In Tenebris- In Tenebris

In Tenebris

I'm trying, as it were, not to write off In Tenebris
as an Evanescence with slightly more clout for
claiming underground status. There's lush, haunting
vocal melodies courtesy of singer Christina, and the
vocals might be what sets In Tenebris apart. Fans of
bands like Lucina Coil won't be disappointed. While
some of the riffing is typical of what you might
expect of  felmale-fronted nu-metal, there's also
enough in the guitars that is more power-metal a la
Children of Bodom, that the music remains interesting.
 
What sets In Tenebris apart from other bands doing
this sort of goth-influenced metal, is a very mature
sounding vocals sensibility that recalls more Black
Tape for a Blue Girl than scores of the current crop
of female-fronted metal bands, which owe a good deal
more to pop music. "Havoc" is a particularly good
track: the vocals soar above a power-metal sounding
mix of keyboards and guitar. It's a good mix of
crunchy guitars and tasteful sequencing.
Counter-intuitively, the band seems to loose it's way
on the track "Torch Song", which is a slow song with a
much more minimalist arrangement. The song is a
brooding, melodic ballad, but ultimately dissapointing
because the vocals are given space in the arrangement
to really shine, but the opportunity seems wasted
here.
All-in-all, if slightly theatrical female fronted
metal is something that you look for, In Tenebris will
probably be a good fit. The more jaded in the scene
might dismiss them as fodder for kinder-goths, but I
won't write this band off quite that way. There's
enough that's interesting going on in the music they
can't be dimissed as simply derivative or a clone of
other female-fronted metal.