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Andrew’s Judgmental Album Reviews: Delain – Dark Waters (2023)

Delain has a new lineup, and the JAR doesn’t hit too much Symphonic Metal. So lets see how this fairs in judgment!

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So a little set up for this one, since I’ve been aware of the band for years. We have here, a Symphonic Metal Band in a similar vein to Within TemptationAmarantheNightwish, and that general sound. However, my general disinterest was because they cropped up at a time when there were a ton of female fronted Symphonic Metal bands. So early 00s being a saturation of a certain sound; this band never really stood out to me.

Then in 2021 they broke up for like 5 months, and the founding keyboardist rebuilt the lineup. We have a mixture of new and old faces on this album, a new singer and yes, the most recent single Moth to a Flame; intrigued me, if for no other reason then what the chord progression of the chorus sounds like.

Now you’re caught up enough, the band has been around nearly 20 years in some iteration, if you like Epica, you probably won’t hate this. So lets do the band intro and get to the review!

Delain is: Martjin Westerholt (Keyboards), Sander Zoer (Drums), Ludovico Cioffi (Backing Vocals, Bass, Harsh Vocals), Ronald Landa (Guitar, Harsh Vocals), Diana Leah (Lead Vocals)

  • Artist: Delain
  • Album: Dark Waters (2023)
  • Label: Napalm Records
  • Total Track Time: 48:00

Hideaway Paradise is definitely on the nose with the title. Musically its a little too mid tempo for my personal liking as an opening song; but it does have a nice victorious vibe and feeling within the arrangement. While the lyrics are open enough to the severity of the separation and feeling of being on the edge, the hiding away from your problems concept is valid and comes across clearly. “Feel the distance grow, Between two hearts that lose touch in the crowd, The storm is bearing down, Whispered echoes call me down” – again severity is a little murky, but the overall uplifting instrumentation takes a song that could be depression encapsulated and leaves it feeling hopeful. The Quest and The Curse is one of those song that contrasts the clean female vocal with the harsh male vocal for effect the concept of struggling to find ‘their Neverland’. But with the choir breakdown and the orchestral influences trills and flairs; the song comes off more like poor man’s Planet Hell. Reductive, sure, but I can’t find myself not sticking on that song comparison. Beneath (feat Paolo Ribaldini) is honestly a very rhythm/groove driven song and its either about drowning or some underwater/sinking imagery for confronting things far beneath. While sometimes I like vague lyrics, these are a little too vague. The sounds cool, and its definitely a solid single, but any depth the lyrics could’ve added feels like they missed the mark a little.

Mirror of Night has an almost Castlevania vibe with the prominent drum drive and a haunting symphony that compliments lyrics that are actually pretty clever. Mirror of Night gets across the imagery of night time bringing in constant thoughts be it reliving regretful actions that you replay or just the mind racing a million miles an hour concept. The haunting arrangement definitely helps get across that concept of night time lucid dream level of not being able to shake thoughts. Tainted Hearts is…uninspired. It just kinda stays in a boring and ethereal tempo until the chorus, and that doesn’t really excite the palate. Its really just empty calories, every generic symphonic song ever. The Cold opens like more of a wartime vibe. Lyrically this song sounds like Within Temptation and H.I.M. had a baby; and I’m not sure how I feel about it. While not objectively a bad song, it does the same thing for me as the last song, nothing. Toward the end is a bit of an orchestral breakdown, but this fails to evoke anything from me beyond the desire to get more coffee to stay awake.

Moth to a Flame is a song that at the start, all I can say is, ‘Yes, I can’t unhear Cascada Everytime We Touch either’. Lyrically its all about someone who’s drawn to someone else like a moth to a flame. Musically it is very pop oriented, like Amaranthe levels of pop music. Its still catchy and not terrible, but if Pop music makes you cringe…avoid this one. Queen of Shadow at least does what the title implies, bringing a darker and heavier tonal shift. This song also does a lot of different things for the album, there’s a great guitar and keyboard harmony and the chorus uses clean male gang vocals reminding me a little bit of Avantasia. So the song sets itself apart as unique and interesting, so we’re building well to the end of the album. Invictus (feat Marko Hietala) just off who’s on the feature I’m excited. Marko is the most well known Bassist and Male Vocalist for Nightwish, also rose to prominence with Tarot. So I’m immediately intrigued because the song is mid tempo, but I love the layered vocal effect they do with Diana and Marko. Its not really backing vocals, its choral part work that gets layered very nicely onto each other. I’m not really paying attention to the lyrics as caught up in the arrangement and musical choices they made for this. Oh Marko does get some solo singing with the bridges. Given that last year he officially retired from full activity and only agreed to finish out promises and do a few special one offs; I’m going to value the Marko content we get in the coming years. Underland has a nice menacing color to the music, and the lyrics being a Underworld hellscape of Wonderland (like the Alice in variety), it makes the song interesting. Dark and looming the song at least ends the album in a more ‘heavy’ vein, but it leaves a little to be desired still.

