Album review: LIV KRISTINE – River Of Diamonds

January 27th, 2023 by GRTR! HQ

Metalville [Release date 21.04.23]

Since 1998, and during an acrimonius split from her band Leaves’ Eyes and partner, Liv Kristine has released a series of excellent pop rock albums. We chronicled these in our radio special in 2022 when we chatted to Liv about her career.

She seemed content in her new life which combined vocal coaching and her own music, most recently reissuing the 2006 album ‘Enter My Religion’. This was apparently the first of a series of reissues of her solo material, so it comes as a bit of a surprise that – in 2023 – we have a brand new album. She’s not resting on her laurels. She’s also retained producer Tommy Olsson with whom she worked in her first band Theatre Of Tragedy. Olsson has written and played most of the material.

The opening track is a throwback to the “beauty and beast” male/female vocal she pioneered with her original band. It is however much softer in execution, and the pop/rock music bed puts it back in the 1980s.

‘No Make Up’ reminds me a little of another great late 1980s/early 90s band All About Eve. Characterised as ever by Liv’s melodic and mellifluous vocal.

Another reference point – again rooted in the late 1980s – is Simple Minds (on ‘Maligna’). I haven’t got the lyric sheet but did I hear Liv’s pure, dulcet tones utter “Fuck Him’ and ‘Fuck Her”?

‘Gravity’ (and ‘Serenity’) first appeared on her EP ‘Have Courage Dear Heart’ in 2021. ‘In Your Blue Eyes’ has a ‘Run To You’ feel to it with a similar sense of welcome urgency. The title track features Fernando from the goth/metal band Moonspell whilst sister Carmen Elise Espenæs is enlisted for ‘Love Me High’ which continues a definite eighties/goth vibe.

One of two covers Jon Lord’s ‘Pictured Within’ may seem an unusual choice but it works well with her partner Michael keeping things close-knit and comfortable. This reminds me that more recently Liv has performed a regular festive gig in Nagold, Germany: this song has an almost seasonal flavour.

‘Shaolin Me’ reminds us that there is a strong spiritual element to Kristine’s music these days, a continuing search for truth and inner peace, and what she describes as the “inner voice”.

This is really a five star album, only docked half a star for the inclusion of two tracks which fans should already possess and a fairly ineffectual cover of ‘True Colours’. If you have explored that excellent solo back catalogue, you will find much to like here. And of course if you’ve only known Liv via Leaves’ Eyes (or Theatre Of Tragedy) this is a good place to start too. ****1/2

Review by David Randall

Album review/interview (Enter My Religion, 2022)

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