EDENBRIDGE - The Great Momentun

9 songs
54:38 minutes
***** ****
Steamhammer / SPV

Bandpage

Upon discovering Austrian band Edenbridge with their debut in 2000, I was instantly excited and developed a certain passion for symphonic metal. Few other bands can combine so successfully epic and progressive moments, making me glad that they are still around nearly twenty years later. Of course not every album managed to stand out, there were a few weaker attempts (Aphelion, The Bonding), but also some really great moments like Arcana, Shine and MyEarthDream. The last studio album lies more than three years in the past. In that time, the band was touring a lot, had a lin-up change and released their vast DVD biography A Decade And A Half… A History So Far.

On their new album The Great Momentum, Edenbridge shows itself from a more rousing side as on the less spectacular The Bonding. Shiantara is a powerful start where the atypically brutal rhythm section really manages to catch your attention. Even though the band shows itself from a more powerful side, there are still plenty of symphonic elements left. The orchestra offers a lot of classical arrangements and doesn’t shy away from occasionally taking a central role. The pace has been sped up, but even the first single The Moment Is Now, a mid-tempo track, still comes with enough momentum. Those familiar with Edenbridge know to expect at least two ballads, and this is also the case this time. On Until The End Of Time, she is having a duet with Eric Martensen from Eclipse. The piano ballad Only A Whiff Of Life flirts with kitsch, but that’s also a kind of art form that Edenbridge have mastered over the years. As a contrast, we get The Visitor which plays in the Star Trek universe, and Return To Grace with its Oriental influences. The album ends with the twelve-minute-long The Greatest Gift Of All, an extremely varied and utterly dramatic piece of music.

But not only this concluding track, but the entire album leaves a great impression. The interest of old fans will definitely be rekindled, and The Great Momentum’s huge potential might even get the band some new fans. It doesn’t happen every day that a band records their best album so late into their career. The album comes with a bonus CD featuring instrumental versions of the songs, but it’s up to you to decide if their music works for a karaoke evening.