The life of a servant, largely a kind of version for a concubine, or in Japanese ad type of companion, a Geisha, still traditional and much alive practice even nowadays. This is a formulation of a drama, a conceptual tale about that same Geisha, crossing swords with merits and aspects of life itself, for better and for worse while shedding blood. Though imbroglios with Gothic oriented creations didn't much end with anything grossly entertaining, I was curious about this Australian singer and creator, named Darkyra Black and of course her fascination with what appeared to me as the Imperial Japanese era. For my astonishment from her brand new, and debut, release "Dragon Tears", I was encompassed by a wall of music that is essentially greater and unique in comparison to your everyday Gothic Metal semblance. Leaving behind the celebrated NIGHTWISH, TARJA, WITHIN TEMPTATION or extremitized EPICA, LEAVES' EYES and DRACONIAN, Darkyra Black crossed paths with various directions and conceptions, maintaining a straight line that are far from deeming "Dragon Tears" as mainstream, yet might catch every ear on its path, whether through her story or whether through the impressively written music.

Largely, starting back from my first listening session to this release, I had a bit of a fuss connecting the dots of the main concept. However, I could notice the change in states of mind and moods throughout the song list. Furthermore, it wasn't that easy to distinguish the characters, as these aren't overly obvious like the ones presented on AVANTASIA for that matter. On the other hand, later on, finishing a session after another, the overall picture became much clearer. Musically, it is hard to describe in every details as nearly every song presented a different output when it comes to songwriting. George Boussounis had a hand on the arrangements of several of the tracks that I enjoyed listening to like "Slither" and "Before I Wither". "Slither" experiences spectacular classical music orchestration, similar to other throughout the album actually, yet entwined strongly with Progressive Rock / Metal affiliations that strikingly empowered the magical entity surrounding the tune. "Before I Wither" inhabits extensive symphonic elements as the former, however, much to the point, producing a Rock peak point, introducing Black as sonic singing diva, demonstrating a fine voice range with an outline that is so soothing and reflective. Other than Boussounis's handling, the songwriting is fluent, inviting, letting you step into a broadened mystique of musical assortment, never falling short or cradling a dull moment due to the commotion within the drama that influence the music and vice versa, highly memorable but also showing enough signs of an artistic nature. For whoever is looking for a bit of a traditional touch, especially when it comes to Euro Symphonic or Power Metal, "Cold Cold Stone", "Kiss Of The Dragon" and "Tears By Candlelight". Still full of depth, these share the riches of the initial musical concept of the entire release, though I sensed their freewheel burning spirit, cruising to an altitude like a selection of Euro Metal hitters. I must comment on Thiago Trinsi, showing his true worth, for his stellar performance on "Kiss Of The Dragon", delivering exponential soloing that uplifted the song's impact.

Essentially, the entire team of musicians surrounding Black, aided on crafting this immense melodious happening, basically an art, a kind of dramatic event that isn't easy to manifest. Frankly, I can't really imply that I connected with every bit that was offered on this platter, but it was difficult not to appreciate the essence of this foundation. On the other hand, and I really hope that this would be taken under account on the next release, the overall production felt a bit thin, short of depth, mixing a bit sketchy, at times leaving Black in the middle of all the hubbub of instruments around her, not letting her be heard as she should. In addition, the snare sounded awful, lacked the punch and impact. However, the orchestration was right on the spot and when push comes to shove, the lead guitar sounded perfectly on the mix. Consequently, I will close this one down. It was an intriguing encounter through the multiplicities between Metal and Rock music alongside lyrical profundity. If I were you, I would track this lady for the upcoming ventures of her career.