Outside the Shade is the newest EP released by the French band Diary of Destruction and is available now for all you fans of female-fronted melodic metal. After listening to this for the past few weeks (err, months) I’ve come to appreciate a few things about them. The first, is the voice of enchanting frontwoman Audrey Ebrotié. There is a certain subtlety to the vocal delivery, a sweet and delicate nature if you will, and yet it rings through with an unmistakable clarity and power. When compared with other female fronted metal bands the vocals are neither too soft, nor too overpowered, but to my preference balanced somewhere in between and I think this works very well for them.

Complementing the melodic vocal line are heavy riffs, guitar harmonies, and the occasional growl. A combination somewhat akin to Battlelore if I had to make a rough comparison. The heavy guitars work wonders with the beauty of the vocals and the two together, light and dark, are what make this album what it is.

However the atmosphere I heard in their 2009 demo is missing here and coupled with the heavy guitar passages and melodies I think it would have brought Outside the Shade to an even higher level. This EP is speedier and more upbeat than last year’s demo, pulling away from the sometimes dreary gothic metal and embracing a faster, melodic metal sound. Most of the female fronted metal bands I’ve heard are either extememly symphonic or gloomy and gothic, few if not none have the particular sound of Diary of Destruction now that I think of it. These guys just might be onto something good. Can’t wait to hear what happens next!

Bonne écoute!
5/5

(Ps. Sorry for sitting on this review for so long.)

• Genre: Melodic metal
• Origin: France
• Link: http://diaryofdestruction.com/
• Year: 2010