I usually truly like those Neo-Classical bands...Dark & bombastic ambiances full of mysterious keys & harpsichords... Shred running minor guitar chops... And both dueling from time to time...Fast double Bass drum frenzy all the way etc.... Those ingredients are very exciting for me! With AMBERIAN DAWN we have another element to assimilate; it's the operatic vocal style in the true Tarja's fashion... And... That's my main problem with this band... Too many NIGHTWISHery for me... Too many bullshitery... Too many cheap Teen-Gothic... Not enough a Metallic edge!

Despite some a good 'guest-star cameo' by STRATOVARIUS's singer Timo Kotipelto and a Ground breaking but too short solo by legendary keyboard shred Maestro/the one & only... The pope of Neo-Classic: Mr. Jens Johansson (RISING FORCE/DIO/STRATOVARIUS) and  also some appearance by members from THRONE OF CHAOS & DREAMTALE. And despite some very fine musical parts performed by quite good players (instrumental track "Rivalry Between Good and Evil" and many others)... I couldn't find the right manner to take the album seriously...I mean, the missing sharp edge in the riffs conception are regrettable  and the lack of epic dimension in music and obviously in the childish & dull lyrics ("Crimson Flower") are guilty for the credibility gap between their labeled style and the final result...In fact I was musically quite impressed by 3rd album "End Of Eden" and I also was very flurried by the guitar player Kasperi Heikkinen (ex-ICONOFEAR) other band called MERGING FLARE (album "Reverence"). So I was expecting such a strongest release...Therefore, my disappointmentis expressed with so much bitterness. At least I was watching for something much more mature than this regular Symphonic Female fronted Blaaah blah yadah !

Neo-Classical... It's a Noble kind of Metal music, very demanding that does not integrate well the approximations... otherwise it sounds corny... But I think they will still have my confidence for the next album... I still hope for these solid musicians to have the capacity to jump to the next level.