Déjà-entendu - A review of Beyond the Black's Heart of the Hurricane

When I listened to Heart of the Hurricane for the first time, I wondered whether I had made a mistake and was listening to the solid predecessor Lost in Forever again. This statement actually tells us a lot about this record. Beyond the Black has found its own style focused on commercially successful female-fronted symphonic metal with mid-paced tracks around the four-minute mark. The songs are quite catchy and the choruses very melodic. However, despite their individual qualities, the mass of similarly fabricated tunes end up sounding repetitive, predictable and ultimately boring. It's quite an issue when such a young band already repeats itself on the third studio record. The fact that the live concert from Japan included in the limited boxed set is the best thing about this release speaks volumes as well.

A song that exemplifies this lack of ideas is bonus track ''Parade''. It seems to be stuck between symphonic metal stylistics and an attempt at soulful pop ballad. Beyond the Black tries to appeal both to fans of fragile pop music and to symphonic power metal supporters but the two genres are rarely compatible. This particular song feels directionless musically, the vocals are smooth, inoffensive and exchangeable and the tune is produced like an exchangeable routine product. The chorus is repeated to death in order to sound catchy but you will still forget it five minutes after you have listened to it.

One has to admit that the experienced song writing team around band leader and lead singer Jennifer Haben tries to come around with a few fresh ideas. ''For the Godless'' is supported by a bombastic symphonic score and also comes around with medieval instrumentation, aiming to appeal to new fans. The experiment works surprisingly well and shows the talent of the musicians involved as the final result sounds like a mixture of power metal project Avantasia and folk metal veterans In Extremo.

However, such successful experiments remain an exception on Heart of the Hurricane. This album sounds like a lighter version of the solid predecessor Lost in Forever. The production is professional, the musicianship is solid and the singer has improved her skills. Still, the song writing is bland and most of the tunes are forgettable. Heart of the Hurricane is neither a bad nor a good album. It's an unremarkable, tame and exchangeable plastic product save for very few exceptions. Fans of the band will like what they hear. If you miss the good old gothic pop days of Within Temptation, L'Âme Immortelle and Evanescence fifteen years ago, you should also give Beyond the Black a chance. If you ever wondered what Ed Sheeran with heavy rock guitars in a metalized pop outfit would sound like, you will get some answers here. If you look for creative song writing, energetic team spirit and unique songs to be remembered however, you should just ignore this bland effort. Similar bands like Amaranthe, Elvellon and even Kobra and the Lotus have much more oomph. These bands that are worth being labeled as such and not just casted extras surrounded by a selfish diva and greedy producers provide a much more organic and unique sound than this record. Don't be among those who get fooled into believing that this seemingly authentic band could be the next big thing in the symphonic metal scene.

Final rating: 60%