{"id":34910,"date":"2013-11-20T22:37:19","date_gmt":"2013-11-21T03:37:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=34910"},"modified":"2014-02-08T08:38:47","modified_gmt":"2014-02-08T13:38:47","slug":"edens-curse-symphony-of-sin-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2013\/edens-curse-symphony-of-sin-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Eden\u2019s Curse | Symphony of Sin<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Ron Higgins<\/span>
\n– Columnist —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Eden\u2019sAfter taking a three year hiatus and losing founding member and band namesake Michael Eden, Eden\u2019s Curse are back with an impressive melodic metal masterpiece for their 4th full-length album.<\/p>\n

For the uninitiated, Eden\u2019s Curse began as a studio project back in 2006 when American vocalist Michael Eden teamed up with Scottish bassist Paul Logue to form a global group thanks to the advantages of living in a digital age. English drummer Pete Newdeck along with guitarist Thorsten Koehne and keyboardist Ferdy Doernberg from Germany completed the lineup. A year later they released their self-titled debut and legions of fans quickly took notice, including the likes of rock royalty James LaBrie and Bruce Dickinson, among others. The following year they released their sophomore follow-up Second Coming<\/em> which included their first foray into impressive guest appearances, including TNT\u2019s Tony Harnell and Pamela \u201cSister Mary\u201d Moore of Operation: Mindcrime fame. In 2009 they finally moved the band out of the studio and onto the road, including their inaugural U.S. show in Chicago at MelodicrockFest 2. It also saw the replacement of their keyboardist with Italian Alessandro Del Vecchio, which was the first of several big lineup changes. Their 3rd album Trinity<\/em> was released in 2011, featuring a duet with both LaBrie and Helloween\u2019s Andi Deris. Then the proverbial wheels fell off of the rock and roll bus when Eden quit the band and went on a legendary rant about other artists the likes of which would\u2019ve made Kevin DuBrow cringe. Existential meltdown notwithstanding, the band charged ahead and found a new vocalist, Italian Marco Sandron in 2012. He only lasted for two short appearances before he and the band mutually parted ways. Ten months later he was finally replaced by their current singer, Serbian born vocalist Nikola Mijic, from the European metal bands Alogia and Dreyelands. Additionally, the band recruited yet another keyboardist, Steve Williams (of influential Power Quest and Dragonforce fame). That brings us to 2013 where Nikola brings his new melodic vocal style to the band as they release their latest record.<\/p>\n

With the loss of the original vocalist, as well as his replacement, a new keyboard player and a three year absence, fans of Eden\u2019s Curse have been anxiously waiting to see what the next version of the band would sound like. Would it build on their last popular release? Would it retain classic elements from its past or would it be a radical departure as they chart their way into the future? Although the new release features 13 tracks, all of those questions were hinging on the opening, title track. At over seven minutes, it definitely falls into the vein of prog metal territory, especially with the symphonic opener consisting of a 46 piece orchestra. Visions of Stratovarius or Avantasia come quickly to mind but once the vocals kick in about a minute later it becomes clear that this is definitely a more melodic affair. Nicola\u2019s vocals are much smoother than Michael\u2019s with a more AOR sounding tone. He\u2019s more Joe Lynn Turner than Ronnie James Dio. The question is, does this new melodic vocal style work for Eden\u2019s Curse? Absolutely. The thunderous backbone of Logue\u2019s bass lines and Newdeck\u2019s thunderous beats mixed with Koehne\u2019s riffing fits in perfectly in the Eden\u2019s Curse playbook. As expected, the trademark harmonies and layered backing vocals are in full affect as well. After nearly eight minutes, Eden\u2019s Curse fans can now heave a sigh of nervous relief.<\/p>\n

Now that it\u2019s been established that the opening track is a winner, what about the rest of the album? Well, the second track, \u201cBreak the Silence\u201d, is another exceptional track. It starts with some hard driving guitar right from the onset. It features a cool riff and then some of Steve\u2019s tasty keys kick in. This song is a little harder and Nicola sings with a rougher metallic delivery. Koehne also performs a nice rockin\u2019 guitar solo in the middle. This is one of the more rockin\u2019 tunes on offer and is sure to please those who like a little more metal in their music. It\u2019s definitely vintage Eden\u2019s Curse.<\/p>\n

The next song, \u201cEvil & Devine\u201d is the first single and features a video shot at the famous church St. Andrews in the Square in Glasgow, Scotland. It\u2019s one of the more traditional sounding Curse songs on offer and is certain to be a fan favorite with its great hooks, impeccable harmonies and blistering guitar work. <\/p>\n

Next up is another highlight, \u201cUnbreakable\u201d. It has a driving rhythm but is a bit more mellow, wading into melodic AOR territory. Although it rocks at a slower pace it\u2019s still one of the better tracks and features one of the best guitar solos on the whole album. It certainly has commercial appeal and would be very radio friendly if it were 1989. Maybe if they added a rap breakdown midway through and filmed a naked girl riding on a big metal ball it could be in 2013 too.<\/p>\n

