Born out of the emerging music scene of Alberta, Canada, 2017 YYC Awards Metal Recording of the Year winner RED CAIN is a modern melodic metal project with European roots. With intricate songwriting, a heavy yet melodic feel reminiscent of progressive acts, and eerie ambient elements, RED CAIN champion a fluid, dynamic, and unique musical style centered around telling dark, conceptual Faustian sagas and constructing those into an unforgettable live experience. "Kindred: Act I" is the band's debut full-length, and contains seven tracks.

"Snakebouquet" opens with some background chatter that is hard to make out. Lead guitars pick up the melody from there, along with some keys. The vocals have an edge to them, close to clean but raspy. The sound is prototypical Power Metal but with their own twist. Musically, it reminds me of KAMELOT, with a bit of melancholy thrown in. "Midnight Sarabande" has a more ominous opening, like witnessing a great sunrise on the shores of a beach. Lead guitars again provide the melody, as it settles into a slower groove. The melody line is very pronounced, with solemn sounding vocals. Some darker vocals make an appearance and the sound stays dark and mysterious.

"ZERO" opens with some doleful piano notes and some dissonance from other instruments. There is something bubbling under the surface. Then, the main riff comes in mid-tempo form and the piano returns, with whispered vocals at first. The tender sound is chocked full of emotions throughout...definitely something that you can feel. "Blood & Gold" opens with clean guitars and a sense of sadness. It has a tender sound throughout, as the vocals produce a sense of longing. It builds into a crescendo at the end...nicely done. "Juliet" opens with a powerful riff, and dual clean and harsh vocals. The despondence doesn't let up, though it turns angry at times, and you can feel the hurt in the vocals. "Juliet...her cemetery eyes open wide like wings...she loves all disastrous things.

"All is Violence" opens with angry words and a heavy and aggressive riff. Musically it is all over the place; at times sad and rageful at other times. They sure work in a variety of sound into this track, yet it retains a central sound that is easy to follow. "Wings of the Crow" features Kobra Paige (KOBRA AND THE LOTUS) on vocals, and she has some pipes. From there, male vocals take over, sad in tone. Towards the end they sing duet style together. "When autumn falls and tress lay bare, remember me for I am there...all fall, man and beast, so let the ravens feast."

Overall, this was a very original album. I find it very difficult to locate a counterpart for RED CAIN, as they have clearly created their own sound in the genre. What we have here is a two headed beast of sad and melancholy music on one side and angry and raging music on the other. The two combine somewhere in the middle with flair for the dramatic and impassioned vocals. This is definitely worth your time if you are looking for something off the beaten path.