Vocally, this album is fabulous. There are three sets of vocals on this album: soprano vocals (Emmanuelle Zoldan), clean male vocals (Kjetil Nordhus), and growls (Ronny Thorsen). All the vocalists give an excellent performance on this album. If you’re wondering where you heard of Emmanuelle before, she performed with Sirenia on the song "First We Take Manhattan." I have to admit, if I did not know Emmanuelle sang on that track and this album, I would have never guessed they were the same person. She sounds so much more confident on Existentia and just all around better. She sings in both an operatic tone and a regular tone on this album—both equally great! Kjetil has never sounded better on this album either. I’ve always enjoyed his vocals before, but they are really on a different level on this album I think. Ronny’s growls are pretty much the same as they have been—and I find them to be quality growls myself.

My main complaint about this album is the songwriting. About half of the album just sort of blends together and doesn’t really accomplish much. Variation is the key here, and that is something this album lacks. Still, there are some wonderful tracks present on this album. "Deceptive Mirrors", the album opener, really gets things kicking. It’s filled to the brim with interesting and very memorable melodies! It’s certainly one of my all time favorite Trail of Tears songs. Another gem would be the track "Poisonous Tongues". The bridge of the song, in particular, it excellent—very dramatic! "Empty Room" shows the talents of both Emmanuelle and Kjetil.

Existentia is a very decent output by the band—though, certainly not their best. Had the album been a bit more varied, and all the tracks been equally memorable, this would have been a great album. Recommended to gothic metal and BnB fans.

7.5 / 10