Sede Vacante – Conium
Release Date: 21st October 2022
Label: Scarlet Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Symphonic Gothic Metal, Dark Rock/Pop.
FFO: EPICA, Evanescence, Within Temptation, Lacuna Coil, Nightwish.
Review By: Mark Waight
What a great year 2022 has been for music so far and Conium, the second album from Female Fronted Finnish/Greek Symphonic Gothic metal band Sede Vacante, goes to show it’s not done yet and that there is still much more to come.
The newbies have outclassed the old masters so far this year, and Conium by Sede Vacante demonstrates this fact by easily being one of the best albums of the year in this genre to date. Conium by Sede Vacante is a modern masterpiece of Symphonic Gothic metal that will be appreciated by a much wider audience than a specific genre and should fare well with the critics.
Sede Vacante is Stephanie Mazor (Vocals), Michael Tiko (Guitar, vocals, Synthesiser), Nick Gkogkomitros (Bass) and Jannis K (Drums).
The album opens with Furia, a short symphonic section that smoothly transitions into the monstrously heavy riff of Mistaken and the dark melancholy journey begins.
Dead New world is a hard hitting, heavy track that is complimented by some grand orchestral arrangements, modern synthesisers and incredibly haunting vocals – a front to back monster of a track!
The slightly darker in tone title-track has an amazing thunderous bass opening, male and female opposing vocals and super catchy chorus that’ll get stuck in your head for days – what a blast! Raindrops then ramps up the atmosphere with a beautiful vocal performance from Stephanie Mazor that touches right into the very fabric of your heart.
Paint it Black is one of the very best cover versions of the old Rolling Stones classic that I have ever heard. It’s black, it’s gothic, it’s disturbing, the choral section is outstanding and Sede Vacante have absolutely nailed it! A synthesiser start to Melancholy Bled leads into a very nice dark rock/pop electro tune with a sing-along, almost dance feel about it, I really enjoyed the change-ups and styles blended together by the band on this one.
Walk on a Lie continues the dark rock/pop journey but brings a very symphonic metal twist to the party creating something more gothic and includes a super classy guitar solo from Michael Tiko. The Bride brings the metal theme very much back to the forefront with more of an emphasis on a traditional hard rock sound, tempo and delivery. Penultimate track Wheel of Misfortune has an epic string arrangement that creates plenty of depth to the sound, which serves to highlight some beautiful moments with the piano.
Final track, Tattoo, begins with a wonderfully simple passage of music that builds steadily in intensity and emotion throughout, to end on an equally simple, but exquisite finish.
Conium by Sede Vacante is a delicious album of superbly crafted beautiful music that is a sensational piece of art and should bring the band some richly deserved success and recognition. I thoroughly enjoyed every track on Conium and the experience was heightened further each time I listened to it, so it’s surely one of those albums that listeners will grow fonder of as the passage of time moves on.
(4.5 / 5)
