Persephone

this is the best new alternative rock band i have heard in a long time. their sound reminds me of earlier no doubt or the pretenders best tracks.

For all of you who miss bands like The Primitives, Adult Net, The Darling Buds, Talulah Gosh and all late 80's/early 90's indie pop, welcome to Persephone's Bees. They take the best of what made late 80's/early 90's girl bands and step it up a notch to create something new that feels familiar in a wonderful way. I've played this album at least once a day since I purchased the CD, and it's already been about a month. You just don't get tired of it. It makes you want to get up and dance.

I personally can't wait to see what they do next.

This album was one I was extremely excited about getting, and it surpassed my expectations. From the first song to the last, there isn't one that I skip over. I would reccomend this album to anyone with an open mind and a love for fun music. I hope Persephone's Bees keeps on making music because this is a fantastic listen.

A very good album, I like the style a lot. Mixes a lot of different styles, maybe too many sometimes. Anyway, I do recommend this!

This album really surprised me. Don't hesitate to rock your socks off with this one!

All the PD albums, are great, but this has some really amazing songs on it.

Gorgeous music, gorgeous voice. Lush, dreamy, and sensual, Persephone's Dream blazed a silken velvet trail into the progressive rock arena with this first release. While their later releases are more edgy and somewhat predictable; this first release is quite unexpected. Poole's guitar is equally haunting and up to the silvery challenge of Ms. Niedercorn's voice. Together this band manages to achieve a unique sound that is hypnotic and darkly sexual, yet touched with a quicksliver fleeting innocence.

The cut called Reflection summarizes the CD and its themes, and is smokey and smoldering, yet wistful. It is by far the best cut on this mesmerizing CD.

Pyre of Dreams is quite possibly the most accomplished album by Persephone's Dream yet. Chock full of varied instrumentation, a vast array of vocalists, and eclectic songwriting, it is easily their most diverse work. It still treads the same moody, atmosphere-laden prog music they're so well known for, but it also adds more varied elements, including bits of gothic darkness, electronica, and folky landscapes.

The vocal tracks are split between two amazing female vocalists, Colleen Gray and Heidi Engel. Each vocalist portrays the intended mood successfully; Gray appears on the more laidback, melodic pieces such as "Threnody" and "Synesthesia". The former is an excellent opener, lending itself to 80's pop rock during its chorus but quickly morphing into its prog-laden roots thanks to Rowen Poole's amazing guitar theme that is utilisted recurringly through the piece. The melody here is simply sublime; it works beautifully amidst distant percussion, weird sound effects, and the harmonized vocalization. "Synthesia", on the other hand, is a heavier song, delving into almost RIO territory thanks to its remarkable use of dissonant guitar voicings and evil synth lines. The ending part, however, completely belies its roots, bringing forth acoustic and electric guitars draped over a fat bass bottom.

Some of the tracks featuring Colleen Gray are differently structured; they are definitely darker with a more cinematic bent to them. On the five-part "Temple in Time", however, Heidi Engel appears on "Nimiane" first, providing an immediately recognisable contrast to the Colleen Gray-sung "Mist", littered with vintage keyboards (think Uriah Heep) and some narration by Rowen Poole's wife Kelly Fletcher. In a way, "Nimiane" recalls White Willow's more recent material, marrying the best worlds of progressive rock and Scandinavian darkness. Similarly, on "Avalon", Persephone's Dream sounds more like Ayreon circa The Final Experiment, developing a fiercely melodic song around bassist John Lally's thunderous rhythms. Gray's a capella-style singing here at the end is to die for. Heidi Engel's voice, on the other hand, has a tremendously powerful timbre; it gives goosebumps when she delivers her tortured, almost gothic rock-sounding voice, best heard on the electronically driven "Aphrodite", complete with ethnic percussion, cool male vocals, awesome slap bass parts, and a sweet, totally addictive voice.

DC Cooper who is credited as the producer on the CD also guests on two tracks, enriching the content of the CD. "Soliloquy of a King" boasts epic-size guitar harmonies whilst "Camlann" recalls his recent vocals in Amaran's Plight. Again built around John Lally's prominent bass work, the song also features excellent counterpoint vocals and intense synth work. Speaking of Lally, who appears on at least half of these songs, it's a shame he passed away shortly after recording this album. Also, original founding member, bassist Chris Siegle, has departed the band, but he has still contributed to several songs on the CD. It could be argued that Persephone's Dream is the most bass-centred progressive band around, as every song of theirs is carefully expanded on a strong bass presence, so let's hope they can replace these two great musicians with equally talented individuals.

