Tears of Martyr gives us the Gothic Death Metal, and it gives it to us in a truly dark format, with one of the most beautiful operatic female vocals in the genre. And it ties it to some memorable death metal vocals, over a first rate hard metal musical vehicle. I mean, after all, who gave us the infamous Inquisition? If a band from Madrid can’t give us a little darkness encompassed in black leather and flowing over a heavenly literary vehicle, who can? And, if you take the time to view this troop in concert, for instance, on several of their YouTube videos, you quickly become acquainted with this vision. . . and the sound that accompanies it. There’s enough black leather to cloth a regiment of dark legionnaires from head to foot, and the music reflects this darkness. If you follow the Spanish Gothic scene at all, you recognize it for some of the visually darkest performers in the genre. . and some of the finest sopranos working in the industry. Here, that soprano is delivered by the lovely Berenice Musa. Her voice rarely strays from the classic operatic soprano, and usually the highest ranges of that format. If you really value the true operatic, and I do, this is about as good as it gets. Berenice can belt it out at the top of the range about as well as anyone. That soprano is positioned against another truly memorable vocal, the death vocal contributed by Miguel Angel. And Angel is truly a dark angel, both in voice and look. His live performances see him clothed in a long black leather coat, with looks straight from that Inquisition we mentioned earlier. If he ever gets tired of this gig, he’s a natural for a SERE position. (If you don’t know what SERE is, look it up, my former gig) This guy could give waterboarding a good name. And his vocals reflect the look; they are outstanding and mesh perfectly with the heavenly vocals coming from the other direction. Angel does occasionally go with the straight male vocal, and he’s strong in that pursuit as well. But, it’s his death metal vocals that shine most clearly. The remaining members of the band include J M Astur on guitars and Doramus on drums. Someone is doing some symphonics as well, but that appears to be another dark secret. The two musicians on drums and guitars continue with the Spanish Inquisition visual look and do a memorable job of it. All in all, this is dark music presented by a dark musical entity, and done well.

Entrance begins with. . .well, an Entrance. This seems to be the fashion these days. You have to prove that you can do classical material in a straight format before getting down to business and T of M demonstrate the ability with some flare. But, as the last notes of the keyboard delivered symphonic interlude begin to fade we are taken directly into the thundering guitar line that delivers the death vocals that drive this Spanish sound. That direction continues over several bars until interrupted by the ethereal vocals of Berenice. The guitars continue to dominate as the dark interplay continues between our two primary vocalists. There are some overlaid vocals that approximate a chorus but these only last for a short duration. The music is dominated by the interplay of the dark male vocals against the searing soprano. . . this is the Tears of Martyr sound and it’s truly outstanding.

The use of the Spanish Inquisition as a metaphor is probably not all that much of a reach for this work. There are some really strange sound patterns utilized throughout several of the titles. The Book of Blood is one of these. There is the clear approximation of a house of horrors that introduces the music; we wonder where we are early on before the music moves to the more traditional death metal vocal. However, even the soprano goes in directions that defy description on this selection. It’s hard to imagine an operatic vocal taking us to the land of the mentally infirm, but Berenice can take us to strange places. And, the accompanying music helps us voyage to this strange land as well; it’s a visit to Wonderland, albeit a Wonderland that hangs on the fringes of sanity.

Much as I love the interplay of the death vocal with the operatic, there are times when the operatic needs to carry the action. Evil Domini has a focus on the female lead and it takes a more conservative approach. This comes close to pure opera. . .although the guitars do, at times, remind us that we are in Metal land. Berenice has a vocal that can take us in multiple directions, but those directions typically follow the music rather than the other way around. When the music wants us to visit demon land, it takes us there and the soprano is there to accompany us.

Lyrically, Entrance is not a pretty message. The themes are historical, war related and pure sorrow. Pretty much what you expect from the Inquisition. The CD art reflect this perspective. It’s beautiful artwork, in a dark "Matrix" kind of way. . .a Spanish Matrix at that. Ballad for a Tortured Soul reflects this direction. The title begins with a morose piano introduction. We then move to a beautiful full orchestration that carries the keyboard. Berenice then takes us to full opera mode, with a song of sorrow, a lament of the soul. This is beautiful music, but music that tugs at the fabric of life. Berenice sings:

Now, if that ain’t Gothic, I just don’t know what is.

This softer direction carries through on several other titles, at least on parts of them. T of M often begins with a softer more atmospheric introduction before unleashing the guitars. A New Design carries through on this approach. This is one of the more ethereal selections, and one of the more darkly religious lyrical offerings. There is the constant symphonic quality to this title, but it drives a message that takes the Biblical into a Gothic setting. The vocal begins with a dire warning and an observation. We hear the New Testament description of the beginning; it’s hopes and aspirations. We hear the wanting of the classic Christian message. But it fades, it moves both musically and lyrically to the darker interpretation that is the message of Tears of Martyr:

In the end, it’s a debate between the dark and the light. And we are left to decide.

T of M takes a variety of roads to convey their message. There is the monolog, the dialog, the various interplays between the musical vocals. The one constant is the drive to format a message, a dark message. And the corresponding constant is to deliver that message in a truly beautiful musical vehicle.

The Spanish Gothic scene is alive and well... and the Inquisition never looked better. As is written on the back cover of the CD booklet:

Amen to that.

9.5 / 10