Back to the beginning, to our debut EP “Enter” and its follow up EP “The Dance”! This is where it all started more than 20 years ago!
It has been years since both EP’s have been individually manufactured and the time has come for both EP’s to be released on vinyl for the very first time.
You are the first to know and also the first to be given the opportunity to pre-order through this direct link. Click here.
Both LPs will be released on October 12th, 2018, both editions will be numbered limited editions curated by the band.
The vinyl package of Enter includes a 4-page booklet with pictures and lyrics. The first pressing is available as a limited edition of 5.000 individually numbered copies on coloured (transparent green, solid white & black mixed) vinyl. Numbers 1-500 are exclusively reserved and available via below link.
The Dance was released shortly after “Enter” in 1997. The 5 track EP will be released as a limited edition of 3.000 individually numbered copies on transparent red coloured vinyl. Numbers 1-300 are exclusively reserved and available via below link.
And last, both EP’s will appear on a combined limited numbered edition CD. The first numbers of the numbered edition are also available in our shop.
Here we have a band describing this as an EP, but at 32 minutes long I do often get sent albums that are shorter than this. Influenced by Wintersun, The Faceless, Dragonforce, Blind Guardian and Omnium Gatherum among others, here we have a death metal band that is also taking in influences from power metal and even some symphonic acts, and I could easily see them sharing a stage with the likes of Betraying The Martyrs. They get everything right this with this release, it is hard and heavy, complex and intricate, with great musicianship and production that is able to handle it. I am more than a little surprised to see that this is a self-release as I would have thought that a band producing music as powerful as this would have been grabbed by a label.
They now have two EP’s and a single behind them, but they need to be grabbed by someone who can give the band the promotion they deserve and get them back into the studio for an album. Or repackage this with the older releases if they are strong enough, and put that out as a stop gap. If you enjoy melodic, heavy, structured and complex music that takes elements from different areas and creating something powerful, then this is for you.
I have been having quite a few conversations with keyboard/sax player Marek Arnold about his various musical outlets, and he recently provided me with access to virtually everything that has been released by Toxic Smile. Prior to this, I had only heard their fourth album, ‘7’ (which was their seventh overall release), so I was looking forward to this and jumped into the task with relish. For those who haven’t come across them before, the band started as a collaboration between Marek, drummer Daniel Zehe and guitarist Uwe Reinholz in early 1996 when they were still students, really coming together as unit two years later when they were joined by singer Larry B. ‘M.A.D’ was their debut album, released in 2000, but what I am playing is the 2011 reissue which contains two additional songs, one of which is a cover (more of that later).
Musically these guys are at the intersection of prog metal, heavy prog, symphonic, crossover, neo-prog, and more straightforward hard rock. At times they are reminiscent of classic Saga, at others Dream Theater, while IQ has also had an impact, as has Steve Howe. What really ties this all together is the way that Marek and Uwe are joined at the hip, while bassist Robert Brenner is incredibly important to the overall mix with a strong warm bass that can be sat quietly at the back or also provide touches right at the front to provide a completely different and unexpected emphasis. The music swirls, it moves, it switches and loops like a rollercoaster, and right at the very front of this is Larry B., totally in control. He can be emotional, he can be rough and raw, or pure and melodic. The only time he comes unstuck is when the band play “Owner Of A Lonely Heart”. While the arrangement is interesting (I personally would have stuck with the harder riffs they used in the introduction), Larry is singing at the very limit of his range and has to go into falsetto. It would have been more interesting if they had moved away from trying to replicate Anderson and instead did something in a lower register to provide a harshness.
But, that and the sound quality of the snare drum are the only low points of what is a great debut album, and I find it strange that it has taken nearly twenty years for me to come across it and that there isn’t a single review of it on ProgArchives! Well, both of these issues have been rectified now. Well worth investigating.
2018 is going to be a very busy time for Dark Beauty, and the Dark Angel has come up with a way for you to get a preview of what’s coming up! Dark Beauty will be releasing new music and performing at a progressive rock festival later this year, but on March 25 at 4 PM Eastern, you can enter the Dark Angel’s world for a live online performance!
Join us as we continue the story of the Dark Angel’s journey. Bryan and Liz will perform acoustic selections from Fall From Grace as well as new songs from our upcoming second release and other musical surprises through ConcertWindow.com. We’ll also be telling some stories about the songs, and taking questions live. So mark your calendars and join us from the comfort of your own living room as we tell our musical story and continue building the Dark Angel’s world!
Tell your friends, it’s FREE! and join us on March 25 at 4 PM Eastern at the link below. Feel free to visit anytime to see what the page looks like. https://www.concertwindow.com/darkbeauty
Quadrus Main Composer John Galanakis Releases Video ‘Destroyers Of The Worlds’
John Galanakis had this to say from his Facebook profile:
“Ok folks here it is! The first cinematic soundtrack ‘Destroyers of the Worlds” from my upcoming sci-fi concept album ” The Doom Vanguard” is here.”
The story on this album takes place on the distant future were mankind is on the brink of destruction by some alien race who lives in a parallel universe. Humanity stands no chance of fighting the Xenos attackers and falls back deep into the core of Kepler 2.0 where it builds enormous galactic ships to fight back the destroyers of the worlds. Those ships are powered by powerful entities called “The heart of the ship” and they act both as a source power and adviser for repealing the alien attack. If you are interested you can find more on my official web page. “
Earlier in the year Power Of Prog reviewed John Galanakis other out Quadrus with their debut conceptual album Entropia. You can read that by clicking here.
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