Words Untold & Dreams Unlived

It's generally stipulated that by the time the mid-2000s was beginning to give way to the latter part of said decade, the remnant of power metal's 2nd wave in Europe was in the midst of a massive identity crisis. This isn't to say that the output from this period was poor across the board, but the vacuum that emerged when much of the old guard of the 90s either split or evolved away from their speed metal and Neo-classical roots was being filled with just about every odd and end imaginable. Nevertheless, there were a few players that originated during the latter days of the 2nd wave's peak that maintained the familiar trappings of the previous era, despite being de facto newcomers due to delayed support from the labels. This is the context of 2007 when Austrian-born symphonic power/prog trustees Serenity offered up their debut offering Words Untold & Dreams Unlived, and though it was the brainchild of an outfit that had been toiling in the underground since 2001, it is an album that perfectly embodies the strongest elements of the quirky eclecticism that was commonplace during the year of its release.

Comparisons to the likes of Kamelot and Sonata Arctica become inevitable, as several aspects of this band's sound are rooted in the theatrical bombast of the former's handiwork, especially in the cases of 2003's Epica and its sequel The Black Halo, as well as the melancholy musings of the latter. Indeed, the striking similarity between lead vocalist Georg Neuhauser's forceful tenor and that of Tony Kakko borders on uncanny, and one can't help but note that the concise and melodically-geared guitar soloing style of Thomas Buchberger is pretty close to the one that Thomas Youngblood has been known for since the turn of the millennium. However, in contrast to both of these bands, the songwriting leans a bit closer to the more orthodox yet dark progressive character of Symphony X and Dream Theater during the early to mid 2000s. The combination of heavier groove riffing coupled with the occasionally swift and majestic passages typical to power metal make for a collection of songs that are moderately long in scope, yet tend to avoid any technical excesses in favor of memorable hooks and greater sectional development.

True to form, this is an album that reflects the abstract, otherworldly, and mystical quality of the cover art put together by Septicflesh's own Spiros Antoniou. The dreamy symphonic meets Indian air of opening anthem "Canopus 3" sounds pretty close to something that Mark Jansen was writing for Epica during the mid-2000s, though the accompanying stomp of the guitars is less kinetic and thrashing in character, and while some occasional harsh vocal input occurs via Tristwood's Markus Wenzel in a guest capacity, Neuhauser's generally smooth yet forceful vocal display is what drives this song. Ultimately this foray into exotic musical territory is more the exception than the rule, as with the triumphant roar of "Reduced To Nothingness", the band's symphonic power metal proclivities become blatant enough to rival Kamelot at their fastest and most triumphant. Alongside similarly swift, though slightly more drawn out and nuanced anthems such as "Engraved Within" and "Forever", this is where the brilliance of Buchberger's guitar work comes into focus, and occasionally even becomes technically charged enough to rival Michael Romeo at the height of the solo passages.

Yet despite the sizable amount of similar stylings at play here, Serenity manages to put their own unique spin on things and field a few solid surprises that deviate from what one would normally expect from a band drawing inspiration from the aforementioned bands. The most curious device at play is the assignment of the album's title to two short instrumental passages that divide the album into three parts, with "Words Untold" being a brief classical guitar passage showcasing Buchberger's versatility, whereas the tranquil piano segment that is "Dreams Unlived" sees keyboardist Mario Hirzinger in a more subdued capacity that could almost pass for the intro music to a daytime soap opera. Though no less moving, the mid-paced anthems "Dead Men Walking" and "Circle Of My Second Life" go a more obvious route and mix in some melodic death metal idioms into the instrumental passages, conjuring up some Eternal Tears Of Sorrow and Kalmah moments in the guitar and keyboard melodic passages to complement the Kamelot-inspired symphonic bluster. The two closing mini-epics "From Where The Dark Is Born" and "Thriven" end things on the most progressive note, with the latter all but sounding like it was lifted off Dream Theater's Octavarium.

It's unclear whether or not a term has been coined for the phenomenon, but this album exemplifies a slight tendency towards overambition that is fairly common in the debut offerings of progressive acts, and this is the only noteworthy flaw to speak of here. It doesn't get to the point where it sounds like several different bands contributing to the same album, and there is a common continuum of influences that keeps it anchored within its professed hybrid sub-genre, but it feels like the band is throwing just about every trick in their arsenal at the listener while somehow managing to keep it under 50 minutes in length. Every song on here is highly dynamic and engaging, and though the sum of its parts comes off as a bit schizophrenic at times, this is a solid slab of symphonic splendor that splits the difference between power and progressive metal right down the middle. Though accusations of this album being a Kamelot or Sonata Arctica ripoff carry some weight and were thrown around at the time, when considering the duds that both bands put out in 2007, this album could be better understood as the right one at the right time. Future endeavors would naturally see this outfit better hone and improve their craft, but all things considered, they started things on a definite high note.

