CD Info
2012
Unsigned
9  Tracks
English Lyrics

Austria is not the first country that one thinks of when they think of Metal. And certainly not Female Fronted Progressive Metal. But now, I have learned to never assume anything when it comes to metal. There are very passionate people everywhere in the world and they seem to find other passionate people, no matter where they live. I didn't really find Siren's Cry, they were just there like that dandelion in your front yard that you never really stop to appreciate until one day, it catches your attention and you are like, "WOW, why did I not notice you before?" I got to know Katie Joanna through face book and then I met the band's manager, Sascha de Bose on face book as well. We became good friends while talking and well wishing one another and then one day, they said " We have a band and we want to know what you think." So I said "OK , sure" and WOW, what a jewel hidden in the forest this band is! It's hard to believe that they are not signed to any record company as of yet.

Their album, "Scattered Horizons", which is slated for a Spring 2012 release date, is full of catchy rhythms and guitar riffs that keep the listener guessing what will come next. The songs are complex, yet melodic. Katie's clean, non-operatic vocals fit nicely on top of Philip Porter's guitar playing, which dominates the mix on most songs. Frederic Brunner, who was recently endorsed by TAMA Drums, is one of today's best newcomers and on most of the songs, I was left wanting the drums mixed a little louder. If you are able to single out different elements of a song, it would be in your best interest to pay attention to how complex the drumming truly is. I will have to admit that I was not happy with the snare drum sound because it sounds like it is tuned too tight, but then again, I am a child of the 80's and we like big snare drum sounds. Michael Siskov's keyboard playing is also outstanding and I feel like the keyboards were used very smart on the whole album. It's a tricky undertaking to have keyboards in a metal band in the first place, so when you find a band who knows how to take advantage of the keyboards and not use them too much, then you have a smart metal band and Siren's Cry did a great job incorporating the keyboards in the songs. As far as the bass guitar goes, Soren Skupien does a great job as well. He holds the songs together without a lot of flash and that is sometimes the best kind of bass player to have.

A couple of songs from the album that stood out to me included a song called "Oratory & Sins". The guitar is what I like the most about this song. Its a heavy, riff filled tune, with little nuggets of awesome inside. There is this one part in the song that has almost a Mission Impossible style riff that I thought was a great surprise and then in the middle of the song is this slow, heavy riff that demands that your head involuntarily head bang. MAN, that's a dirty riff!

Another song that I really enjoy is a song called "Elegy of R_lyeh". This song has so many parts and styles musically tied together, that it almost takes on the life of a movie soundtrack. It starts off with a dramatic spoken verse, then kicks in a heavy guitar riff, followed by some mellow keyboards. This song pulls out all of the proggy punches with odd time signatures and a choir in the chorus. It gets really interesting in the breaks. The first break is a scale modulation into a good ole genuine jazz song. How they pulled that off , I have no clue but it works. Then in true Frank Zappa form, we are spiraled down back into the prog riffs with a flurry of scales and punches. Then, when you think you have heard it all, BAM, there is a majestic choir. Holy cow this song is a roller coaster of awesome.

Other songs include, S3V3N, and Draconian Spectrum to name a few. Over all, this is a great freshman ,full length, album from Siren's Cry. I am still not a big Progressive Metal fan even after listening to this album but I do appreciate the musicianship that is involved. Seeing how many notes one can hit in one measure of obscure and outrageous time signatures is something that most will not enjoy because it requires too much thinking. Most people just want to rock out but I am very impressed, from a musician's point of view, with the skills that Siren's Cry display on their album. If you are a fan of fast phalange frolicking, then you will want to get this album as soon as it is released. Strong points of the album are good musicianship, and songs cleverly written with unexpected musical ideas tied together. Weak points are the overall mix between the vocals and the guitars and other instruments. The guitar is too dominate most of the time but some will like this. But don't take my word for it, get yourself a copy of Siren's Cry "Scattered Horizons" as soon as it is released and judge for yourself.

8.5 / 10

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