The next three songs lose a little steam as the band continues down the mellow path but still features moments of brilliance with some crushing hard rock. \u201cFallen from Grace\u201d is a classic power ballad that instantly evokes visions of Bon Jovi or Cinderella. \u201cLosing my Faith\u201d starts encouragingly enough but then slows way down to the tinkling sounds of ivory before kicking back up again. The next song, \u201cRock Bottom\u201d is definitely not a cover of the classic KISS tune but still pretty cool. Once again, it starts out with some promising guitar work but then mellows out, featuring a cool little piano and guitar breakdown in the middle. Towards the end Koehne starts shredding again, bringing it back up to its hard rocking promise. This is one of those tracks that gets better and better each time you hear it.<\/p>\n

Tracks eight through ten get interesting again with three more of the album\u2019s highlights. \u201cGreat Unknown\u201d is a more upbeat song with Williams\u2019 keyboards weaving its way throughout the song. \u201cTurn the Page\u201d is another catchy little tune that switches tempo throughout. It\u2019s not the classic that Bob Seger\u2019s song of the same is but it\u2019s pretty darn good. \u201cSign of the Cross\u201d features a pleasant rhythm and some amazing vocals too. Mijic really shines on this one. <\/p>\n

Wrapping up the album are \u201cWings to Fly\u201d, \u201cDevil in Disguise\u201d and \u201cWhere is the Love?\u201d \u201cWings to Fly\u201d is another mid-tempo rocker with some more strong keyboard work and crunching guitar. Williams and Koehne really play well off of each other throughout the album. Williams is certainly a welcome addition to the band. This is another track that should be getting lots of air play on the radio. Truly fantastic. \u201cDevil in Disguise\u201d (again, not to be confused with the classic Elvis tune \u2013 these guys really need to come up with some more creative titles!) is a hard-driving rocker with pounding double-bass drumming and features Nikola singing in a rougher tone that\u2019s more reminiscent of Michael Eden\u2019s more metal sounding voice. It\u2019s a nice up-tempo song that reminds the listener that these guys really do know how to rock.<\/p>\n

Finally, Eden\u2019s 4th album wraps up with another power ballad. It starts with some impressive acoustic guitar before slamming into high gear and then finding its ground with a slower, middle pace. The vocals are once again the highlight, this time finding Mijic in complete melodic rock territory with vocals that would sound at home on any Journey record.<\/p>\n

Overall, this is a very good album and clearly makes a statement to the rock world that, despite the loss of Michael Eden, Eden\u2019s Curse plan to carry on and not only survive but thrive. It also features stellar production work from the always reliable Dennis Ward. The only complaint is that it seems like the band might be suffering from a bit of an identity crisis. It\u2019s as if they\u2019re not sure if they want to be a hard rocking metal band or a more melodic hard rock band. It\u2019s the same struggle you see in bands like Journey and Survivor where excellent guitarists like Neal Schon and Frankie Sullivan are always trying to get their licks in and rock out while maintaining the AOR edge with the smooth vocals of Perry and Jamison. The difference is, Journey and Survivor clearly ARE melodic rock bands whereas Eden\u2019s Curse has traditionally been more of a power metal or melodic metal band. Some people may be turned off by the less metal edge to this release but equally as many people will be inspired by the new melodic vocals. Either way, Eden\u2019s Curse have maintained their reputation for being an awesome hard rock band for the 21st century and everyone will be waiting with bated breath to see what they come up with next.<\/p>\n

Genre: Melodic Heavy, Power Metal, Hard Rock<\/p>\n

Band:
\nThorsten Koehne – guitarist
\nPaul Logue – bassist
\nNikola Mijic – vocalist
\nPete Newdeck – drummer
\nSteve Williams – keyboardist<\/p>\n

Track Listing:
\n1.\tSymphony of Sin
\n2.\tBreak the Silence
\n3.\tEvil & Devine
\n4.\tUnbreakable
\n5.\tFallen from Grace
\n6.\tLosing My Faith
\n7.\tRock Bottom
\n8.\tGreat Unknown
\n9.\tTurn the Page
\n10.\tSign of the Cross
\n11.\tWings to Fly
\n12.\tDevil in Disguise
\n13.\t Where is the Love?<\/p>\n

Label: AFM Records<\/p>\n

Website:\twww.EdensCurse.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven Rating: 8.5\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Ron Higgins – Columnist — After taking a three year hiatus and losing founding member and band namesake Michael Eden, Eden\u2019s Curse are back with an impressive melodic metal masterpiece for their 4th full-length […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":34911,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8704],"tags":[2317,924,1103,1097],"class_list":{"0":"post-34910","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2013","8":"tag-cd-review","9":"tag-edens-curse","10":"tag-hard-rock","11":"tag-power-metal"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34910","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34910"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34910\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34911"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34910"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34910"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34910"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}