So I feel like the Disney/fairy tale lyrical content and some arrangements that harken back a little too closely to Nightwish may hurt the general appeal. While none of the music was inherently bad, a lot of it was boring, far too much mid tempo and felt like it turned further into the pop elements than symphonic. Now that’s not to discredit the songs that were pretty damn good. Just the album felt more average with a few standouts.

Much like the Annette years with Nightwish, it may take more than the first album to really click. Invictus, Moth to a Flame, Mirror of Night and Queen of Shadow are gems for different reasons. Not a complete mess, but not as far above average as I was hoping for.

 

Final Judgment: 6/10

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Bandwagon Nerds

Bandwagon Nerds #276: Do You Style Your Moustache?

The Nerds continue their review of Season 3 of Invincible, review Captain America: Brave New World, and check out trailers for Thunderbolts*, and others!

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Bandwagon Nerds Mario

This week, your favorite Nerds continue their review of Season 3 of Invincible. Mark Grayson deals with all sorts of issues in these past two Episodes, including time travel, a stubborn half-brother, mystery probes, and falling in love. Meanwhile, Allen the Alien and the artist formerly known as Omni Man continue to develop mutual respect….and a big secret of the Viltrum Empire is revealed. The MCU returned in a big way this week as Captain America: Brave New World debuted. All the guys saw it, and they give you their honest reviews of the latest offering from Kevin Fiege and company. Is this the movie to get the MCU back on track? Tune in and find out. Plus, the guys take an extended trip to the Trailer Park to look at trailers for Thunderbolts*, Full Swing Season 3, Friendship, Twisted Metal Season 2, and much more.

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About Chairshot Radio Network

Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!

 MONDAY – Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)

TUESDAY – Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)

WEDNESDAY – The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling) 

THURSDAY – Keeping the news ridiculous… The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)

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Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE’s PPV/PLE history)

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About Chairshot Radio Network

Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!

 MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)

TUESDAY - Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)

WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling) 

THURSDAY - Keeping the news ridiculous... The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)

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Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)

TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends

Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5

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Bandwagon Nerds

Bandwagon Nerds #275: Master of Porpoise

The Nerds begin their review of Season 3 of Invincible and look at the latest trailers for Final Destination, Jurassic World, and the Fantastic 4!

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Bandwagon Nerds Mario

Your favorite Nerds are back…and so is Invincible! Amazon Prime dropped the first 3 Episodes of Season 3, and the guys recap Episodes 1 and 2 for you here. Mark Grayson wrestles with some complex things in these first two Episodes, including his feelings for Eve, his mistrust of Cecil, and his half-brother developing powers. The guys bring you their thoughts and impressions of these first two Episodes here as the stage for an epic third season has undoubtedly been set. The guys also take a quick trip to the Trailer Park to look at Final Destination: Bloodlines, Jurassic World: Rebirth, and, most importantly, the first trailer for Fantastic Four: First Steps. Does death run in the family? Can Scarlet Johannson make the Jurassic Park franchise great again? And does the first Fantastic Four trailer give the guys hope…or reasons to be concerned? Tune in and find out.

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  • @ViolentAesop
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  • @therealcplatt
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  • @BandwagonNerds

PROWRESTLINGTEES.COM/TheChairshot – Makes a GREAT GIFT!!!

About Bandwagon Nerds

Join Patrick O’Dowd, David Ungar, PC Tunney, Rey Cash, and DPP as they keep everyone up on all things nerd, and maybe add some new nerds along the way. It’s the Bandwagon Nerds Podcast!

About Chairshot Radio Network

Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!

 MONDAY – Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)

TUESDAY – Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)

WEDNESDAY – The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling) 

THURSDAY – Keeping the news ridiculous… The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)

FRIDAY – DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)

SATURDAY – The Mindless Wrestling Podcast

SUNDAY – The Front and Center Sports Podcast 

CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS

Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE’s PPV/PLE history)

TheChairshot.com PRESENTS…IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends

The 5X5 w/ Patrick O’Dowd

Classic POD is WAR

 


Chairshot Radio Network
Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts… Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!

All Shows On Demand

Listen on your favorite platform!

iTunes  |  iHeart Radio  |  Google Play  |  Spotify
Listen, like, subscribe, and share!

Bandwagon Nerds

About Chairshot Radio Network

Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!

 MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)

TUESDAY - Musical Chairs (music) / Hockey Talk (NHL)

WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling) 

THURSDAY - Keeping the news ridiculous... The Oddity / Chairshot NFL (NFL)

FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)

SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast

SUNDAY - The Front and Center Sports Podcast 

CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS

Attitude Of Aggression Podcast & The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history)

TheChairshot.com PRESENTS...IMMEDIATE POST WWE PLE REACTIONS w/ DJ(Mindless), Tunney(DWI) & Friends

Patrick O'Dowd's 5X5

Classic POD is WAR


Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!

All Shows On Demand


Powered by RedCircle


Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!
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