Album review: WHITE EMPRESS – Rise Of The Empress

December 6th, 2014 by Yiannis

Peaceville Records – Out Now.

Unless you have been living under a rock for the last twenty three years you should be able to recognise Paul Allender as the ex-lead guitarist and one of the main composers of the British extreme Metal combo Cradle Of Filth.

Having left the band for the second time in his career almost six months ago, the axeman decided to relocate to Minnesota/USA where he managed to hook up with a bunch of high profile musicians and, with their assistance and contribution, take the next step in his personal musical journey by forming the unique-sounding sextet White Empress – a band whose debut album “Rise Of The Empress” has only just been released.

I am sure that many of you would be curious to know how similar the music of Paul’s new band is with that of Cradle Of Filth’s, right? Just as when he was a member of the Suffolk-formed legends, Paul’s new compositions feature heavy/meaty guitar riffs and eerie keyboard melodies in abundance.

The main difference here is not only that White Empress is a female fronted band, but also that Mary Zimmer (Luna Mortis), the front woman in question, employs a wide range of vocal styles in order to complement and support Paul’s massive-sounding riffs.

Is this a marriage made in heaven? Well, while there has clearly been a lot of thought and skill involved behind the creation of the ten compositions that put together “Rise Of The Empress” the end result is not what I would describe as a resounding success. Let me explain why.

Even though I remember being quite impressed by the industrial-styled keyboards and female choral chants of the opening instrumental piece “Rise Of The Empress”, what I was soon to discover was that there are certain ‘ingredients’ in this album that have been integral for both its creation and character which I am not particularly too fond of.

While I have absolutely nothing against the massive mid-tempo riffs and brutal screaming vocals of “The Congregation” I was slightly put off by Zimmer’s use of Lacuna Coil styled clear vocal melodies in the song’s refrain – a strategy that has been, sadly, been employed in most remaining songs of the album.

With “A Prisoner Unleashed” being another example of the said approach it was the heavier sounding “Darkness Encroaching” that I found closer to my liking and that was mainly on the band’s decision to reduce commercial-sounding vocal melodies to the minimum.

Thematically varied and featuring an array of cleverly-crafted keyboard arrangements and choral chants “Sven’s Tower” is a return to form of sorts, something that cannot be said for the average-sounding “Erased And Rewritten”.

In the up-tempo “Ecstatic And The Sorrow” you find a few Swedish-sounding Death Metal melodies having infiltrated the band’s sound while the dark-sounding follow-up “Dethroned” is the first composition of the album which convinced me that this sextet is capable of creating what one could describe as a complex but thoroughly captivating composition.

The closing duet “Obsession With The Empress” / “Our To Burn” provide the listener with further layered material to digest – the former featuring futuristic keys and interesting combinations of clear/brutal vocals while the latter a massive guitar riff combined with Goth-inspired keyboard melodies.

There are quite a few positive things that one can name in relation to White Empress’ debut release. Apart from the fact that the band has achieved a truly stunning sound in its own recording studio, Allender’s guitar riffs and the way they interact with layers upon layers of keyboard and vocal melodies betray his experience and sheer professionalism.

My main issue with “Rise Of The Empress” is that I don’t always agree with the way the band’s front woman utilise her otherwise beautiful voice but, most importantly, though I do enjoy listening to them, the ten compositions on offer are not the sort capable of giving me Goosebumps – something that I had indeed experienced with some of Allender’s previous work. Oh well – as they say, some you win some you lose, right?

John Stefanis

Rating: ***1/2 (3.5/5.0)

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