Once upon a time
There was the prideful girl of Kolophon
Habitated in Lydia and all was fine.
She dared Athena
For a contest of weaving
Arakhne was arrogant and you could see a
mocking girl who found it not fair
So she killed herself and changed into a spider
All gone was the despair.
Picture – Source
The Greek band Enemy Of Reality released their second album Arakhne. The female fronted band plays symphonic metal and contains five members: Iliana (vocals), Steelianos (guitars), Thanos (bass), Philip (drums) and Leonidas (keyboards). They were formed in 2013 and released their debut album that year called Rejected Gods. Their new album is based on every day themes with the concept of ancient Hellenic mythology of the spider’s origins and creation (Orpheus and Eurydice). The band picture on their website and all images in the album contain elements to complement the spider’s theme.
With Martyr, the band gives a mysterious intro for the audience to long for more. It sounds a bit bombastic and it’s a fine start of the album.
The second song Reflected sounds more chaotic. The female singer is supported by the male singer, which is a nice combination. The vocals match each other and they use a lot of variation (rhythm, notes etc.). The difficulty listening to this song is that there are many inputs, you could feel like not knowing which line to follow first.
A more harmonic vibe is found in Weakness lies within. The song feels calmer. A nice element here is that the male singer uses his voice as background music, it gives that extra dimension to it. Iliana makes it seem so easy to take all the singing notes but what a difficulty!
Yet I’m stunned to witness bliss
To share with you one deadly kiss
I won’t accept this, fingers knit
of pride and insolence.
They must not forsake my name
My heart no longer shall I drain
I get this feeling, human as the weakness
lies within.
– Track Weakness lies within
Time Immemorial sounds more like the second track: more chaos in the music but here it feels more calm and structured. Here and there you can hear a nice musical piece, which in imagination can serve as music during a exciting shot of a movie or video game (the notes on the keyboard are an important part). An electronic vibe comes along, …which is surprising. It is good to hear they have been adding variation, but it does feel out of line when compared with the rest of the music.
In Nouthetisis, Iliana starts with a 38 second vocal solo (no music included). In a fraction of a second, the vibe gave me a flash-back to a song called The Obsessive Devotion (Epica). The strength of this song lies in the combination of a high female voice and the lower frequency of the male voice. The song has been brought up-tempo, followed by a technically good guitar solo. It feels like the song contains more layers of music, which makes it a bit difficult to hear the cohesion of the song.
Afraid no more starts out with the guitar and drum, noises are included and then the vocals are added. A constructive start has been made. The song is very cohesive (you clearly hear the uniqueness), fun to listen to although I felt my attention slipping away for a moment. This is a very subjective input, the song could’ve been shortened.
Showdown has more of that tragic tune, the brain receives the mysterious vibe of the music. The end of this song is spectacular, which I am not explaining. You’ll just have to hear it! Starting from track 8, the following ones are kind of comparable: they contain a fun rhythm, the singing and music are well tuned.
In general, the album is definitely recommended. The album Arakhne contains variation, cohesiveness, a big scantling of professionalism and a unique vibe. To watch the band play on stage, you can check their official website or facebook page. At this moment, no tour dates are added.
Release date: October 23, 2016
Label: FYB Records
Tracklist:
01. Martyr (01:42)
02. Reflected (feat Fabio Lione) (04:06)
03. Weakness Lies Within (04:19)
04. Time Immemorial (04:32)
05. Nouthetisis (feat Jeff Waters) (05:29)
06. Afraid No More (04:43)
07. Showdown (feat Chiara Mevestiti) (06:24)
08. The Taste Of Defeat (05:18)
09. In Hiding (04:33)
10. I Spare You (03:59)
11. A Gift Of Curse (04:16)
