There are many good prog bands from France and Edenya also comes from this chanson-influenced musical part of the world. The driving force behind this project is Marco who prefers not to mention a last name in the info. He does not do everything alone and especially the singing is striking, Ingrid Denis takes care of this and does it very beautifully. There is also a violinist, Juliette Carradec and the rhythm section consists of Sylvie Sj on drums and Jean Paul-Cartigny on bass. So we can rightly speak of a real band. Marco takes care of all the guitar parts and also all the keys and therefore has a very big influence on the overall sound. All compositions are created by him and he is also responsible for all arrangements. After an EP and two previous albums, this album The Secret Destination You Are Looking For is actually their third full-fledged album. Expect the occasional splashing rock but also a lot of atmospheric, often quiet, music with angelic vocals and a folky feel. Back From The Endless Seas is immediately a representative of the latter with a pleasant flow but without surprises. Plucking guitars and aerial keyboard parts initially determine the atmosphere in The Outing, but halfway through the brakes are released and heavier guitar chords come to the fore while the tempo increases. A bit dangling, though. The short Little Girl is calm again, contains a beautiful melody and is beautifully sung by Ingrid. I hear something familiar in her voice but couldn't place it at first, but I'll come back to that. Foreign Ground is a longer track and is clearly sturdier, the distorted vocals go on for quite a long time and I don't really like it. You can taste a somewhat oriental atmosphere and that fits in more than well with the text that deals with distant lands. The middle movement contains a violin passage but also a ferocious, somewhat uncontrolled guitar solo. This does provide variety and that is also apparent in the longer, more than nine minutes, The Secret Destination You Are Looking For. The wordless vocals are placed far back in the mix and the guitar is allowed to take the leading role in the last minutes and Marco does do that nicely. The short Flying Dream starts with pizzicato playing and here the vocals are very direct and reminiscent of Anette Olzon who once took on the vocals for Nightwish. Aaah, that's what I heard. And while we're on the subject, Princess Of The Light could be described as Nightwish light, the melody could come straight from there, the tempo is quite high for Edenya's doing. The short instrumental Like A Falling Leaf is carried by soothing keys and acoustic guitar. My Burden is the longest track with over ten minutes and contains many different elements, it is dynamic and occasionally rocks quite heavily. Guitar and something that sounds like a saxophone, however this is not mentioned, alternate in the fairly busy last piece. Lady closes the album and Ingrid sounds at her best here, angelic and flawless, supported only by floating keys. The music sometimes reminds me of Mostly Autumn but without the melodic guitar playing of Josh, there is also a touch of Karnataka but less towards prog. However, where these bands can charm me a little more, Edenya has managed to make a promising album. I like the quiet parts a bit better, but that is mainly due to Marco's sometimes somewhat noisy, frantic guitar playing. I do have the feeling that there is something to gain in that area, but the next releases will have to prove that. *** Erik Fraanje (edited by Tracy van Os van den Abeelen) Where to buy? |
