Elis – Catharsis
01. Core Of Life
02. Twinkling Shadow
03. Warrior's Tale
04. Des Lebens Traum - Des Traumes Leben
05. I Come Undone [Jennifer Rush cover]
06. Firefly
07. Morning Star
08. Das Kleine Ungeheuer
09. Mother's Fire
10. Rainbow
11. The Dark Bridge
12. Ghost Of The Past [limited edition bonus]
13. No Hero [limited edition bonus]
Elis are a gothic/symphonic metal band from Liechtenstein – one of the smallest countries on Earth. During the first years of their career, they slowly, but surely branched out into Europe, becoming well known in countries such as Germany, Finland and Switzerland.
The new album, ‘Catharsis’, kicks off with a track called ‘Core of Life’ which shows a close vocal harmony, which would be considered by many as a somewhat unusual way to open up a heavy metal record. But it sure works brilliantly. After hearing it, you hope to God that they keep up the very high standard throughout the record.
They do for the next few tracks at least. ‘Twinkling Shadow’ and ‘I Come Undone’ – are very similar to the way the more well-established artists like Within Temptation, Evanescence and Delain sound. Heavy and yet progressive guitar work with powerful female vocals over the top. Conversely, ‘Das Kleine Ungeheuer’ has a more doom-laden and down-tempo feel to it. It has some very interesting keyboard patterns to it, and Sandra’s vocals are simply mesmerizing. The tenth track called ‘Rainbow’ is perhaps the tenderest moment of the album. It is a sweeping ballad that sounds as if it could be lifted straight from a Hollywood blockbuster.
‘Catharsis’, on the whole, is a stunningly good album. Unfortunately, they slightly lower the standard with ‘Mother’s Fire.’ They are to be commended for adding in male vocals; it works perfectly. Very impressive stuff.
Reviewed by Ben Robertson
‘Catharsis’ is out on Napalm Records
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