I think I’ve lost Diabulus In Musica a bit out of sight, since the last album I’ve heard was ‘The Wanderer’. I was glad when I found out that they were releasing their new album ‘Euphonic Entropy’ on Valentine’s Day. Zuberoa Aznarez (vocals) and Gorka Elso (keys) were inspired by all the wonderful, yet chaotic emotions the birth of their second child brought them. The style of the album cover is recognizable and typical for Diabulus In Musica. It shows us a woman who, according to my interpretation, shows her true face.

‘Euphonic Entropy’ starts with an intro with drums and also reveals that they have added some modern technological sounds to this album. The intro is calm and bursts out in the first song ‘Race To Equilibrium’ that immediately gives me a feeling of familiarity with the band. A firm tempo, Zuberoa‘s warm voice and the support of the choir. The symphonic sound characteristic of Diabulus In Musica is also present.

It quickly becomes clear that ‘Euphonic Entropy’ is a very varied album. Zuberoa uses in the first three songs only her alt voice. It’s only from ‘In Quest From Sense’ that she uses her soprano voice. As a mezzo-soprano you can go in many directions and she makes full use of that. There are also a few songs on the album sung in Basque like ‘Nuevo Rumbo’ and ‘Otoi’.

Also musically there is a lot of variation. Diabulus In Musica uses different rhythms. There are a few ballads and ‘Our Last Gloomy Dance’ has the rhythm of a waltz. The song that stands out the most is ‘The Misfit’s Swing’. It’s about how hard it is to be yourself in a world where everyone is telling you how you should behave to fit in. It has a nice, old fashioned sound, some kind of swing with a metal twist.

I mentioned earlier that Diabulius In Musica has given a modern touch to this album. ‘One Step Higher’ is the song on ‘Euphonic Entropy’ in which they have experimented the most. I always think it’s positive when a band wants to push their limits by trying new things, but in this song they’ve gone a bit wrong. At first it sounds like the other songs, but suddenly there are computer made sounds. On top of that it sounds very commercial. It is a nice song in some kind of way, but it seems to me it’s more like a song Amaranthe would bring.

I really like what Diabulus In Musica created. They have really pushed their boundaries in making ‘Euphonic Entropy’. I don’t understand Basque, but I do understand English. The songs are indeed about all the emotions a new life brings, and I think they even tried to write some songs from a child’s perspective. Thank you Diabulus In Musica for this amazing Valentine’s present.

Release date: February 14, 2020
Label: Napalm Records
Tracklist:

1. Lucid Chaos
2. Race To Equilibrium
3. Nuevo Rumbo
4. The Misfit’s Swing
5. In Quest Of Sense
6. Otoi
7. Blurred Dreams
8. On The Edge
9. Our Last Gloomy Dance
10. One Step Higher
11. Blind Muse
12. In The Vortex