weeping silence

Weeping Silence from Malta have a long history, stretching back to the 90’s,releasing an album in 2000. It’s taken eight years to release this, their second,during which time they have undergone many changes. Vocalist Rachel Grech has a truly magnificent voice, a mix of Marcela Bovio and Sharon Den Adel. After a short spooky intro, there follows four beautiful, dreamy songs that rise and fall, rise and fall like the sea, over the course of about 10 minutes each, full of Streams of Passion like other worldly moodiness and splendour. I listened to this on a Sunday morning, and this proved to be perfect to relax and chill out to, after a stressful week I felt at peace with the world. The only criticism is the rather trebly rhythm guitar sound in the heavier passages, but the musicianship is superb, with lovely guitar work and atmospheric keys. Copies are available on EBay. They have another album in the can and are looking for a label; they deserve to have companies beating down the door to sign them. - http://www.ravenheartmusic.com/news.html

Weeping Silence are a female fronted metal band from Malta. As we all know there are no shortage of female fronted metal bands these days. We here at the webzine get countless albums, demos, and various tracks from all over the globe. Many of these bands are lacking in substance and creativeness. That's why "End of an Era" was such a refreshing change. Many of the promos we get end up in a pile that are never touched again after a few listens. This album I just found my self picking up again and again. "End of an Era" has a enchanting feel to it, that allows you to focus and be able enjoy the music without being overloaded with bombastic symphonies and over the top soprano vocals. Weeping Silence put me in mind of one of my favorite bands "The Gathering" they have that same sort of deliberateness and calming yet inspiring approach that I find intoxicating. I greatly enjoyed the melodies that the musicians created, and I find female vocalist Rachel Gresh to be a true talent with a voice that I really think made each song. I am very pleased and happy to welcome Weeping Silence to our musical family. Certainly hope to hear more from them in the future. Great album!!! - http://www.nocturnaleuphony.com/weepingsilence/endofanera.php

Het Griekse Sleaszy Rider Records bracht deze plaat uit. Weeping Silence is een Maltese band met een frontvrouw. Uit Malta kende ik alleen Beheaded, maar dit heeft er niets mee te maken. Er bestaan geruchten dat deze schijf al eens is uitgegeven, maar daar vind ik op de webstek van de band niets van terug. Ze zeggen zelf een doom-band te zijn, maar daar ben ik niet zeker van. Hoe dan ook, de muziek.
Het is ontegensprekelijk dat deze mensen fan zijn van Within Temptation. De link op hun MySpace neemt alle twijfel trouwens weg. De zanglijnen, de feërieke sfeer, het gebruik van sprookjeszachte synths, de atmosferische nummers... Alles wijst erop dat het hier gaat om fans. En toch ga ik ze niet afschilderen als complete klonen. De nummers vertonen creativiteit, en de stemklank van zangeres Rachel is anders dan die van Sharon, soms benadert het zelfs dat van Anneke van Giersbergen. Vooral in het tweede nummer (het eerste na de intro) Deep Regret is dat te horen. Het is om de haverklap dan wel allemaal stereotyp gezang wat je hoort (laaaang aangehouden noten en allemaal klinkers die je hoort), maar echt storend is het niet. Het stembereik is niet zo groot als dat van voorgenoemde Nederlandse bands, maar men is zich hier bewust van en gaat nergens over de grenzen van het haalbare.
Uiteindelijk is het resultaat het belangrijkste. De (lange) nummers blijven hangen, vooral de melodieën dan. De vrouwelijke zang is behoorlijk sterk, maar niet uitzonderlijk. De synths zijn eenvoudig maar niet kitscherig. De rest van de muziek is sporadisch erg doomy, maar vooral ondersteunend en sfeervol. Concluderend kan ik dit bestempelen als een degelijk plaatje in een genre dat ik de laatste tijd vooral afgetrokken, uitgeperst en sufferig vond. Een nieuwe prikkeling voor het dromerige onderdeel dat onder andere fans van een doomy Within Temptation en After Forever of een zweverig Draconian wel zal bevallen. - http://www.zwaremetalen.com/recensie/11738/Weeping-Silence-End-Of-An-Era.html

Nati nel 1995, i maltesi Weeping Silence sono oggi in sei e, dopo aver esordito con il valido demo autoprodotto di 4 tracce "Deprived From Romance" nel 2000 tornano (inaspettatamente?) con un nuovo lavoro dato alle stampe da Sleaszy Rider. I nostri, evidentemente appassionati di doom anni '90 inglese ma seguaci anche di gothic metal sdolcinato sono fautori di un genere piuttosto accessibile, cantato interamente con una leggiadra voce femminile molto presente che ad esser sinceri ricorda più i Cranberries dei The 3rd And The Mortal, e ricco di episodi quasi ambient: basti ascoltare le estranianti intro e outro 'spiritiche' in stile Sopor Aeternus. Cambi di tempo ma niente colpi di scena o evoluzioni spettacolari, tuttavia in questo lavoro la serenità è garantita da tappeti di tastiere e dai vocalizzi della cantante, che sembrano rassicurare l'ascoltatore portandolo lontano da questo mondo di tragedie su un percorso lineare fatto di dolci melodie. A questo proposito parlerei di un retroterra forse involontario di symphonic metal evidente nelle continue aperture, che conferisce al sound un che di positivo. Ciò, se da un lato libera i nostri dai pantani di certo doom vischioso e farraginoso, dall'altro elimina quasi del tutto la carica negativa e oppressiva connaturata al genere stesso: per farla in breve, la tristezza c'è ma potrebbe essercene di più. Comunque non male. - http://www.babylonmagazine.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4379&Itemid=0

