THE ELKYAN TALES

(FRANCE)

IRIS PRIME

(2024)
LABEL:

AUTRE LABEL

GENRE:

PROGRESSIVE METAL

TAGS:
Concept-album, Female vocals, Instrumental, Low vocals, Melancholic, Symphonic, Theatrical
"“Iris Prime” is a very good album that charms with its energy and emotions."
THIBAUTK (19.12.2024)  
4/5
(0) opinions (0) comment(s) Nudge
The Elkyan Tales was created by multi-instrumentalist Yann Machurey. Since his earliest childhood, this enthusiast has explored musical worlds, first as a drummer, then as the creator of his own music. In 2006, he released the first song on “Iris Prime”, an album he has been refining ever since. Yann's music is a cross between Ayreon, Shadow Gallery, Pendragon and Aragon in certain respects. “Iris Prime” is an album of rivers, a sensory and emotional voyage, a long journey that stirs the senses. 

The opus is composed like a modern symphony, with its different movements, tensions and releases. “Iris Prime” is a coherent ‘album-universe’ encompassing a variety of influences, piling up simple acoustic passages and symphonic grandiloquence. And even though the tracks are long, there's never a dull moment, as the songs offer enough nuance and intricate layering to satisfy any listener, balancing dreaminess, energy, disquieting passages and humanist tenderness.

The songs feature smooth, precise rhythms or passages that flirt with rock opera ('Like Stars In The Skies'). The vocals deserve a special mention from the outset, as the voices and harmonies are of great beauty, both on their own and as a duet ('Pregnancies of Perfection'). Similarly, 'L.I.F.E' features a beautiful vocal duet set to a symphonic score worthy of John Williams. The introduction to 'Pregnancies of Perfection' spreads evanescent vocal lines over diffuse keyboard layers. These vocal harmonies are occasionally enhanced by piano or by a duet between a warm violin and a melancholy cello ('The Purple Way'). Finally, the guitars shine in their acoustic versions ('Of Seasons') or saturated when combined with crystalline piano.

“Iris Prime” is a very good album, with no downtime. The music's varied textures oscillate between progressive rock, progressive metal, rural ambience and symphonic passages. But beyond these genres, the album charms with its energy and the emotions born of the beautiful melodies it distils.
- Official website
SIMILAR BANDS:
YES, AYREON, PENDRAGON, SHADOW GALLERY

TRACK LISTING:
01. Caeli Justitia
02. Anima Whispers
03. Bloodhood
04. The Purple Way
05. Like Stars In The Skies
06. Of Seasons
07. Pregnancies Of Perfection
08. L.I.F.E

LINEUP:
Cédric Camus: Basse
Fabrice Lacourt:
Florian Arnaud: Guitares
Florian Pothiat: Chant
Natacha Kanga: Chant
Yann Machurey: Claviers / Batterie
   
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