The 13th Floor

True, it would have been clever to make this the thirteenth post, but this album simply cannot wait. the latest album by gothic metal band Sirenia has matched the level of their debut. Though, rather than being another overly depressing album likes so many gothic metal albums are, this has a sort of upbeat feel to it. The songs usually have a catchy chorus, but never actually become too popish.

Naturally the lyrics need a singer, and though there are two singers on the album, only one really is significant with the exception of one song. Ailyn joined the band for this album, and her voice really helps in making the music interesting. It is hard to say whether or not she has a great vocal range or anything because it was her first album with the band. Still, looking back on past videos and recordings she has without the band it is evident that she will be able to led a lot more vocally on the next album. After all, being selected out of more than 500 possible candidates for their new singer is quite impressive.

The other signer is Morten Veland, who is also the lead guitarist, songwriter, and programmer. The final track, "Sirens of the Seven Seas" is sung only by him, and really shows off his vocal ability. Other than that song he has various parts within other tracks, but he performs death metal growls on them that are becoming weaker with each album. Still, his main role is to be the songwriter, which is does a solid job with throughout the whole album.



Going back to the catchy parts of the album there is the reoccuring keyboard riff in "Winterborn 77," which is one of the best songs the band has ever produced. Surprisingly the chorus in "Sirens of the Seven Seas" is catchy. This is surprising because it is done completely by a chorus that sings in what I believe may be latin, though I may be wrong.

Overall this is a very solid album. All the parts fit perfectly with each other. It will be interesting to see how their next album turns out if they still have Ailyn as their singer (they seem to have a problem keeping the same singer for more than one album). Though the most amazing part of this album is that it can be found at Hot Topic. Even if you do not like the album you can check out Ailyn's solo wor, though because she is from Spain it is mostly in Spanish, but still good.