Coronatus is a German Gothic band that utilizes two primary female vocalists. One is a more typical metal vocalist, and a damn good one; the other is a serious operatic vocalist, and an even better one. The rest of the group is equally strong, as is the production, the writing and the entire package. This is top drawer, as good as it gets. And the fact that Tarja isn’t singing doesn’t do anything to detract from that.

Coronatus presents some of the most dramatic vocals in the entire Female Vocalist realm. There is no male vocal, traditional, death metal or otherwise. And you really don’t miss it although I tend to favor that component on most occasions. The music tends towards the ethereal, the classical, the dark Gothic. And, it does it in multiple languages; English, German and Latin. Each of those languages is used to reflect a particular perspective. The Latin, for instance, addresses the religious perspective, the Catholic Mass and the more traditional interpretations associated with that. The English tends towards the traditional Gothic. The German covers these and several corollary topics.

The music here is varied. Yes, the Gothic is there, there is a dark side, there is a classical side, but there is a playful lighter side as well. This is music that goes in a variety of directions, and we enjoy each direction, the ride is a rip. We even get to dance a little. But make no mistake, this is serious music, serious musicians and, especially, serious vocalists. The Germans are, as they tend to be, serious technicians. And that is reflected here, the background guitars are killer, the riffs right where they ought to be, the drums provide a cushion of sound to move over, the symphonics are spaced right and provide just enough of that sound to cover the required territory. But, it is the vocals that send this music in a direction that few can match. And we should begin a discussion of this work with those vocalists. The metal vocal comes from Ada Flechtner, and she is as good as any female metal vocalist I have heard. The operatic vocal is provided by one Carmen R. Schaffer. Is she better than Tarja, who cares, she is really good. And the two together provide a sound that is as good as it gets. They work individually, often with one providing background for the other, and they harmonize almost perfectly. Who would have thought that a metal vocalist and an opera singer could make a sound that reflected both perspectives and sounded this good doing it.

These days, much of the European Gothic music tends to start out with a traditional classic introduction. We find that here, it’s called Prologue and it’s a short, very classical segment that tells us we are in for some really solid material. However, that classical introduction is far surpassed by the following selection, Exitus. This one is done in Latin, and, for the Catholics among us, it will ring more than a few bells. Mass never sounded this good, and I’ve been to a lot of them, Roman Catholic and Orthodox. The selection begins with a dark warning from beyond, which leads to a metal drum and a strong guitar riff. But the vocals intrude, both metal and the operatic and we are swept into a classic realm with vocals from multiple directions. The drums crunch, the ladies take us to unheard of places, we are carried along for an ethereal ride. The message is traditional:

Much of this work is done in German, and it seems the band is often most comfortable with this language, after all, it is their native language. The ladies move effortlessly through the German, we may not comprehend the message, but it is some of the best lyrical material on the CD. And several of these selections provide some of the best vocal material, both individually and in harmony. Fallen is the first of these, it begins with a metal introduction, strong guitar riffs that take us to the vocals, first the metal which drives the sound over the operatic until that point where the operatic takes over. The two vocalists trade off with one supporting the other, a heavenly choir that moves over the metal base. Mein Herz, or My Heart for the linguistically challenged, is another that utilizes the German language to full effect. Again, the two vocalists play off against one another over a solid drum line with symphonics in the background. The chorus utilizes both vocals and provides an unforgettable hook:

Flos Obscura slows it down a bit and returns us to the Latin. We go directly to a duet between the metal vocal and the opera vocal. And nowhere on the CD does it work as well. The two play off directly, over a symphonic background. As the selection progresses, they begin to sing together, the effect is magical. This is Coronatus at it’s strongest, with both vocalists at their best over a solid symphonic background with the metal driving the enterprise. The lyrics again take us to a hallowed place:

Coronatus does communicate the Gothic in English as well. There are several on this production, and the vocals don’t suffer any with this format. In Your Hands is a ballad; it opens with the metal vocal, the operatic sound in the background. It’s a soulful sound, a dark, mournful song, almost a blues number in some respects, blues with two wonderful female vocals singing the mournful tale. The singers plead:

The music, the lyrics, the production and, most of all, the incredible vocals. This is Coronatus. It may not be Tarja, but one listen will have you forgetting that fact, and settling in for a wonderful ride. In every language.

10 / 10