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Visions of Atlantis: Trinity
 Visions of Atlantis deserves credit for avoiding stereotypes. The Austrian sextet could easily have succumbed to the temptation of seemingly every other young symphonic-metal band and made soprano Melissa Ferlaak the lead singer. Instead, Visions of Atlantis shake up the female-fronted metal landscape with the addition of Mario Plank's vocals. But (and this is key) Plank sings in a clean, albeit often aggressive voice — not the half-grunted, half-growled male noises that usually accompany the typical femme fatales in lesser bands. And so it goes throughout the 48-minute running time of Trinity, the third album from Visions of Atlantis. Plank even seems to take over lead vocals on "Passing Dead End" and the ballad "The Poem," with Ferlaak backing him up. Dramatic rockers like "My Dark Side Home" and epic metal hymns such as "Return to You" and "Seven Seas" — along with plenty of other worthy tunes — help Visions of Atlantis restore some credibility (and pleasure) to a tired genre.
Track Listing:
1) At the Back of Beyond
2) The Secret
3) Passing Dead End
4) The Poem
5) Nothing Left
6) My Dark Side Home
7) Wing-Shaped Heart
8) Return to You
9) Through My Eyes
10) Flow This Desert
11) Seven Seas
Added: August 31st 2007
Reviewer: Michael Popke
Score: 
Related Link: Napalm Records
Hits: 2823
Language: english
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Visions of Atlantis: Trinity
Posted by Ken Pierce, SoT Staff Writer on 2007-08-31 13:15:33
My Score:
From the moment that Trinity by Visions Of Atlantis begins you will be blown away by their uncanny similarity to the classic sound of Finland's own superstars Nightwish. It is so much the case that when the first song "At The Back Of Beyond" begins that one would wonder if the group had slipped out some new music under a different name to trick their fan base. This was certainly not the case but Nightwish is truly part of the original inspiration for this Symphonic Power Metal band from Styria, Austria who formed and began playing music together in 2000. The energetic opening track offers big guitar, drums and keyboards along with a dueling clean male vocal against an operatic female one. Now before you groan in dismay at the thought of yet another Operatic Metal band fronted by a beautiful female lead singer let me tell you that Visions Of Atlantis is really something else when it comes down to it. Trinity is the bands third release and finds the group with an almost completely different roster from their original lineup so even those who thought they knew them before would find a need to re-educate themselves. I was surprised to have never heard them before this album but I was truly impressed with Melissa Ferlaak's powerful vocal register and stunning beauty. Her voice is commanding and powerful and yet at other times is quite passionate as well. "Passing Dead End" comes off like another Nightwish tune but it has such a solid groove and pounding rhythm section that you easily forgive the similarity. When "The Poem" starts we find a quasi-ballad number that features their male vocalist Mario Plank a little more prominently and its one of those songs that you know the lighters will be lit up for at a live show. "Nothing Left" is one of the catchiest numbers on the release and is quite possibly the tune that most people will remember on the chorus and the way the lyrics flow. By the time I reached "My Darkside Home" I was hooked on the band and perhaps it was the comparisons I was originally drawing in my Nightwish statement that made me focus harder and look into each song a little deeper. Ferlaak shows off her wonderful soprano abilities during "Return To You" and might have listeners reaching for a Kleenex during portions of the track. Listeners will find that her voice stands tall on its own and would work well when compared to those of her contemporaries in the genre. Needless to say I was really enjoying almost all of the tracks presented here.
Musically this band is on target and deliver a solid piece of Symphonic Metal that will most specifically appeal to the fans of bands like Epica, Sirenia, and oh yeah – Nightwish. The six member group finds the vocals of Ferlaak and Plank along with Mike Koren (bass), Wolf K. (guitars), Martin Harb (keyboards), and Thomas Caser (drums). As mentioned there were a number of lineup changes in the band since their inception, and as it stands Koren is the only original member who remains. I don't think there are many will mind once they are able to hear the secrets that "Trinity" holds in its melodies. Wolf K. rips as a guitarist and the keyboards of Martin Harb are nothing short of dramatic and epic across the album. This is powerful stuff that while at times was reminiscent of other groups still offers a tasty sense of originality. I feel that big things are in store for Visions Of Atlantis and that this release will go down in the bands own musical history as their signature work. This is a high recommendation and will not disappoint any fans of the genre.
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