Delain: album reviews and ratings

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Reviews & Recommendations

	Delain

Artist Listing:

S - Z

Line-up:
Charlotte Wessels (vocals)
Martijn Westerholt (music, keyboards)

Guest musicians on 'Lucidity':
Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation)
Marko Hietala (Nightwish)
Liv Kristine (Leaves' Eyes, ex-Theatre of Tragedy)
Ad Sluijter (Epica)
Jan Yrlund (ex-Lacrimosa)
George Oosthoek (ex-Orphanage)
Guus Eikens (ex-Orphanage)
Ariën van Weesenbeek (God Dethroned)

"Delain is a unique gothic rock project initiated by (ex-Within Temptation) keyboardist Martijn Westerholt. He has surrounded himself with a number of extremely talented musicians such as Finnish bassist Marko Hielata (Nightwish, Tarot), guitarist Jan Yrlund (ex-Lacrimosa) and Norwegian vocalist Liv Kristine (ex-Theatre of Tragedy, Leaves' Eyes). A number of renowned Dutch rock musicians contributed to the project as well: singer Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation), guitarist Ad Sluyter (Epica), drummer Ariën van Weezenbeek (God Dethroned) and singer George Oosthoek and guitarist Guus Eikens (ex-Orphanage). Delain has room for new talent as well: the young and relatively unknown singer Charlotte Wessels (ex-To Elysium) contributed most of the vocals on the album.

-- -Delain Bio, delain.nl

Delain Discography - Album / CD Reviews

2006: Lucidity
Track listing: 01. Sever 02. Frozen 03. Silhouette Of A Dancer 04. No Compliance 05. See Me In Shadow 06. Shattered 07. The Gathering 08. Daylight Lucidity 09. Sleepwalkers Dream 10. Day For Ghosts 11. Pristine 12. Deep Frozen (Bonustrack)

"Despite the fact that Delain is, first and foremost, a project, Martijn and the talented Charlotte Wessels make up the core of the band. Martijn wrote most of the songs, whereas the characteristic voice of Charlotte gives Delain its own identity. (...) 'Lucidity' contains some interesting duets: Liv Kristine sings with Marko Hielata on Day For Ghosts and with Charlotte on See Me In Shadow. Sharon den Adel's distinctive voice is a great counterpart to Marko's intense vocals on No Compliance, whereas the heavy grunts of George Oosthoek combine very well with Charlotte's peaceful voice on a number of other tracks."

-- Delain Bio, delain.nl, 06

"The project is fronted by Charlotte Wessels (ex-To Elysium), who put down one of the most remarkable performances on this disc, amidst the international professionals who co-operated. Try reading this without drooling: Marco Hietala (Nightwish, Tarot) on bass and vocals, Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation) and Liv Kristine (Leaves’ Eyes, ex-Theatre Of Tragedy) on guest vocals and Epica’s Ad Sluijter and Jan Yrlund (ex-Lacrimosa) on guitars. The work of the above bunch and several other musicians listed elsewhere on this page has resulted in a powerful, dreamy, symphonic and gothic opus that just can’t be ignored by the international media and record buying public. Not a weak song on the tracklist and instant classics as opener Sever, the mysterious No Compliance feat. den Adel and Hietala, the beautiful Wessels-Kristine duet See Me In Shadow, the very melodic The Gathering that is representative for Wessel’s and Hietala’s splendid performances throughout the whole disc and the heavy, up-tempo Day For Ghosts, another solid Wessels/Hietala co-operation. Combining the best of After Forever, Within Temptation and Epica with a hint of Nightwish brilliance, Martijn Westerholt has struck a gold mine. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome Holland’s best gothic metal export!"

-- SL, rockreport.be, 10/06

¾ 2009: April Rain
Tracklisting: 01. April Rain 02. Stay Forever 03. Invidia 04. Control the Storm 05. On the other side 06. Virtue and Vice 07. Go Away 08. Start Swimming 09. Lost 10. I’ll reach you 11. Nothing Left

"(...) Charlotte Wessels, thankfully, is no Tarja Turunen; she does not have that high pitched range that only dogs can hear. Rather, her vocals are more grounded being earthy and accessible. Some of the best pieces on 'April Rain' are when Wessels is allowed to shine including Start Swimming and the bonus track Come Closer. Yet, with these fine bravos, 'April Rain' still posed a dilemma for me. There is nothing new here; there is nothing that distinguished Delain from the massive pack of other bands in the genre. Ironically, the best songs on the album, Control The Storm and Nothing Left, feature Marco Hietala of Nightwish (without the growls). What's going on here? Is this a nod to forbears and peers, or simply a need for approval from the same? I'll give you a moment or two to ponder that. With this said, and to further the dilemma, I truly enjoyed this work. It may not be in my current rotation for long, but it was satisfying like that first cup of coffee brewed from your favorite brand first thing in the morning: pleasing, but redundant. To conclude, Delain's sophomore effort 'April Rain' only demonstrates that they have found and are securing their position as the premier second generation symphonic heavy metal band. Essentially, Delain has become the new Nightwish without the nightmarish ear-splitting vocals. What the do, they do well. But we've heard it before."

-- Craig Hartranft, dangerdog.com, 3/09

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Recommended Links:

The Official Delain site
Delain on Myspace