The 5 song set begins with a short symphonic introduction called Ab Exilio. Severinsen is something of a classical musician aficionado and this is purely classical stuff, sounds like a complete orchestra with a drum line taking it forward. I’m not sure which movie sound track he had in mind when composing this title but it sure sounds like one. … and a good one at that.

The following song, The Ophidian’s Tongue takes us to the core of the matter, solid metal driving the rich soprano balanced against the harsh death vocals of Severinsen. But let’s be fair here, this CD is essentially an audition by Severinsen who is looking for backing for this project. . .he’s also looking for full time musicians. But this is his work, he provides solid death vocals, handles guitars including bass, does the programming, and was responsible for writing, producing and mixing. Not a bad day’s work. Most of it was done in a home studio and, at times, it shows. But, the mixture of orchestral arrangements, hard driving guitars and the intermittent piano passages makes for an interesting combination, no matter where they were produced. And, when tied to the superb operatic vocals, we have a solid interview for consideration. Ophidian’s Tongue is clearly more traditional metal, a B & B sound, if you will. It introduces the juxtaposition of the harsh male vocals of Severinsen against the operatic vocals of Ferlaak and to good effect. The rest of the metal is good as well, with session drummer Pranav Taneja providing a solid percussion to build upon.

The third song, the title track Rose of Melancholy, begins slowly with a piano / violin section that leads to the guitars. It’s nicely mixed and flows to the kickoff of the metal, with Ferlaak’s vocals interacting again with the Severinsen death vocals. . or growls as they sometimes call them. Severinsen is clearly a guitarist first and foremost and it shows on this number. It becomes a black metal track at times, interspersed with the folk oriented operatic vocals.

The fourth track is Gjennom Tiden and it may be the most interesting track. It is slower, with a more dreamy feeling to it, and again showcases the Ferlaak vocals. It also showcases the Ferlaak ability to sing in a somewhat difficult language. I understand she is a graduate of a University of Wisconsin campus with further training at the New England Conservatory of Music but I suspect singing in Norwegian wasn’t a part of the curriculum at either location. She handles it well, however, and these are certainly not easy lyrics, especially for an American:

The final song returns us to the epic symphonic operatic motif. Of a Captive Mind is certainly the most complex work on this title, and is the most dramatic use of Ferlaak’s vocal ability. The male vocals are utilized as well and the song takes a strong technical tack, mixing this one must have been a nightmare. It’s interesting that this type of music has people who enjoy it and others who just can’t deviate from the more traditional metal. For me, it’s hard not to appreciate it, what’s not to like? The symphonic is outstanding, the technical composition is interesting, the interplay of the vocals keeps you on your toes and the vocals of Ferlaak are not to be denied.

I’m always interested in the lyrics associated with this kind of music, after all, it’s gothic and that’s supposed to count for something. Severinsen seems to have the direction down pretty well, after all, he is Scandinavian and they seem to have invented this direction. I can’t really interpret the Norwegian but, on the title track he posits a gothic tome:

It’s clear that Severinsen has his work cut out for him. On this work he has the strong female vocals of one of the finer luminaries in the business to help him out. That will probably not continue. I believe Ferlaak did these vocals from home in Minnesota while changing diapers and is probably not inclined to relocate to Norway any time soon. As has been made clear to me from a number of musicians in this genre, female metal vocalists don’t show up on the sidewalks all that often, especially as far north as Norway. So, he has the unenviable task of finding a vocalist as well as the required support musicians that are required to make a metal band work. He clearly has the creative capabilities as well as the technical and musical capabilities to make a project work. But, at some point, it’s nice to perform in public and to do that you need help.

However, that being the reality of the situation, there is no denying the quality of Rose Of Melancholy. It may be a home music project, but it is demonstrably outstanding in a number of respects and suggests that a full blown production with comparably capable singers and musicians to work with will result in a truly interesting product. Until then, anything with Melissa Ferlaak will work for me.

9 / 10