CoC : Soriben - Senor de Luz : Review

Soriben - _Senor de Luz_
by: Pedro Azevedo (4 out of 5)

Soriben are a very young band from Seville, Spain, their ages varying from 17 to 19, plus a 14(!)-year old (talented) keyboardist. There's two things I really like about this 6-piece band: their choice of style being melodic doom/death, and the fact that they are self-confident and have enough skill to back it up. Their opening track sets the mood for this 29-minute long demo tape, serving as a good example of the band's music. They work a lot around good keyboard/guitar melodies, while joining some funeral dirge guitars at times, all with very good drumming and bass playing, and some very interesting vocals. It's all sung in Spanish, using death vox, but it's like he speaks out poetry instead of just grunting... good. The second track shows some faster parts, in which the band seems to stay together remarkably well, making those parts sound pretty good. The third track is softer, mostly melodic and sung in clean vox, featuring some good melodic ideas. Fourth track is an instrumental mix of an excellent drum/bass solo (both performed brilliantly) and a very well-played keyboard piece of Bach(!). Track five reminded me of early Anathema, with some strong rhythms, and track six is possibly the best, featuring some superb melodies which really get into you. Great stuff. Finally, track seven is a keyboard instrumental which is based around a requiem sound, using funereal organs to create a very depressive, yet highly interesting, finish for the demo tape. By now you're probably asking why I haven't rated them 5/5 instead... well, this is their first demo tape and shows a lot of promise, but their next demo tape (coming up) must still show some improvement, namely slightly better songwriting (longer, more involved song structures), and they must become a little bit more... professional, I think. They have some excellent ideas, good taste in music, and are all good players (although some of the high-pitched guitar parts still need a bit more work). This is definitely a band to watch for, as I believe they will get a record deal if they keep working like this and showing so much skill. Great effort. Keep it up, guys!!

Contact: SORIBEN, c/o Manuel Ponce de Leon,

(article published 4/2/1997)

CHATS
5/19/1999	P Azevedo	Soriben: Spanish Doom Is Growing

DEMOS
5/19/1999	P Azevedo	5	Soriben - Ancestros de Insania