(Progressive/Power Metal) [CD] Syrens Call - Fantasea - 2000, FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

The debut album from French progressive metal band Syrens Call is entitled Fantasea (Booster Productions (France) 00, 2000). Comprised of 10 tracks, the album blends metal-edged guitar work with the stunning vocals of Valerie Paul. Four further artists comprise Syrens Call. They are Sйbastien Paul (Drums), Thibaut Coisne (Lead Guitar), Stйphane Thuriot (Rhythm Guitar), Eric Serre (Bass Guitar). Keyboard arrangements are by Syrens Call and guest Florence Genser contributes Alto (vocals) and violin. We caught up with Seb and Val during the preparation of our review and interviewed them for this article.

Nine of Fantasea's ten tracks are Syrens Call originals. The tenth is a stunning Syrens Call arrangement the metal ballad "I Still Love You." While the instrumentals are quite dynamic, Valйrie steals the song with her soaring—Lisa Bouchelle-style—vocals. Her vocals are mixed way up for this track, much higher than the other tracks of the album. Two versions of the band's "Far Away"—one recorded in their own Booster Productions studio and the other in LB Labs by S. Buriez and F Jamin—are included on the album to demonstrate the differences in recording between the two venues. Musical Discoveries editors preferred the LB Labs version because Valйrie's vocals are more clearly evident in the final mix.
Fantasea opens with the vocally-intensive track "Brave Hearts." Orchestral keyboard textures underscore the metal-edged sounds of rhythm and lead guitars. The guitar solos during the instrumental bridge clearly illustrates Thibaut and Stйphane's virtuosity. Valйrie's vocal similarity to Lisa Bouchelle is immediately evident and absolutely gorgeous, but blended heavily with the instrumentals, the lyrics are often lost in the arrangements.

Mastering credits are omitted from the liner notes and as a self-produced album, might contribute to the general lack of individual instrument and vocal imaging. While we adore the music on the album, we found the production of the album to be a bit of a drawback and won't belabor our discussion with this any further.

"The Storm" begins gentler, with keyboard passages more evident within the mix. Soon the guitar-laden mix takes over and Valйrie's vocal take hold. We especially enjoyed the soaring ballad-like vocal introduction to—and chorus within—"Secrets of the Seas" that contrasts the heavy guitar and percussion arrangements which overcome Valйrie's vocal part during the verses. We enjoyed the band's studio recording of "Far Away," while different than the LB Labs mix, because it offers one of the better mixes of the album Valйrie's powerful and soaring vocals recorded at a notably higher level. Dynamic guitar solos dominate the instrumental bridges.

The album's one instrumental-only number is "Aquatic Coma" while the "Fantasea" intro could also be classified the same. Thibaut's rapid-fire lead guitar drives the melody in the former typically heavy metal tune while Stйphane's rhythm guitar underscores its theme through the song's individual movements. Seb's crisply played percussion adds nicely to the texture achieved. The band's cover of Kiss' "I Still Love You" is tremendous.

"Fantasea" is actually an intro to a three-part epic with the other two parts being "Heresy (The Trial of Galleleo)" and "Shame (Words to Virginia)". We especially enjoyed the keyboard passage of "Fantasea." "Heresy" is typically heavy metal with guitars driving the arrangement. Although the track is laced Valйrie's multi-tracked vocals, their mix could be improved to make the lyrics easier to comprehend. We also especially enjoyed the Valйrie's extended vocalise passage as the track comes to a close. We found the addition of a lighter lead guitar part, further keyboard passages and soaring vocal excursions within "Shame" to blend progressive rock with heavy metal sounds.

The LB Studio mix of "Far Away" concludes the album. It not only illustrates Syrens Call's true instrumental virtuosity but the range, power and dramatic talent of their stunning lead vocalist Valйrie Paul. We would certainly like to hear more of their music recorded this way but understand that, especially as a newly emerging band, budget limitations don't always make that possible.
The debut album from Syrens Call should delight fans of Nightwish, After Forever and Persephone's dream. Individual tracks are distinctively different but, with the exception of the "I Still Love You" cover, do not vary far off the progressive metal sound. While her vocals are generally recorded too low in the mix to make out the lyrics, we quite enjoyed Valйrie's singing style, range and power. Perhaps in a follow-up endeavour the band will place her vocals up higher in the mix and improve the individual instruments' imaging.

Review taken from www.musicaldiscoveries.com

Valerie Paul - vocals
Stephane Thuriot - rhythm guitar
Thibaut Coisne - lead guitar
Eric Serre - bass guitar
Sebastien Paul - drums