dark and atmospheric shades that has made Gothic Rock/Metal so popular. Theatre of Tragedy will be, and has always been, unique. But a band creating something so ground-breaking can never be a band that does not dare anything. So the Norwegians have always developed and experimented with their talents, being creative and exploring new ways to express themselves. Industrial electronic influences were to follow with their album Musique, there were changes in the line-up, and even shades of pop-music on their following album Assembly. Even though they've experimented with different musical styles, you could always find the 'Theatre of Tragedy touch' in their music. Theatre of Tragedy parted ways with female singer Liv Kristine in August 2003 and thereby marked an end of their first decade as a band that has dared, gained and achieved more than most of the others. A decade of great creativity and a permanent artistic development draws to a close. And what has been more than clear all the time, is that this was not an conclusive end, but a new beginning. With Nell, their new age has begun. The age of the "Storm", one might say. This is the beginning of which is marked by an album that unites all that the band has ever been loved and adored for: strong, dark melodies, powerful arrangements, haunting lyrics, the charming play between the deep mystical male voice and the pure beauty of female vocals. The unique atmosphere of Theatre of Tragedy is once again alive and breathing, in a new incarnation that will totally blow you away. "Storm" has been produced and recorded by Rico Darum (e.g. Zeromancer, Gothminister, Apoptygma Berzerk) in the famous Toproom Studio in Norway (e.g. Mayhem, Tristania, Extol), and has been mixed and mastered in Canada's The Green Jacket Studio by no other than Greg Reely (e.g. Paradise Lost, Fear Factory, Front Line Assembly, Skinny Puppy). "Storm" will be the strong comeback of a band that has never been away. It will be another proof that Theatre of Tragedy has not only influenced the music scene, but that they are still able to do so. And it will be the clear statement that none other than Theatre of Tragedy themselves are better with the style they have established more than ten years ago. So beware the storm - it's getting closer now!. Phduk.2006

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Add a decent male singer and who knows..., October 15, 2006

By 

Guardian 304 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Storm (Audio CD)

I'm pretty sure no one will miss Liv Kristine after hearing Nell Sigland. Not only do they sound similar, but they can both sing, no doubt.

The guy who can't sing is Raymond, and his distorted whispering style of singing is the one thing that keeps me from giving this album the 4 stars that the soaring choruses and lovely female vocals deserve. On some songs, when he's actually singing to a tune (Ashes and Dreams) it almost works. However, his apparent lack of vocal range seems to influence the songwriting, as evidenced in the stark similarity in melody in the verses of consecutive songs The Storm and Silence.

TOT can really do with a decent male vocalist - see how well a decent male vocalist like Marko Hietala blended with Tarja Turunen in Nightwish - a massive improvement on the death growling male vocals on their Oceanborn album. TOT can do with a singer like that - it would probably mean stronger verses to back up the fantastic choruses.

Failing that, I'd be happy enough to hear Nell sing everything.

Talking about the choruses, there are some rippers here. The Storm, Silence, Ashes and Dreams, Voices, Begin and End, Exile, Debris and Disintegration all feature magnificent choruses in varying degrees of excellence. It's hard to say a whole lot more about the songs because #1 they are disappointingly short, and #2 there's not a whole lot to say about the forgettable parts that Raymond performs.

In the end it's good to see TOT abandoning their overly industrial sound and getting back to something resembling Aegis, even though The Storm is quite different to that. Only two things were needed to make this a 5 star album:

1. A decent male vocalist
2. Longer songs

The length of the songs leaves me with almost a bigger complaint than Raymond's uninspiring vocals. Just as you start getting into a song (mostly verse-chorus-verse-chorus-done) it's over. Silence barely reaches the 3 minute mark, Voices falls well short at 2:47. I thought we left songs this short behind in the sixties. As a matter of fact it's only the mediocre Fade and the closing track Debris that breaches the 4 minute barrier.

In the end though, Nell's inspired singing and some wonderful choruses make this album worth your time. Once you get used to the poor male vocals you actually manage to weather them without too much discomfort, knowing that at the end of that short dark tunnel Nell is waiting to mesmerize and enchant you.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Can you see the storm getting closer now?, May 20, 2006

By 

Murat Batmaz (Istanbul, Turkey) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Storm (Audio CD)

Theatre of Tragedy is arguably the first and most important band that pioneered the beauty and beast type of bands, utilising brutal death growls and angelic female vocals. With albums like Theatre of Tragedy and Velvet Darkness They Fear, they set an example to a million bands who followed their footsteps, with only few of them trying to bring anything new to the table. Rather, they just expanded on Theatre of Tragedy's songwriting, adding in the occasional non-metal instruments. However, after Aegis, the band delved into a very industrial sound, dropping their characteristic sound and opting for electronic music with lots of dancey beats.

As the band lost touch with most of their older fanbase, they continued to experiment with industrial soundscapes, mostly evident on Musique. The following album, Assembly, marked their downfall and led to the departure of female vocalist Liv Kristine (now in Leaves' Eyes). Now, after so many years, Theatre of Tragedy returns with a new singer, a new album, and a new direction, according to second vocalist Raymond Rohonyi. Nell Sigland from The Crest is behind the mic now and she has a very soft, quite poppy voice that gives some of the songs a distinct 80's pop flavour. Almost all songs are centred around the piano and synth work of Lorentz Aspen; he plays both solo piano pieces and electronic synth textures. Although Storm is no where near as industrial-sounding as Musique and experimental as Assembly, it doesn't really stray too far away from these albums. I guess it would be logical to say this album is a mixture of their previous two; mixing atmospheric synth work with subtle guitar harmonies and static drumming. On the title track, Nell sounds passionate, and thanks to the clever mix of Greg Reely (Paradise Lost, Fear Factory) her doubled vocals are really amazing. It's like she harmonises with her identical twin before crunchy waves of guitars begin to soar above the delicate piano melody. "Silence" is relatively heavier, with great whispered vocals and accompaniment by Rohonyi. Unfortunately, how much his vocals add to the overall success of the album is highly questionable. I still find his singing (and spoken parts) rather dull and uninteresting. There are moments when the contrast between their voices works though, such as "Ashes and Dreams", a song that alternates between dark male vocals and fragile yet bright female harmonies. However, songs like "Fade", an entirely piano-driven ballad with only sprinkles of guitar riffs heard; or the rocking yet creepy "Begin & End" are a lot better, mostly because they're sung almost entirely by Nell. "Exile" and "Disintegration" return to Theatre of Tragedy's industrial, dance-style music, with lots of sampled beats and processed vocals. The album is wrapped by another midtempo track which is mostly sung by Nell, save for the middle part where Rohonyi narrates something in a nasal tone.

Some fans will still enjoy this disc, but I feel it's still inferior to their earlier work. Then again, I should know better as they'll never go back to playing that type of music again.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars back to the basics, July 29, 2006

By 

Lady Kah-Kah "the defendant" (At the Mountains of Madness) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Storm (Audio CD)

For fans of Theatre of Tragedy's early work this album is a pleasent return to the music that first transfixed you. Well, for the most part. Their sound has evolved over the years, as one would expect. But, for those who hated the weird, whinny, vaguely European spoken word bits on the Assembly album, this might be a disappointment. I liked it though. For some reason it's less annoying paired with old-school metal than with the techo-pop on their last two cds. The female vocals are beautiful. Though Storm isn't as good as Theatre of Tragedy's first three albums it's a heck of alot better than most other "goth metal" out there nowadays and worth a 5 star rating.