Serenity's release Words Untold and Dreams Unlived is a pretty good debut effort all things considered. This is a band that has big potential taking into consideration that they know damn well how to craft a hooky and catchy chorus section. That is there most obvious strength when listening to this album. This stems from excellent song writing that is abundant on this album. It is quite unbelievable how strong it actually is. There are some downright great songs on here.

The album starts of with the relatively weak Canopus 3. This is likely the worst written song on the album as it has a strange middle-eastern vibe going on that just doesn’t seem to fit at all with the overall sound of the album. If I were to give a rating based on this one song it would probably be 80/100 at best. It still features great hooks but it just doesn’t mesh together well.

It all goes up after that. Reduced to Nothingness is a better song but it is after the first instrumental that this band truly starts to shine. Circle of my Second Life, Engraved Within and Forever are all superb songs with catchy, anthemic choruses that just stick in your head. Dead Man Walking and From Where the Dark is Born are also great tunes as well. Thriven takes a minor step backwards because of the harsh vocals that are used (I will come back to this).

The guitarists are great. They have some great riffs, the guitars are well placed in the mix right on par with the vocals. Most of the solos and leads are placed very well and suit the music and the song very well. The music is completely based in the European power/prog field and they do it damn well. They also don’t have the unfortunate task of fighting the keyboardist for playing time (same can’t be said of some other bands in the field) so they have a great kick.

The drums are also very well done, although there is a slight reliance on the double kick, it is nothing that takes away from the music. There are some fills placed through out but nothing that particularly stands out here.

The bass. Well it’s in there somewhere I suppose. Most likely following along with the guitars. But it is quite safe to say that the bassist has no real up time here, staying in the background and letting the keys/guitars handle all the heavy lifting.

The keys are particularly good. Like the guitars leads they are perfectly placed throughout the songs, adding ambiance when needed, leading when needed, and listening to the intro of Engraved Within is one of the best parts of this album thanks to the keys and guitars working so well together as they do throughout the whole album.

The vocals aren’t anything ground breaking. Standard fare prog/power vocal sets, nicely done. This guy surely knows how to hold a tune though and crafts some great parts for him self to sing. The vocals are definitely a plus on this album for his creativity alone, not so much for the originality of his voice. The most annoying part about this album though would have to be the harsh vocals that are utilized on a couple of the songs. Thriven and Reduced to Nothingness could have been so much better, right on par with the other songs had the harsh vocals not been used. They are not very well done and are very weak sounding. I know that it was probably supposed to come out more like Dan Swano’s work on Threshold’s song Slipstream (Album: Dead Reckoning) or Shagrath on Kamelot’s The Black Halo but it falls dreadfully short and makes the songs worse rather then better. This is where the album loses the most points for me. Thriven and Reduced to Nothingness are good songs…. Until you get to the harsh vocals.

At the end of the album, it’s good. Not amazing but there are some great, memorable hooks that will have you coming back to a few of the tracks. The harsh vocals are grating, but only appear in a couple of songs for a few seconds but they are bad enough to make those songs skip worthy if you are not in the mood. It’s a good album. It has its flaws, but it also has some great songs and some great points (the excellent blend of guitar power intertwined with the keys). If you are a fan of power/prog as a genre then this is definitely worth checking out.

Highlights: Forever, Engraved Within, From Where the Dark is Born, Circle of my Second Life.

So, I saw this band live with Kamelot just a few days ago. I didn't think much of their boring show, but I decided to give them a second chance by picking up one of their albums (from a local store's bargain bin I should add) and I now fully understand why it was in that bin in the first place.

This is one of those power metal bands that try so hard yet still suck. Bands like this are the reason the whole genre has a bad image (as being "cheesy" and "over the top"). Not one thing on this album hasn't been done before.

Let me rephrase: not one single element on this album wasn't done BETTER by at least ten bands before. The melodies are slightly catchy, without really sticking, but sound kind of generic in the process. All songs sound more or less the same, and have the same build-up, making me wonder why so many people claim this band to be so good.

The drums are quite simple most of the time and add nothing. The guitars are done well, but are too low in the mix for my liking. If they had been higher in the mix, they might just have saved a few songs from being boring.

And as is often the case with power metal, the bass is there, but you can't hear it without putting effort into it. The vocals are of the 13-in-a-dozen kind. Not unpleasant perse, but not great or outstanding either, making this band a pointless addition to a genre full of vocalists who DO have that "X-factor" that makes them stand out.

There are also some harsh vocals used on this album, but they are done so bad I wonder why they used them at all. Same for the spoken voice and "gang vocals". Both the hars and the group vocals sound like the person(s) singing them are trying just a little too hard. I must add that the harsh vocals sound much better live by the way. Luckily.

If it wasn't for the excellent keyboards/symphonies, and I admit some guitar parts are decent too, this album would get an even lower rating. Those keys add a little variation without ruining the songs and add a little bit of atmosphere to the otherwise dull and generic songs.

To go short: technically, the songs are performed well. The songs are just bad, boring and so on.

According to an article online, bands like Kamelot and Sonata Arctica should watch out, for Serenity is coming! If you ask me, that's bullshit. This band is nothing special. This album is not even worth the few euros I paid for it. Period.