It is in Hungary that we go with the band 'Ann My Guard' which is at its 3rd studio album with 'Moira' after 'Ourania' that I cronicled here. While ‘Ourania’ was more optimistic (see 'Asteria'), with 'Moira' (which means destiny in Greek), we dive into a much darker atmosphere with inspirations in the themes of death, the other world and the afterlife. Musically, the singer and bassist 'Eszter Anna Baumann' has concocted 10 compositions in a mix of styles and it is very difficult to put them in a specific box: first, after a very (too) short introduction vocal 'The Descent', the titles 'Sacred I' and 'Montain II' are powerful with a heavy sound between heavy metal and melodic metal and, with 'Elijah', we are close enough to bands like 'Delain' with a catchy rhythmic and a refrain that will not let you go. There, follow compositions that move away from the powerful sound with the first acoustic ballad 'Roseblood', telling the fight of Eszter against endometriosis, then 'Mëtéra' which embarks us in a mysterious atmosphere and air where the vocal harmonies bring a feeling of weightlessness. With 'Echo' we return to a heavier sound for a ballad that alternates power and appeasement. After an energetic 'The Day I Die', we return to a very beautiful acoustic track with 'The Raven' in a folk atmosphere and the album ends with the melancholic 'Morpheus' which tells the painful loss of a loved one (in this case the father of Eszter) who beautifully closes the album. In summary, between strength and melancholy, this last Hungarian album of 'Ann My Guard' is a total success and shows the maturity reached in this 3rd opus which offers us a beautiful variety of styles and should appeal to a public who likes to mix metal with quieter atmospheres... | |