The two longer songs at the end of the album, "Aphrodite" and "Alien Embassy", are the epics. Pay attention to the Middle Eastern elements on the latter; the flute arrangement, Gray's wonderful whispers and soothing vocals, and constantly shifting atmosphere are truly amazing. It boggles my mind as to why someone of her calibre doesn't get more praise. It would be great to hear her on a future Ayreon album. She appeared on Dutch guitarist Marcel Coenen's solo work recently and did a fantastic job.

Unfortunately, the production of the CD seems a bit flat -- considering the detailed instrumentation, layered soundscapes, and melancholy-inducing songwriting, these pieces should certainly have been recorded and mixed better. Being a self-release, it is understandable that it was all done on a tight budget, so no big complaints here. That said, I can't help but wonder how this album would sound if it had been recorded and mixed by a professional.

Don't let the less-than-stellar production deter you from checking this CD out though. It's actually one of the finest albums of its genre.

Not too long ago a good friend of mine sent me a copy of "Mera Sangeet Kho Gaya" by Persephone. I didn't realize until I had seen the cd artwork that the lead singer from L'Ame Immortelle Sonja was in Persephone. I thought the vocals sounded awfully familiar. I was quite pleasantly surprised to hear Sonja singing to a different type of music. The music is so not like the industrial sounds of her other band L'Ame Immortelle. "Mera Sangeet Kho Gaya" is a soothing mix of ambient, ethereal, trip hop, spoken word, and new age. The cd begins with the haunting ethereal "Labyrinth of Longings". The song kinda reminded me a bit of early Black Tape For a Blue Girl and a smidgeon of Lycia. "From Within" takes on a more seductive, trip hop approach. I was reminded of Massive Attack and Portishead with its laid back beats. "era Sangeet Kho Gaya" is the kind of cd that should be heard after a long day at work, not at the office. I almost fell asleep at my desk from listening to this cd because the music does have a tendency to drag on and on. I rather missed the uptempo songs that L'ame Immortelle is known for. One of my personal songs is the lovely "Nightingales Lament", a beautiful spoken word piece by Sonja. I just love the lyrics. Another great song is "Drowning Theme". The combination of Sonya's breathless vocals and intimate piano melodies is seductive and left me breathless. Although the music tended to be too slow and long winded at times, I enjoyed "Mera Sangeet Kho Gaya" for the most part. Diehard L'ame Immortelle fans might not be keen on the moodiness of the album and be bored with it.

At times, this ep sounds a bit like blondie, others like the bad soundtrack to a 60's/70's film. It does even sound a bit like some of modonna's stuff in the more recent times. It just not my cup of tea. I do think though, if you like dance and female vocals, then this may be more up your alley. I won't shred this album to much, because I know a lot of other folks do like this, but again, it's just not for me. Here is a track listing of this four song ep

1. On The Earth (3:08)
2. Muzika Dlya Fil'ma(5:43)
3. Nice Day (4:00)
4. Nice Day-broken spindels remix (4:08)-non album bonus track

This is definately not your standard cup of tea, being prog with ambient overtones and female vocals. The production is great and the sound original. The only thing I didn't care for was the 12 minute bongo solo in the middle, just a little long for my taste. Fans of White Willow would really enjoy this.

A fresh sound for the rock world. Outstanding musicianship with beautiful vocals. The music has an Ambiant feel with a lot of depth and the fusion of many styles. Could easily be enjoyed by those with tastes outside of the rock genre. I was fortunate to catch them live and was totally blown away. Not a disappointing track on the disc, I was very impressed.

Hey, this album is pretty good for a self-produced band! It has an ambient atmosphere, but with plenty of rhythmic crunch in the backbeat. The lyrics are intropective, sometimes spiritual, and sung by a female vocalist with a lovely voice, something like a cross between Annie Haslam and Natalie Merchant. The guitar work reminds me of the Police, for some reason, while the bass is mostly deep and funky. Not to be missed: a 10 minute percussion piece that serves as a beautiful interlude in the middle of the album. This is a must-have.