Sirenia - "1977"

Haunting and beautiful Gothic Metal

This Norwegian Gothic/Symphonic band has had a long run. This is their 11th studio album. And while I haven’t listened through their entire discography, I’ve never heard anything from them that I outright disliked. I rated their 2021 effort Green, and really enjoyed it. This one might be a solid step up from that.

While I haven’t found anything solid for a throughline on “1977”, it’s full of dark, moody metal, intricate guitar and vocal work, and layered riffs verging on Power Metal territory. It’s very melodic. The songs are catchy and fun (see “A Thousand Scars”), and sometimes just hauntingly beautiful. It’s an enjoyable time; I mean, it’s not like boppy pop or hip hop with a bouncy beat, so don’t listen to it expecting that kind of good time. It’s just great for jamming to. And given the album I listened to in front of this one, it’s done a great job of not disappointing.

I’ve got to give this one a Teal. It’s definitely no less than Green, and is good enough that it might be worth a Blue score. My favorite tracks are “The Setting Darkness” and “Oceans Away”; they’re excellent exemplars of the beauty of Gothic melodies.

Rating: Teal Blue