This is the second album by French symphonic metal band Lost Opera.
Lost Opera are a symphonic metal band specialising in a modern take on the genre, heavily accentuated with orchestral keyboards and with a side-order of extremity. This manifests via heavier-than-average guitars, (for this kind of thing), and the occasional inclusion of growled/screamed vocals.
The album has a decent, professional production that allows the band to show off what they’re capable of. The songs shine in this environment, revealing themselves to be well-written and enjoyable affairs.
Taking a heavier version of modern power/heavy metal as its base, the music adds elements of, I suppose, a melodic death metal approach here and there. Heavier sections are complemented by the aforementioned harsher vocals, making for a very well-rounded release. Imagine a more modern take on the standard Euro-metal template that takes advantage of the heavier side of things, (via melodic/symphonic death metal), in addition to the more sparkly and upbeat power metal moments.
Maybe…kind of Kamelot, (or someone), with a more aggressive bite? Sort of…? You get the idea. At any rate – it’s a brave band that takes modern aggression and mixes it with power metal’s more extravagant side, and I can easily see people who like either one style but not the other under-appreciating this. However, that would definitely be a shame as it’s obvious that a lot of care and effort has been put into Hidden Sides by the band, and there’s a lot of good songwriting and ideas on here.
Apart from the growls and screams, the main style is clean singing, and their singer has a good voice for his role. A band like this, (as I’ve frequently opined before), can be made or broken by the quality of the clean vocals, and Lost Opera thankfully have a singer who is up to the task given him. With memorable melodies and harmonies, as well as a decent amount of variety, he gives a good performance throughout.
Here’s a band that have chosen to smash together the modern, aggressive approach to metal with the more flowery, symphonic aspects of power metal. The result? A surprisingly endearing and enjoyable 56 minutes of metal.
A recommended listen. Check this out.
Wonderbox Metal 