SACRE EMBRACE

Revue par Clare B

Forgotten Tales – All The Sinners

I’m delighted to hear such a talented Power Metal band from Canada. In this country, aggressive and extreme styles tend to dominate the scene, so Forgotten Tales is very refreshing. Catchy melodies, fantastic orchestrations and high energy lace the album. The compositions are densely layered, wit a strong attention to detail—the sort of effort where you know every note was considered, whether or not you end up agreeing with their choice. Thankfully, the production is stellar—there are big-name bands who lack this kind of clarity.

“All the Sinners” is also high in emotional content, thanks to the compositions, lyrics and performances. Typically I don’t go in for lyrics concerning themselves with druids, magic and so forth—yet for some reason I feel strangely drawn to the band’s lyrical content and style. Another point of interest is the format of the record—it’s conceptual. Sort of. It seems that the first six songs make up a mini-concept album, while the ensuing three tracks are completely unrelated, though of course fit musically quite well. I have to say that the concept bit is my favorite, and I rather wish it had continued throughout the album. Nevertheless, I enjoy “All the Sinners” from start to finish. The storyline chronicles what I assume to be Christians trying to wipe out the Pagan population… except that the Pagans in this story have a far nicer ending that the ones in history, which I like—hey, us MetalHeads are usually rooting for the Pagans!

Another irresistible component is the band itself. All members are talented and full of energy. I’m sure that anyone who knows Forgotten Tales won’t hesitate to praise singer Sonia Pineault. There’s nothing more disappointing than a boring Power Metal singer—but thank the gods, Pineault doesn’t have to worry about that. I’m convinced she has pipes of steel. Not only does she have an incredible, beautiful and distinctive voice, but also a capacity for relating emotion. She really helps make the album as good as it is. And from what I’ve heard of their first album, this second release has improved upon its vocal melodies, which is always a plus (and in fact it seems they’ve improved overall).

The best tracks in my opinion are one through six, as well as the un-conceptual “Fairytales.” There truly are no bad songs present. Actually, I think the only problem I have with “All the Sinners” is that some songs end rather abruptly. At times this fits, but I was frustrated in the case of “March for Freedom” for instance, one of my favorites… that utterly fantastic chorus needs to repeat again at the end, but it doesn’t… perhaps not the biggest deal in the world, but it’s a bit maddening when you just want to hear that refrain fade out.

Note : 9/10