by Joe Mis
– Senior Columnist —
Operatic songstress Sonja Perenda has recently released her second full length album, and is building a fan base that now spreads well outside of her native Austria. Sonja’s Winter Eyes is the follow up to her well-received 2012 debut Time Has Come. Not changing her style at all on album two, Perenda’s music continues to be traditional Rock and Metal with some operatic flourishes – but the solid old-school musical base is never dominated by operatic elements. Blending heavy guitars and catchy hooks with strong vocals and classical influences, Sonja produces something unique – operatic but without the overused “metaphysical” or “mystical” trappings that tend to be at the core of symphonic metal.
Sonja has been performing for a number of years, and her experience shows in both performance and songwriting. Sonja can definitely crank it to 11 when she chooses to do so, but normally keeps her power tuned down so she remains clear and understandable throughout. She is joined by producer and multi-instrumentalist Tom Shevchuk – who plays almost all instruments, and guitarist John Slater (Blaze Bayley) – who contributes the lead guitar solos on 7 of the 9 tracks.
“Call Of Freedom” opens the album with a longish instrumental passage (perhaps just a little bit too drawn out) and becomes a mid-tempo Progressive rocker. Beautiful keys and choral vocals comprise the Intro piece to “The Player” – a soft rocker that highlights the emotional power and passion of Sonja’s vocals. A touch of theatrics (think TSO, not Andrew Lloyd Webber) seems to light up the opening bars of the fascinating “Victim Of A Miracle,” a tune with some interesting lyrical concepts and contrasts – and some fine guitar work. “You Had It All” is all theater and would be right at home on Broadway. Sonja’s voice runs from almost spoken to operatic, and there are a number of well done self-harmonies and layers making this track quite different from the others on the album. “No More” is a reflective, low-key Blues rocker with gritty lyrics and superb performances by all – easily the best on the album.
“Time Has Come” brings the heavy guitars and pounding rhythms back to the fore. Layered guitars and synths blend with bass and drums to provide the driving force, and the delivery is quite cinematic and just a bit over-the-top (in a good way). “Silent Screams” brings back a darker, more operatic tone and couples it with heavy guitars and pounding rhythms. “Wasting My Time” is very dark and brooding, defintely flirting with the Gothic genres. Sonja pulls off some nice harmony vocals on this keyboard driven track. “Winter Eyes” is a 10 minute plus epic track that starts as a slow, smokey, Blues-rock track loaded with Jazz guitar and piano, making a superb contrast to the previous song. Sonja’s voice is soft and sensual throughout, proving her to be a true singer in every sense of the word, and the performances of Shavchuk and Slater are jaw-droppingly good.
The mix is quite good, the only flaws being a slight wash out of the bottom end bass and drums – some of the more theatrical tracks just beg for a bit more punch from the low end. On the whole the mix does a nice job of balancing the strength of the vocals with the flow of the instruments. Shevchuk proves to be a solid musician (and a good songwriter), and the always fiery but controlled solos by Slater complete the package.
Sonja Perenda’s Winter Eyes picks up where Time Has Come left off. The music is a unique blend of classic Blues Rock with the operatic. The new album leans even closer to the classic Rock end of the spectrum, and Perenda’s vocla style is a breath of fresh air. If you are a fan of operatic Rock or strong female vocalists you owe it to yourself to check out Sonja Perenda’s music, as it is more accessible to the casual listener than much of the full-on operatic Metal that’s out there now. Perenda’s music remains melodic and varied throughout, keeping the listener involved and interested. Winter Eyes is recommended for fans of the operatic female-fronted metal genres.
Genre: Operatic Metal, Rock
Band:
Sonja Perenda (vocals)
Tom Shevchuk (all instruments & arrangements)
John Slater (lead guitar solos)
Track Listing:
1. Call Of Freedom
2. The Player Intro / The Player
3. Victim Of A Miracle
4. You Had It All
5. No More
6. Time Has Come
7. Silent Screams
8. Wasting My Time
9. Winter Eyes
Label: Independent
Website: http://www.sonjaperenda.com/
Hardrock Haven rating: 8/10
