R E V I E W S

• METALPERSPECTIVE.COM

Let's get a few things straight. If someone listens to the first demo of Luna Obscura, "Darkanda" (in 2004), like I have done, misses the interim effort "Evilyn", and then takes their new album, he/she will easily witness a development of rapid and striking measures. Secondly, if you stick one of the major metal label's logo on it, then you will not understand that this is a self-financed release. These are not part of my opinion. These are facts that no one can deny.

"Feltia" is the debut album of Luna Obscura and it holds some important credits. The album was recorded at 210 Studios in Berlin and mastered by Mika Jussila in the famous Finnvox studios. This shows a vision and a dedication. The band knows exactly what wants to achieve and more important knows how to do it. Check also the beautifully crafted booklet and you will see that they have taste too. Within the aesthetic limits of the genre and still a pleasure for the eyes. But beyond all these, which are important, is the serious development of the music of Luna Obscura. "Feltia" is an excellent album of melodic death/doom metal with a lot of gothic elements. This means "heavy" orchestrations, mainly mid-tempo songs, a lot of melodic passages and lead themes, wise-used keyboard layers and dual vocals. Yes it is an album that the fans of Tristania, Theater of Tragedy, Silentium and maybe Saturnus would love to listen to, but I think it's more than this. The album practically starts with two great songs, "The Burden of Solitude" and "Oronar", with the first being based in a haunting melody (with a touch of dramatic black metal riffing) and the later being a track that even Epica would envy. Gogo Melone is giving outstanding performance not only in this song, but throughout the entire album, gaining thus one of the top placements (if not the first) within Greek female singers. "Ex Caelis Oblatus" follows in the same pace, with the keyboards giving the grim tone of Evereve's gothic metal. While "Symphony of Sighs" is considered by many to be their highlight I found this track as quite typical and sterile. It sticks to the clichés of the gothic metal genre with an uninspired way, failing - to my view - to contribute to the band's overall development. But I find this to be only a parenthesis and nothing more and indeed most of the remaining songs move in the general range of style and quality. In the most remarkable case, namely "Away", the band has invited Andreas G. from new Greek metal wonderkids Mencea to give an alternative color to the usual male growling vocals of Aris Potonos (who is also very conviencing in his duties). But the track itself is a useful addition. The last full song "Dance of Forsaken Souls" is a perfect way ending this album, a quite lengthy and multidimensional track, while its own closing reminds a bit of the Australian The Eternal. My main reservation about the album is that Luna Obscura still hasn't been able to inject their personal mark in their sound. Of course, it's hard to be achieved. The margins are narrow and I do not know if they are exploitable. However, Luna Obscura create such expectancies that we might overloading them in our enthusiasm.

If you still have any doubts, please go on and listen to "Feltia". I am pretty positive that you will not be disappointed. It's an album that has everything that the melodic death/doom genre requires. And it does have it in a very good shape. Back in the "Darkanda" review we were claiming that this band "…displays an unusual professionalism for a Greek band in every level". Thankfully, the band proved us right for once more. It doesn't matter if the album is 7/10 or 9/10 good. Rates in such cases are insignificant. "Feltia" is an album that you thirst to listen to.

Rating: 8.0 / 10