Visions of Atlantis - The Deep & The Dark (2018) Hi-Res

There have been few bands out there in the history of the metal genre who have had less luck with their lineups than the (originally) Austrian quintet of Visions of Atlantis. Originally formed in the early 2000s by Thomas Caser (who is now CEO of internationally successful record company Napalm Records, no less) as part of the first surge of Symphonic Metal à la Nightwish, Epica and their fellow countrymen (and -woman) Edenbridge, the band enjoyed considerable success despite, let's face it, only mediocre songwriting and rather abysmal production. Arguably the metal listeners at that time were not yet quite as spoiled when it came to high-class production values in their records, as recording was still limited to studios and was pretty expensive, so for a young Austrian band to come up with noticeable albums like their debut "Eternal Endless Infinity" and particularly their sophomore effort "Cast Away" which featured the hugely successful single "Lost", it's not all that surprising anymore that they developed the solid fanbase that they did, along with embarking on impressive tours through Europe, China and the US.

Fast forward a couple of years: Original singer Nicole Bogner left the band after the second album due to persistent health issues, which ultimately demanded her life and she sadly passed away in 2012 at the untimely age of 27. American soprano Melissa Ferlaak filled the void for the band's third album "Trinity" in 2007, their best-produced album until then. However, tensions in the band remained and guitarist Wolfang Koch and Melissa left the band together in 2007, only weeks before an important tour with Kamelot, completely breaking the band's solid momentum until that point. After some experiments with other singers, Maxi Nil from Greece was eventually chosen as the new voice of VOA, which however resulted in a drastic stylistc change: Gone were the operatic, classical vocals that had made Visions of Atlantis a favorite with the fans, and instead the band turned to a more Power Metal approach with Maxi's more Rock-infused vocals.

This didn't sit well with the fans and also band mastermind Thomas Caser, and the following two albums "Delta" and "Ethera" were nowhere as successful as their predecessors. The band also couldn't keep up with as high-profile tours as they had earlier, and many fans and critics had written off the band altogether.

But then, in a stroke of genius, Thomas Caser replaced his entire band once more, bringing back some of the original founding members in guitarist Werner Fiedler, keyboarder Chris Kamper and bass player Mike Koren, as well as enlisting French soprano Clémentine Delauney (Exit Eden, ex-Serenity, ex-Whyzdom) and Austrian singer Siegfried Samer (Dragony) as the new vocal duo.

Again the lineup didn't hold, but despite introducing new members on guitars (Christian Douscha) and bass (Herbert Glos) soon thereafter (keyboarder Chris Kamper also left due to personal and professional commitments), the band finally managed to release their sixth album "The Deep & The Dark" in early 2018, penned by producer Frank Pitters - and what a comeback this turned out to be!

Gone are both the questionable production values of previous albums as well as the oft-critisized unfocused songwriting, and new singer Clémentine Delauney brings a very versatile and beautifully trained voice to the mix, that lifts the new song material to an entirely new level as well. Her dominant voice is complimented very well by Dragony's Siegfried Samer, even if his part, while commendably performed, is relegated to more of a supporting role here. This is not to the detriment of the album, however, as it allows Mme Delauney to showcase her considerable talent even better. Tracks like "Book of Nature", "Ritual Night" or the very Nightwish-esque title track "The Deep & The Dark" finally make good on the promises the band made with their first two albums, and deliver good, old-school female-fronted Symphonic Metal. While Visions of Atlantis certainly don't re-invent the wheel with this record, it is overall their best-written and best-performed album to date, and what was originally intended to be a "swan song" for the band turned into a veritable comeback, with the band enjoying their first album chart entries in Germany, Switzerland, UK and the US.

Fans of the aforementioned genre spearheads like Nightwish, Epica and Within Temptation should definitely give "The Deep & The Dark" a spin - it's a welcome trip down memory lane and a nice throwback to the roots of both Visions of Atlantis and the female-fronted Symphonic Metal genre itself. A more than solid outing that should rekindle interest in the future of this band.