SinHeresY - CD review
Paint the World

CD Info
2013
Bakerteam Records
10 songs
English Lyrics

I have previously written about SinHeresY here on Sonic Cathedral, when I reviewed their debut EP, The Spiders and the Butterfly, which was released in 2011.  After it was generally well-received - especially by me! - the band launched a crowd funding campaign in order to raise funds for a full LP, and the result is Paint the World, released on September 31, 2013.  Hailing from Trieste, in northeastern Italy, this sextet has definitely produced something special with this new release, and this humble Canadian fan was certainly impressed and can predict with certainty that the album will end up on her top 10 list for 2013!

One of the elements of SinHeresY's music is that is unique is that they have two lead vocalists, a male and a female, Stefano Sain and Cecilia Petrini.  Stefano sings in a clean style, and has a roughness about his voice that I previously likened to Sabaton's Joakim Broden. But what I particularly like about what SinHeresY does with their vocals is that the back and forth exchange of lyrics rather than the typcal approach of having male and female harmonizing like, as Robin Stryker aptly put it in her interview with the band, “creating a duet album of cheesy ‘80s power ballads.” Not to say that there are no harmonies between them at all, but it is mostly these exchanges, and they work very well. 

Paint the World gets of with a great start with the opener, “Last Fall”, which has a cinematic string into that soon yeilds to a poundingly-paced, heavily riff-laden power metal and headbanging feast for the ears. It's a powerful beginning to what will be a powerful album.

One of the strengths of SinHeresY that I particularly appreciate is the lyrics, which are penned by Cecilia, who also writes the vocal lines.  The lyrics were something I liked about their EP, and once again, Cecilia delivers on this front in Paint the World.  I enjoyed a lot of her word choices, some that we don't see a lot of as native English speakers, but different diction is often and advantage that non-native English lyricists bring to their lyrics. The title track, which is track three on the CD, is particularly rich with vibrant imagery. Here is an example:

Hues of amber and gold
scudding with the autumn wind
as the leaves were falling at my feet
Falling at my feet

Streaked with cobalt shimmers
waves were breaking on the cliffs
but I couldn't see anything

This is a lovely song, and goes on to use other colourful imagery - with words like indigo and crimson -  to contrast with the imagery of the grey canvass sung of in the chorus.  

Track four, “Roses and Thorns”, is the first of two ballads on the album, and it's a great one. Stefano sounds very sensitive in it, and lets you know that he can do more with his voice than initially meets the ear.  The chorus is once again powerful and catchy, and the lyrics are once again very heartfelt and lovely.

Other outstanding tracks – on a album full of them – were track seven, “Lost in the Shadows.” The epic chorus, which features a choir (something new for SinHeresY on this album), has Stefano and Cecilia singing one melody and the choir backing them up with a counter-melody.  This is one of the best choruses on the album. Another ballad, entitled “Our Angel” is the only song on the release whose lyrics were not written by Cecilia, but rather by the father of guitarist Lorenzo Pasutto. It sounds like a highly personal song, and is very moving.  Finally, track nine, the longest song on the CD, “Elua's Gift”, which was inspired by the Kushiel's Legacy series, a fantasy trilogy by writer Jaqueline Carey.  This song again features a choir and again, the song has a distinct epicness to it.  It also has Middle Eastern-sounding drum rhythm, keyboard melodies, and perhaps some instrumentation.

I can't conclude the review without giving kudos to Lorenzo the guitar player for doing a phenominal job, and drummer Alex Vescovi for also standing out.  Paint the World is for the most part a fast-paced, power metal delight, and it has its more punishing sections for sure.

But really, the kudos have to go to the whole band for creating a remarkable work with Paint the World. The whole band's hard work has totally paid off, and this is a must-listen album if you are a fan of the symphonic power metal genre.  This is a fantastic, mature, heartfelt effort that I hope takes SinHeresY far.

9.5 / 10

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