Got in contact with singer Rachel some weeks ago, and after receiving the album End Of An Era, I have listened many many times to this great band from Malta. Weeping Silence is a special band that stands forward very interesting musically compared to all other female fronted bands that comes up today. Musically they are hard to describe, but you will after spinning the album some times notice a progressive rock/metal touch blended with gothic metal, symphonic rock/metal and with some hints of romantic doom metal. The music get me into a good mood and have a substance and creativeness that I miss from many bands today. The six songs has a playing time of 43 minutes, where four of the songs is about ten minutes long. The cover artwork is really delicate and I also like the lyrical themes on the disc. The album opens with a short mystic intro called Mourning Reign, that leads us to the interesting ten minute long Deep Regret. I get a good feel from the start here with Rachel`s clear strong vocals. A haunting melody and the different switches musically in this song is awsome from a gothic metal oriented style to progressive parts. The musical landscape is filled with good harmonies and a stunning atmosphere that you will love after some rounds in the player. The instrumentation is delicate with a lot of cool details on the keys, guitars, and I feel the musicians eminently manage to bring forward something own! Tell Me Why opens emotional and beautiful, a short delicate instrumental part lead the way to the first verse with Rachel`s beautiful fragile voice. The vocal melody and the mood they manage to bring forward is awesome and just great to listen to. The floating keys and each of the band members bring great instrumental details to the music that make the song interesting and entertaining. The song reach its absolute top round the chorus parts with singing from Rachel that will go right in your heart. Crystal Images opens symphonic with keys and Rachel`s voice. The song changes to a darker gothic beautiful mood after one minute and thirty seconds. Throughout we are taken through many different parts from the brittle, fragile, beautiful to the darker more progressive and metal oriented. The beautiful guitar solo after six and a half minute, and also the piano and vocal lines give me a good feel and for each time I hear the songs on this album the better they gets! Darkness In My Heart opens dark and heavy, but changes when the vocals enters the song to a more progressive fragile style. A strong song with great keys and the different vocal lines throughout is just perfect and take the song to a top level! Also in this we are served many great instrumental details that will keep you entertained and interested. The last song the title track End Of An Era is a short beautiful mystic song that make a perfect ending to this fabulous album from Weeping Silence. After getting to know their songs on End Of An Era, I can`t hardly wait to hear what they manage to create next time. So if you`re looking for something that stands out in the crowd of female fronted bands you have to check out Weeping Silence! 98/100 - http://www.melodichardrocktoday.tk/

