Avatarium is much more than Leif Edling’s female-fronted doom project.
With the greatest female hard rock voice out there (Jennie Ann Smith) and the majestic guitar playing of the experienced Marcus Jidell, Avatarium have in their ranks a couple (and in life also) capable of creating amazing music! And for the third time they manage to do it, with two new members (bass and keyboards) that perform greatly.
Let me make clear that the term doom can no longer be assigned to them, as only two tracks belong to the genre. With their third album, Avatarium surprise and fascinate, “finding” their sound and paying tribute to the hard rock of the 70’s. Far from the folk / blues doom of their great album “Girl With The Raven Mask”, the album opens with the up tempo “Into the fire/Into the storm”, a Deep Purple composition with nuggets of also Swedish Grand Magus, while “The Starless Sleep” that follows is the combination of Blue Oyster Cult and Abba (they are also 70’s, aren’t they?) and Jidell’s Blackmore solo is great. The first song not written by Leif Edling in the band’s history, “Road To Jerusalem”, which I believe Robert Plant would love to sing, is followed by the 9-minute progressive doom epic “Medusa Child” that simultaneously justifies the album’s cover and the doom characterization of the album. In the veins of “Sky of the bottom of the sea” flows Uriah Heep’s “Easy Livin” and the chorus is incredibly addictive and uplifting. “When Breath Turns To Air,” is written by Jidell about his father’s death. Following the pattern of “When A Blind Man Cries” this is the touching and sensitive moment of the album. Shortly before the end, “A kiss from the end of the world” is the only doom track that could have been included in their previous album. Very powerful, it leads us to the closure with the instrumental title song that confirms and reminds you of the 40 minutes gorgeous journey that you just experienced.
A model band that releases quality albums, evolves and performs great live as they proved in our country in 2016.
Surely in the top 5 of the year!
Alternative title: What if I am rock, do not fear me.
