Saturday, March 17, 2012

Anneke Van Giersbergen "Everything Is Changing"


Had to follow through on my Facebook post of a clip of the final track from John Wetton's latest record, which featured this woman on vocals.  Said I would investigate her forthcoming album.  I like to follow through on my promises...

Visited her website for some info and then went off on my search.  She was the vocalist for a Dutch rock band called The Gathering.  I vaguely recall that name from the last half of the 90's due to our store's massive European tourist clientele... or maybe it was the Brazilians who always asked for it...
I believe we had to special order some copies for stock (oops, that broke the rules) and I may have opened one for a demo.  Metal-ish crunch with this pretty voice blended in.  First thing that sprung to mind was Doro and the band Warlock.  There was/is a whole genre of female-fronted metal that's been around in Europe for decades.  Still today, there are viable ways to find it, like this label, which, oddly enough, is operated by Americans.  Never a major fan of the style, but some of it works. 

So now the title of AVG's record makes some sense.  She is approaching the age of forty, out of the band that made her famous for nearly five years, and her music has made a subtle shift towards "commercial" in my book.  This album is very by-the-numbers-heavy-power-arena-metal, or in another simpler descriptor, dated.  Don't get me wrong, it's quite good, very precise.  Her voice is too pretty for the style, not operatic like Pat Benetar's, but that would be an adequate comparison.  Heart would be another.  One track dials it down with basically a piano and synth strings, a more fitting frame for her voice...



Boys and girls, that's a hit in whatever language you speak.  But that's the only track of that style.  This is more like the record as a whole...



Still very good, very crunchy...commercial.  That's OK by me.  She has such a pretty, expressive voice, but I wish it was wrapped in a different style, a la All About Eve. 



Overall, "Everything..." is a good record.  Back in the old days, I'd say this was a "side 2" winner since I like the last half's song mix.  May not hit domestic shelves, but if I can buy it from my seat in Orlando, you can, too.

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