I’ve had this CD around the house for a while, never took the time to listen to it. It was described as "mellow, ambient stuff". Had me thinking Barry Manilow in deep depression, a concept I’m not psychologically equipped to deal with at any level. Then one day, I decided, what the heck, it’s raining out, my Harley has a flat, time for some mellow, ambient stuff to set the mood for a night at home. Well, let’s just say, that description may have left some room for reconsideration. I think a better description might have been killer symphonic gothic.
The second concern regarding the CD might be the title. I think most of us are familiar with another work entitled End of an Era and some of us might take offense at the use of that title by any group not named Nightwish. Well, I can’t speak to that distraction other than to say they seem to have a pretty good reason for the use of the phrase. The band dedicated this work to a lost brother musician, Forsaken Guitarist Daniel Magri. I didn’t know the guy but he must have made quite an impression, I’d love to have something this outstanding dedicated to me when my time comes.
Weeping Silence is from Malta, that’s located out in the Mediterranean, right off the coast of Italy for the geographically challenged. You might have noticed that there seems to be a lot of music coming from Italy and nearby locations lately. Must be something in the wine. This is actually the second release from the band. A previous title, Deprived from Romance, was released in 2000. A third title is scheduled for release shortly. This release was recorded in 2004 but not released until 2008.
There are only 6 tracks on this CD, and the first and last are only about a minute or so long. The middle 4, however, go for an average of 10 minutes each. Now make no mistake, there’s no headbanging stuff here, no screaming death metal, no angry speed guitars. There are also no operatic vocals. What there is. . .is some of the finest gothic doom metal I’ve ever heard, by some of the finest musicians I’ve ever heard. Now I admit, I’m a fan of the operatic vocal style which is not found here, but on this work, the vocals of lead vocalist Rachel Grech are pretty much perfect. She has a beautiful voice, one that works perfectly with the dark background and lyrics that serve to drive the music.
The band is comprised of 5 musicians in addition to vocalist Rachel Grech. They include Rapheal Grech and Mario Ellul on guitars, Angelo Zammit on Drums and percussion, Mario Cilia on keyboards, and Sean Pollacco on bass. Clearly, there is some classical training within this group, it can be seen in the composition as well as the presentation.
For all practical purposes, the CD begins with Deep Regret, which actually starts out with some serious guitar work. Weeping Silence does have some folks familiar with the heavy axe and they show it on this number. But WS is atmospheric gothic and the symphonic generally plays a more important part in the presentation than the guitars. The vocals are dark and dusky. The symphonic shows us the way and we are taken on a beautiful journey for an extended ride into the darker regions. The music floats over the lovely vocals and tells a gothic tale:
Beneath a dark sun we fell
Into our flesh we crawled
Honey lips turned to sourness
Blinking eyes spoke of lies
Tell Me Why drops it down a notch. Again, it’s a symphonic journey, a slower waltz but with an equally beautiful vocal component. However, there’s a broader display of that vocal. High notes are fascinating. You get a more pronounced drum line here as well, but this song is more vocal driven than the first. Some dramatic overlaying of that vocal leads us into more guitar work and the song digs deeper.
Crystal Images continues the format introduced in the previous number, but with a more pronounced keyboard line. That format leads to a more aggressive guitar driven sound as the song progresses. The guitar riffs can be catchy but they tend more towards the macabre, the darkness that is the signature sound of WS. There is a short section that features a Spanish guitar sound and it is perfect for this song. This is followed by a more metal sounding phase, the guitars go harder and faster, the drums drive the sound forward and Rachel demonstrates a hard metal vox, just to show us she can. The song then moves back to the ethereal motif where WS lives and we are carried along for the ride, a truly pleasant ride in every respect.
Darkness in My Heart takes us back to the more metal oriented direction with a strong opening by the guitars and the symphonics. There are some interesting adjustments to the melody as we move from one octave to another between phrases. The beat and tone are also adjusted and the song seems to wander from one direction to the next, although the wandering is quite comfortable. Rachel seems to plead with the vocals, her tale is one of anguish and the background musicians drive the message forward - http://www.soniccathedral.com/webzine/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=415&Itemid=35

Weeping Silence is a band based in Malta and "End Of An Era" is their second work after "Deprived In Romance" in 2002.
The new album lead by the ethereal vocals of Rachel Grech, is an excellent sample of melancholic/atmospheric slow metal that reminds intensely of “The Gathering”s’ “Mandyllion”.
In this album there are 4 songs, each of them more than 9 minutes long, an intro and an outro. It’s a slow album with lots of acoustic parts and keyboards that seem to come from a distance. It’s like a sweet dream. Although its’ songs are long and the slow tempo is continuous you can listen to it very pleasantly because of its’ great melodies. To aid this there are few solos, violins, choirs, which even in their simplicity they impress with their harmony and lyric. It’s an album that will offer you lots of relaxation and melancholy, especially if you are in a “strange” mood. It’s not accidentally that the album is dedicated to the memory of a lost friend of the group. - http://www.heavymetalcosmos.gr/en/reviews/378-w/123-weeping-silence-end-of-an-era-

Listening to the album, End of an Era by Weeping Silence, is like a trip I took to Kansas. I can remember on the way back taking a route that would lead us to St. Louis. On this particular highway was a stretch where for as far as you could see in any direction was nothing. Flat prairie ground with the occasional hill. Bleak, cold and totally isolated is what you felt while passing through there. This is what you have with Weeping Silence. This album, which is rich in beautifully orchestrated atmospheric music with a gothic feel, leaves you with a yearning to seek out a loved one as you are swept into the lonely soundscape that is created and much like that stretch of road I talked about, the music is very much on a single plane with very little hills or valleys.
Weeping Silence is a band that I have a hard time calling metal as their press releases suggest. They are a very progressive group with some metal undertones. Their main course of electronic orchestration and moody symphonic melody is punctuated with some dynamic guitar work, but for the most part it is the keyboards that form the character of the band. This is not a bad thing by far. The mood is perfect for the melancholy vocals of Rachel Grech. She has a voice that brings out the sadness and morose side of the album.
For fans of the group Renaissance, here is a new band that will blend in very well for you. For people that want a rich, lush musical experience, this is also an album to have. When you hit those times when all you want around you is a set of headphones, pick this one up for sure.
This is a group that has a lot of promise. The record company sent me a sample of their next album along with this one and I can tell you now, I can't wait to hear it! - http://www.seaoftranquility.org/reviews.php?op=showcontent&id=7185

To be uploaded soon. - Metal Maniac - (Italy)

WEEPING SILENCE is not a new band as it dates back in 1995. After two demos the guys from Malta have decided it was time for a debut album. “End of an Era” is the name and doom metal is the game. What impressed me from the start is the female vocals which really create a dark gloomy atmosphere like the style of the band demands, but also the power in some tracks with the heavy guitars and the hard pounding drums which are really something! The album consists of eight tracks with a total of forty three minutes which will please everyone and will offer dark moments of listening. Enjoy and get lost in this Maltese silence. - http://members.lycos.co.uk/behindtheveil/index_frames.htm