Liste des groupes Metal Symphonique Age Of Sinfonia Capriccio: An End & a Beginning

The very first time I heard of Age of Sinfonia was 2 years back, at a local festival where they were still with their previous lineup, covering songs from a range of bands that I happened to be into at that point in time, such as Kamelot and (later) Sentenced. The next few times that I caught them they featured a new lineup and also a few more originals on top of their usual covers. It is thus pleasing to know they have finally recorded their originals and are releasing their debut EP, Capriccio: An End & a Beginning.

The album opens with a strong keyboard driven melody, before the chugging riffs of Rasen John come into the picture. The listener is then introduced to the violins of JC, compared to the numerous bands out there who prefer to have the synths handling other instruments (besides the usual guitar and bass) it certainly adds a nice touch to the music. Instead on simply focussing on speed and technicality, the guitar solos also show Rasen's ability of expressing the emotions of the composition, fitting to Age of Sinfonia's brand of music. Vocalist Savvia also gets plenty of air time to display her tonal range, such as on the chorus of Unfrozen.

Forevermore is perhaps the personal standout track of me, where the band finally goes into breakneck speed and all the energy of the band flows out. While the first two tracks seemed as if the band were restraining themselves, it was certainly refreshing to hear all the energy burst out of the band. It is also on this track where the violins are fully utilised, providing the main bulk of the atmosphere at times. The background growls also add a nice "beauty and the beast" vocal effect, certainly improving the overall enjoyment of the song.

Like mentioned above, there are times however where it sounds as if the band are trying to prevent their energy from bursting out. The songs on this record would have definitely been more enjoyable if the band could just throw aside any restraints and add in more speed, energy and (I know it sounds wrong for this sub-genre of music) aggression. I could imagine a more aggressive rendition of the opening track, Fair-Weather Love and I dare say that it would have definitely sounded better.

The record could have also benefitted from an increased presence of the guitars, they tend to sound a bit too "mild" and lack a biting tone at times, and threaten to get overshadowed by the other instruments on certain songs.

With the increasing number of bands choosing to go towards either the extreme metal side or the -core side, Age of Sinfonia, with their brand of symphonic metal certainly provides something fresh to the metal scene.