The duo aims to facilitate private ceremonies but also to give recitals performing French music of the late nineteenth century (Gabriel Fauré, Gounod, Saint-Saëns, Reynaldo Hahn …). Geraldine featured as a guest artist in bands such as Heavenly ( Carpe Diem, 2009), Fairyland ( Score to a New Beginning, 2009) and Magic Kingdom ( Symphony of War, 2010). However, it is in her own symphonic-progressive metal band, Benighted Soul that she has the opportunity to reveal her rock side.Īt the beginning of Benighted Soul her lyrical technique was influenced by bands as Nightwish and Epica. Over the years she developed a more spontaneous musical personality that influenced her interpretation and lead her to explore other singing techniques through working with François Valade and especially with Asphodel (Penumbra, Chenille). This evolution in her voice is discernable throughout the band’s discography, from the EP Anesidora (2008) to Start from Scratch (2011) and on the recent concept album Kenotic (2014). In Kenotic she has a raw color that is more incisive, while her operatic training allows for a wide range of vocal colors.
Geraldine has performed over a hundred concerts with Benighted Soul, allowing her to exercise her talent alongside bands as Cradle of Filth, Evergrey, Delain and Lacuna Coil. This includes two European tours supporting Tarja Turunen (formerly of Nightwish). These experiences and her work in residency allowed her to gain knowledge of the scene she could implement in renowned theaters in France and Europe, such as the Bataclan (Paris, FR), the Rockhal ( Esch-sur-Alzette, LUX), Laiterie (Strasbourg, FR), the Effenaar (Eindhovern, NL) or the Orpheum (Graz, AT).A running joke in the region where I live is, “If you don’t like the weather, just wait… it will change”. That same principle applies to the “Anesidora” EP from Benighted Soul but with the major caveat that there is nothing here not to like. Each of these six well-written songs consists of several component segments and the overall effect is a state of constant flux that at the very least is rather engaging if not altogether riveting. The definition of ‘benighted’ is the figurative sense of ‘in intellectual or moral darkness.’ So, even if you didn’t already know what ‘benighted’ meant, you no longer are a benighted soul with respect to the meaning behind the name of this band. “Anesidora”‘s lyrics are inspired mostly from Greek and Egyptian myths, which I cannot quite connect with the concept of a benighted soul. Still, this EP succeeds in creating an epic, somewhat exotic atmosphere that does leave one feeling a bit benighted about what to make of the whole thing, at least in terms of some deeper meaning to be gleaned from it. Musically, the closest familiar reference point probably would be Tarja-era Nightwish. Yes, after you’ve taken away everything else that is going on here, what we are left with is symphonic power metal. With that having been said, “Anesidora” not only sounds barely similar to Nighwish but also is better in many ways than anything Nightwish has ever done.
There is a subtle complexity in the orchestral arrangements that supercedes typical symphonic-metal fare. Take for example the harpsichord-like keyboard part in “Fairytale” or the various percussion instruments such as triangles and cowbell that are woven throughout these intricately-crafted compositions.
Benighted soul anesidora rar full#
Not to mention the nifty guitar work and delightful chord progressions featured on some of the instrumental segments, or the full array of additional orchestral sounds that give these pieces their genuinely symphonic quality.
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