This album has been a big surprise for me and I could never have guessed that this band hails from Japan. Musically I'd say that the band remind me many melodeath acts like Arch Enemy, In Flames (Whoracles/Colony), Dark Tranquility & Insomnium. One thing that Serenity in Murder (named after the Slayer song and also to provide a cold atmosphere in which the band definitely thrives in) shares with Arch Enemy is that their vocalist is also female ! You wouldn't be able to tell though. Her growls are as aggressive and even maybe sometimes deeper than Angela's.

The melodies present in this album are really great, and from the first note of this The First Frisson of the World, you will know you are in for a treat ! Mixing very powerful riffs, with subtle keys that add the "symphonic" (I don't like this term so much as there is no orchestra) elements to their sound, with the strong vocals cementing this unit together for some really strong songs, cold yet melodic and powerful all at once. Riffs and keys mix beautifully within Serenity in Murder. And while the band obviously revers the old school of Melodeath, they sound fresh and ready to explode our ears with powerful melodies, strong and fast rhythm and a rather original overall sound, no matter their sources of inspiration. Their song writing abilities must also be pointed out, as they can be quite progressive at times and that's quite a feat to hear all that layered level of musicianship they manage to package into this incredible debut album. There are also some over-the-top ultra melodic guitar highlights, like at the end of Horn of Ending that are quite simply mind blowing (I do wish there would be quite so many more moments like these though but the album isn't missing great melodic moments either).

When you think the average age in the band is 21, these young artists (6 members) have delivered an absolutely terrific first album, one that I hope will be the first of many. The compositions are varied, altering melodic and rhythm based songs, a cold and somehow dark mood, with always great use of guitars intertwined with keys to bring out melody out in most songs. Great vocal performance from Emi as well. Color me impressed.