The CD is, however, very much worth the listen. It’s a blend of progressive metal with the more traditional, at least these days, gothic that we hear mainly from Western Europe. It does have a bit of a South American feel to it, especially on songs like Change where the guitars deliver a distinctly South American sound. However, somehow, that gothic thing seems to have arrived at the land of Everlasting Marching Powder and we are the better for it. The lyrics address a variety of topics ranging from fantasy and various literary topics to philosophy and politics, at least, local politics. I didn’t hear any George Bush bashing but I guess the world is just glad to be done with him. Anyway, we talk about some interesting topics here and do it with a thoroughly enjoyable musical vehicle. The music tends to differ from some of the gothic sounds we hear from Western Europe as well. There are the customary instruments; guitars, drums, keys and they are intermingled well. The band also includes some less recognized instruments at times, including the tiple and the bandola, an instrument that approximates the sound of a mandoline. And, on several occasions, there appears to be some choral work, although it is very lightly utilized. However, in general, there is a bit more of the keys on most numbers with a somewhat lesser emphasis on the guitars. Some might find this objectionable; I just find it different, and enjoyable. And I’ve been a lover of the crashing guitar since. . . well, since before your time.

Vocals are provided by the standard female / male approach that seems to have become a regular. The female is the lovely Ana Barajas and if you didn’t know she was Columbian before you saw her, you’d know it when you did. A senorita of considerable beauty with a voice to match. Male vocals are provided by Ana’s brother Jose David and Jorge A. Gutierrez who also play guitars. The boys do both clean and grunting vocals, heavy on the former, lighter on the later. But, it is the voice of our lovely senorita that steals the show. Hers is a voice hard to describe, there is a range of technique here and it is hard to classify. There are times when the sound is metal based, other times, Ana approaches the classical style often associated with the gothic. She has a fine range, and a bit of an accent at times that provides a foreign flavor. She manipulates that range nicely from song to song, and, on this CD, no two songs sound remotely the same. Usually, that’s a good thing, however, on this title, I often get the feeling that some more similarity wouldn’t hurt. You often just start to enjoy a direction when it ends, and a completely new direction unfolds. I guess that’s a little picky, most reviewers spend their time complaining about the exact opposite situation. But, it’s also an indication of how interesting the individual selections are, you get comfortable quite quickly and the movement away can be distracting. But enough bitching, let’s look at the music, and it is fine music indeed.

The CD begins with Castle of Exile and it introduces the haunting melodies that tend to characterize this material. It’s a bit on the classic side, at least at first, as is the case with so much of the gothic material these days. You get the feeling of the gothic castle provided by a keyboard selection straight from a vampire movie. I wonder if they have vampires in Columbia. With what you hear about the country, it’s probably not all that safe for the undead either, unless they’re in the business, of course. But, we move to a metal framework shortly, and to the beautiful vocals of our lead vocalist. The beat changes here as the song moves forward, and the guitars are featured as the vocals move to one of the few death vocal selections on the CD. However, this is keyboard music and we get to it eventually and to good effect.

Unstable Mind takes us in a whole different direction. It’s harder, with keys and guitars sounding very metal. The female lead almost sounds like a different singer from the previous selection. It’s a soulful sound, a mournful serenade that takes us to a place reserved for questionable realities. The male vocals here are more traditional. You really don’t know which male vocal is singing at any given time so you don’t know if it’s a brother / sister thing which would certainly be interesting. The fascinating thing here is the juxtaposition of one sound with another, from one track to another. This continues with the next selection, Dark Delusions. Here the guitars follow an interesting keyboard intro that evolves into a softer vocal line. Nova Orbis doesn’t utilize a single narrative style; they often work as in a conversation, with the female vocal intertwined with one or two of the male vocals. The lyrics vary in terms of focus, and the translation to the English is sometimes less than perfect.

Other songs move in more gothic directions. The Lamp has a heavy focus on the keyboards, and is delivered with an emphasis on the male vocal. Clearly, these Columbians have been listening to some Scandinavian material in their spare time and seem to have some understanding of the message. They may not have the Morton Veland growl down cold but they seem to understand the basic groundwork that the Danes and Norwegians have mastered over the past several decades:

Love Remains provides another direction for the band. The female lead opens with a short refrain that is quickly followed up by a clean male vocal. Here the female vocal contributes initially as a backup sound, and it is something that should be utilized more often. Our senorita can make some beautiful and haunting sounds when turned loose and this song provides evidence of that. Again, the lyrics take a gothic turn, an angry lament that sears the soul.

Nova Orbis provides more evidence that the gothic, female fronted sound is becoming more and more a universal sound. If you like the Western European Gothic featured on this site, you’ll enjoy this material just as much. My only warning would be to refrain from running to your friends and shouting, "Yo, you won’t believe what I just got from Columbia, it’s really great stuff." Somehow, that just has the sound of immediate law enforcement intervention to it and should be kept to a minimum. Other than that, go ahead and enjoy.

9 / 10