CD: Nine Destinies and a Downfall

The term gothic metal conjures up all sorts of images, chief among them being dark, heavy songs about despair and all that is wrong with the world. However, Nine Destinies and a Downfall, the third album from Norwegian gothic metal band Sirenia, is a pleasant surprise.

Making extensive use of orchestral elements, dance samples, ethereal choirs and the delicate voice of new singer Monika Pedersen, Nine Destines is a unique sounding album that would be equally at home in an opera theatre as it would on the radio or in a gothic club. While it hasn’t foregone the metal trademarks of heavily down-tuned guitars, soaring solos, occasional guttural vocals and rock drumming, it is the way that the album infuses these with the orchestral, dance and choral elements that makes it stand out.

Sirenia take their name from the sirens of Greek mythology and that inspiration is evident on Nine Destinies and a Downfall. There is something strangely transfixing about the music, drawing you in with its complexity and musical alchemy. Beautiful and serene, Nine Destinies and a Downfall celebrates all that is good in the world while at the same time acknowledging that not all is perfect.