Can Forever Slave make the difference in atmospheric Metal the way this was paved by Theater Of Tragedy? Well, not really but still they can release a very interesting album. Just for the twist, Alice's Inferno is a concept album about a girl (Alice) locked in a lunatic asylum after being accused of murdering her parents. Alice however has no recollection of the event taking place so she starts a journey in the dark corners of her mind. What comes out of this journey... well, read the lyrics!
Though the album starts with the best promises in Lunatic Asylum and Reminiscences where the band fuses a vast ray of influences (from Gothic and modern, even dance, elements to more traditional patterns) soon after the album gets more traditional. You know the deal: ethereal female vocals / brutal male vocals, a violin... there's a pattern there, right? Well, at least it's more mainstream than the critical Velvet Darkness They Fear period of Theater Of Tragedy, or should I say less theatrical?
The male vocals are like the rest 1.125.013 growlers I've heard the last decade, but thumbs up for the great performance of Lady Angellyca, her voice sounds quite fragile - almost ethereal. I admire the fact that the guitars are more in the front than most of the times in such kind of releases.
It all comes down to this: if you take Alice's Inferno as a debut album then hell yeah, it's a very interesting piece of work (don't be fooled however, the band is really experienced, with two demos and one EP in their aresnal). On the other hand it doesn't offer anything new in a quite overpopulated genre. Personally I am intrigued to listen to the band's next step.
- Album Highlights: Lunatic Asylum, Reminiscences and Aquelarre.