Elis - Dark Clouds In A Perfect Sky

  by Helen Tipping

published: 16 / 9 / 2004

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Liechtenstein goth/rock band Elis have an impressive following in Mainland Europe, but are less well known in the UK. Starting in 2001, under the name Erben Der Schöpfung (Heirs of Creation), they released their debut album 'Twilight'. Following a split in the band they re-emerged in 2003 as Elis, taking the name from their first single. Playing such luminary goth events as the Wave Gothik Treffen in Leipzig, they have toured extensively in Europe, but have not as yet been seen in the UK - a hint there for the Whitby Gothic Weekend organisers maybe! Vocalist Sabine Duenser is a classically trained musician and singer, who lists choral singing amongst her past times. Her voice complements the gothic rock style of music well, inviting unfortunate comparisons to Evanessance, but this is much heavier, with the third track, 'Lost Soul' owing more to Rammstein than the posturing pop gothics of Evanessance.  The first track 'Der Letze Tag' is to be the single off this album. Full of gothic melodrama and sung in German, it should appeal to the goth-metal cross-over dancefloor of many a goth club. It would certainly make a refreshing change to hear something other than the rehashed 80's pop and dance music claiming to be techno-goth that seems to be the mainstay of goth nights these days. I particularly liked' Lost Soul' and 'Der Zeit', which had that heavy Germanic gothic sound. The one downside for me was that some of the songs had a slightly metal sound, with some guitar solos, which I'm not particularly fond of. This may be due to the influence of Juergen Broger, the guitarist, who claims to be influenced by Pantera, amongst other bands. Fortunately they are more gothic than metal, and the band cannot be accused of being repetitive or boring. Each track sounded different from the others on the album without sounding too disparate from one another or failing to gel. This is one that I'll definitely be hanging onto in my CD collection, and I'd recommend it to any one out there into goth rock of the more traditional variety. Any Evanessance fans should certainly buy it - go on, you'll be listening to Rammstein before you know it.  More information about Elis can be found at their website http://www.elis.li

Track Listing:-

1 Der Letzte Tag
2 Anger
3 Lost Soul
4 Perfect Love
5 Heart In Chains
6 Die Zeit
7 Black Angel
8 Devil Inside You
9 Rebirth
10 Are You Missing Me
11 Ballade

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