lukretion Three years after releasing a solid debut record like Romantic Tragedy's Crescendo, rooted in the “beauty and the beast” gothic metal tradition, Italian band Macbeth are back with their sophomore album, Vanitas. There have been a few line-up changes between the two albums, most notably both vocalists (Vittorio and Cristina) who had played on the debut have been replaced by Andreas Cislaghi (the brother of the band’s drummer, Fabrizio) and Morena Rozzi. Bassist Marco “Sem” Semenza also makes his first appearance with the band on this record.

The line-up changes are reflected in a fairly marked shift in the band’s sound too. On Vanitas Macbeth distance themselves from the Norwegian symphonic gothic metal scene (Theatre of Tragedy, Tristania), which had been an inspiration for the debut record, and move closer to the brand of symphonic black/gothic metal that Cradle of Filth were heralding in those years. The songs are long (many pass the 6 minutes mark) and are comprised of multiple recurring parts, alternating between faster sections and slower, more atmospheric episodes. Gothic keyboards and piano abound, while the guitars combine thrashy riffs with melodic galloping leads and solos. I also perceive influences from more straightforward classic heavy metal lurking in there, perhaps more prominently so than on Cradle’s albums. In the same way, there is perhaps a bit less double bass drums than what you would expect on a symphonic gothic metal album, but that’s because Fabrizio Cislaghi is a very versatile and technical drummer who likes to spice things up using multiple playing styles. His performance on this album is remarkable and very engaging. In fact, all musicians are very proficient at their instruments, and the rich, tight and vibrant instrumental arrangements are probably the main strength of this record.

The influence of the British vampires is also evident in the style of the two vocalists, Andreas and Morena. Andreas in particular adopts many of Dani Filth’s vocal gimmicks, from lacerating growls, to evil whispers, to guttural spoken parts. Unlike Dani, Andreas also frequently employs his clean voice, in a declamatory and mildly deranged style that is reminiscent of Norwegian “clean” vocalists in black/extreme metal albums. Morena plays a secondary role compared to Andreas. She mostly appears in spoken vocal parts, with languid declamations that are intended to be sensual as per the genre stereotype of the female vocalist. In a few songs she also sings together with Andreas. The wide range of vocal styles adopted on the album is certainly ambitious, but the vocals are also the weakest spot of the record. Andreas and Morena’s cleans are particularly bad, often pitchy and devoid of any emotional depth. To be fair, they are not given very strong melodies to sing. To the contrary, the melodic ideas on display here are pretty flat and unoriginal. The spoken/whispered/theatrical parts are also bad and often cringeworthy. They are not helped either by the rather stereotypical lyrics. Andreas’ growls are OK, but are too upfront in the mix in a way that highlights all the little imperfections of his singing.

The weak vocals are most definitely a death sentence for this record. It’s a pity because the music is actually pretty good and full of nuance, and the quality of the playing is also high. Listen for example to the awesome instrumental detour in the second half of “Pure Treasure” or to the sophisticated guitar arrangements on “Aloisa”. Unfortunately these cannot fully compensate for the poor vocal performance, also because the vocals are all over the songs on this album. Overall, this is an album that could have been so much better and instead leaves me with the impression that Macbeth are an unfulfilled promise of Italian extreme metal.

lukretion Hailing from Milan, Italy, Macbeth are one of the dozen bands that in the second half of the 1990s found inspiration in the so called Norwegian gothic/doom metal sound heralded by acts like Theatre of Tragedy and Tristania. Released in 1998, their debut album Romantic Tragedy’s Crescendo is a relatively early example of this “beauty and the beast” aesthetic and ticks all the right boxes for fans of the genre.

The songwriting incorporates influences from doom, death/black metal, gothic and symphonic music. The songs’ duration is medium-long and their structure is complex, alternating fast-paced sections with slower atmospheric spells. The music centres on the interplay between ethereal female vocals and guttural growls, which is a trademark characteristic of this brand of gothic metal. The influence of Theatre of Tragedy looms large, especially in the vocal deliveries of singers Vittorio and Cristina, who often emulate the vocal styles of their respective Norwegian counterparts (feeble, soprano-like vocals for Cristina, cavernous growls and some half-spoken clean vocals for Vittorio). The blackened metal undertones and the reliance of slightly uptempo melodic numbers indicate that Tristania was another reference point for the album’s sound.

