With commendable regularity, German gothic metallers ILLUMINATE release one full-length album practically every year. "Zwei Seelen," released this year, is already the band's eighth record, not counting the compilation. Here, as on recent releases, the same tendency toward heavier sound and symphonic elements is evident, which is where contentious questions among the band's fans begin to arise. After all, ILLUMINATE — to the delight of some and the dismay of others — are becoming increasingly similar to their colleagues LACRIMOSA. Echoes of the group's somewhat gloomy darkwave past are vividly expressed only on Tore Garten. Personally, I find this development very pleasing, as the music has become much more diverse, melodic, and interesting. Some songs even feature attractive guitar solos (which, you'll agree, is surprising for a project whose style has always been characterized as darkwave)! Not to mention that in the song Kein Hauch von Leben, power riffs ring out against the backdrop of a rasping near-growl, once again evoking associations with Copycat by Tilo Wolff's band! But as I've said before — a talented execution of someone else's ideas is better than untalented originality!
All compositions are in German and are sung by the band's vocalist Johannes Berthold, with the exception of Gebet aus der Vergangenheit and Siehst Du mich in Dir, where the very beautiful operatic voice of guest singer Carmen R. Schafer is heard, while the tender ballad Bevor Du gehst is performed by Sylvia Berthold.
So, despite the noticeable heaviness, "Zwei Seelen," like all other ILLUMINATE creations, is also permeated with an atmosphere of romantic melancholy and amorous sadness. The band is evolving, and in the future, I believe they will delight us more than once with beautiful, high-quality albums.