Search - Liv Kristine :: Enter My Religion

I absolutely love this album

E. Anderson | 07/01/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Let me just clarify to a couple of reviewers that: A) Liv Kristine never left Theatre of Tragedy by choice. She was forced out of the band. B) Comparing Liv's music with Evanescence is like comparing apples and oranges. I wish people would stop comparing Liv Kristine with Amy Lee, not to mention goth metal bands that have been around longer with Evanescence who hasn't been around as long as artists like Liv Kristine. With that said, I am a big fan of Liv Kristine, especially her work she has done with Leaves' Eyes. Her voice is nothing short of stunning. She has an amazing range. She may not have the operatic voice that ex-Nightwish lead singer Tarja Turunen has but she still possess an excellent voice.



I recently had the fortunate opportunity to hear Liv's solo album "Enter My Religion". I have to say that the music I have heard is quite different from her albums with Leaves' Eyes and her former band Theatre of Tragedy. The music isn't so entrenched in Norweigan folklore and more pop than her traditional brand of gothic metal. Nevertheless I was not disappointed. I enjoyed every minute of the cd. All of the songs are so unbelievably catchy. The ballads in general are simply stunning. I personally liked her cover of Springsteen's "Streets of Philadelphia". It was a definite interesting twist in the song. Whatever Liv Kristine does is pure gold to my ears. "Enter My Religion" did not fail to captivate me."

Beautiful and Amazing

sepulfreak_420 | Steubenville, Oh USA | 05/30/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was somewhat skeptical about the "Pop" nature of this album having heard the song "Fake a Smile." I liked the song, but I wasn't sure what this album would have to offer as I am into alot of metal music and underground artists. I actually learned about her through Cradle of Filth's video for "Nymphetamine."



I absolutely loved Theatre of Tragedy's first release which was self-titled, and I also loved the electronic progression they went with on "Musik" and "Assembly." I am not as familiar with their work in between.



I thought Liv made an excellent choice to leave the band and form Leaves Eyes. It took a huge step back to the sound of TOT's first release, though it had so much more to it. The vocal range and musical nature was more complex.



So, since I loved all of her other works, I decided to give this a shot. I haven't heard any of her other solo work, so I have no basis for comparison, but I was very surprised at how much I liked "Enter My Religion."



Even though it would be considered Pop music, it isn't like American Pop music. It is more meaningful, and there is much more talent in it. The artists involved in the project used a wide variety of instruments in the making of this album, and I like that. It shows variation. Not any of the songs sound the same.



If I had to choose a favorite track, it would have to be the opening track, "Over the Moon." It is very catchy.



I also love "My Revelation," "Blue Emptiness," "You are the Night," and "For A Moment."



Other decent tracks are "Coming Home," "Trapped in Your Labyrinth," and "You Take Me Higher," which has an almost R&B vibe to it.



Overall, it is a wonderful album, full of great musical elements for Pop-style music. There isn't really a song on the album that I dislike."

Pop music done right

Guardian 304 | 12/30/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Not being much of a pop music fan, I find myself really enjoying most of this album every time I give it a listen. I like the work Liv did with Theatre of Tragedy and is doing with Leaves' Eyes these days, so I gave this solo album a shot not really knowing what to expect.



What you get here is good pop music. Not the copycat tripe that comes out of America and the UK, but good melodies with decent lyrics performed by an excellent singer without any of the annoying yelps, howls, screams and sluttyness the "pop divas" of today pride themselves on.



Personal highlights for me being more of a rock fan are the opening track, Over The Moon, along with My Revelation and in particular Trapped in Your Labyrinth, which is superb. One or two more of these type of tracks and a few less ballads may have pushed this album to 4 stars.



The rest of the good songs are all slower paced with melodies varying between bitter sweet (Fake A Smile, Blue Emptiness) and sugar sweet (All The Time In The World, Coming Home). Everything apart from the two songs discussed in the next paragraph is worth a listen, even her cover of Streets of Philadelphia (although Springsteen's dark mumblings still suit this track better).



The only disappointments on the album are You Take Me Higher and You Are The Night, which sound too much like the rubbish coming from the USA and most of Europe and really are completely out of sync with the rest of the album. My first reaction when You Are The Night kicked in after the enjoyable first 7 tracks was "What the hell...?". Modern pop fans should enjoy them, for me they embody everything wrong with pop music these days. The good thing is that even without these tracks, you still have 10 great tracks on what is a very good pop album, and not only by today's low standards."