But Macbeth are not mere clone of the aforementioned bands. They also bring some fresh ideas to the table, particularly in the traditional heavy metal guitar work by lead guitarist and main songwriter Alex, and in the hyper-technical drumming of band leader Fabrizio. Listen for example to the blazing guitar solos in “Forever…” and “Sweet Endless Sleep”, or to the drum fireworks on “Black Heaven”. There are atypical elements for a traditional “beauty and the beast” band, whose instrumental work is usually more restrained and out of the limelight. Another aspect of this release that stands out relative to similar work in the genre is the heavy use of lush orchestrations and symphonic arrangements by keyboard player Andrea. The piano is instead used more sparingly compared to acts like Theatre of Tragedy, helping the band further differentiate themselves from the Norwegian genre-leaders.

The album flows away pleasantly enough and features a strong production, with excellent guitar and drum sound and clear separation between the instruments, which is remarkable for a new band on a relatively small budget. On a slightly less positive note, it should be said that the record does lack moments of epic greatness that remain seared in the listener’s psyche. The only track that stands out from the rest is the beautiful piano ballad “Moonlight Caress”, as it is the only one that showcases a truly inspired and memorable melody. The other tracks lack instead a strong melodic identity, which is particularly apparent if one focuses on the vocal parts.

Herein lies the other main pitfall of the record: Cristina’s vocals. Her delivery is pitchy and uncertain, especially when she uses her higher register. There are a few moments on the album where her performance is truly cringeworthy, like on the coda of “The Twilight Melancholy” or on “Black Heaven”. Vittorio’s growls, although a tad monotonous, are much more convincing. It does not surprise me, however, that the band decided to change both vocalists for their next release.

Despite these pitfalls, Romantic Tragedy’s Crescendo is a good example of the beauty and the beast sound that became so popular in Europe at the beginning of the new century. Although originality may not be the strongest suit here, Macbeth inject enough novels ideas into their sound to make things interesting for fans of the genre, to whom this album is lukewarmly recommended.

Warthur Italy's Macbeth play gothic metal with the occasional symphonic tradition, in the so-called "beauty and the beast" style. (You know the deal: clean female vocals, in this case from the magnificent Cristina, and ugly death-growled male vocals, this time from Vittorio). Their debut album's title of Romantic Tragedy's Crescendo needs to win an award for "most accurate and descriptive album title" or something: the songs here are lovesick laments with a tendency towards dramatic crescendos. It's not a formula we're exactly unfamiliar with when it comes to gothic metal, but Macbeth do a good enough job with the delivery to win me over, and I'd say it's worth a try unless you passionately dislike this style of metal.

1967/ 1976 "Romantic Tragedy's Crescendo" is the debut album from Macbeth Abbiategrasso, Milan. This album is a big surprise. Meanwhile it is well written and, no less important, is produced in a perfect way. This is a feature common to the album Dragonheart, however, it must be said that an album like this is enhanced by a similar production. I should note that the songs are very simple, powerful and very technical. The mix between Death and Doom here is enhanced by the excellent writing, with excellent vocals of Cristina (unfortunately at the only album with Macbeth), soprano voice, truly amazing and the very dark growl of Vittorio. "The Mournful Lover" is a song that, thanks to the clean vocals of Cristina (a sort of Annie Haslam of Heavy Metal!) gets a sweet piece, just dirty from the growl of Victor. But "Forever..." is the exact opposite! "Forever..." present growl as lead vocals dirty from the clean female vocals. If you think Gothic Metal is the musical version of Gothic architecture, this album is perfect. In fact piano, synth and clean female voice in "Moonlight Caress", an extraordinary power ballad, it could prove it. Although the keyboards (piano and synth) dominate the album the guitars are also present. Although not as heavy as you might think. The melody is always in the foreground. Nevertheless, the aggressiveness of the music is technical, in which a band of Extreme Heavy Metal I would not expect to see it at the forefront. This is also known thanks to the work of Fabrizio, drummer really technical (it should be noted that in Italy there were many masters to learn from, the absolute masters!). Just to say how often the classification of musical genres are blurred, I notice that the final "Sweet Endless Sleep", despite being a typical Gothic Metal, Doom could very well be classified as power metal, not shock anyone.

Unfortunately, "Romantic Tragedy's Crescendo" is the only album I own of Macbeth. Yet I can say without fear of contradiction that "Romantic Tragedy's Crescendo" is an absolute masterpiece, able to move tragically, in a crescendo that is not randomly put them in the title. So, if you think that the music is pure magic... "Romantic Tragedy's Crescendo" is your album!