Apparently concept albums about historical figures are becoming a thing these days. Symphonic metal band AD INFINITUM already has three such albums in their discography and if I were to dig deeper into the metal catalog I’m sure I’ll find more. However, for Ukrainian metal band IGNEA, “Dreams of Lands Unseen” is only the first album whose storyline revolves around a personality, and their third outing overall. Chronicling the life and times of Ukrainian photographer and travel writer Sofia Yablonska, “Dreams of Lands Unseen” was released on April 28th, 2023, through Napalm Records.
IGNEA is such a multifaceted band that it’s hard to put them into a certain box or use a certain label to describe their style, and the richness of sound that this album boasts really showcases their genre-fluidity and storytelling prowess. From the first notes of opener “Téoura,” the listeners are sucked into a score-like world where symphonic elegance and progressive intricacies meet heavy, death metal rhythms, while electronic and ethnic folk elements spice up the sound. Still, these ethnic folk elements are much more than just musical ornaments, as their role is to fully immerse the listeners in Sofia Yablonska’s travels, making them part of the various cultures she visited.
The cinematic experience offered by the ten tracks that make up “Dreams of Unseen Lands” is the album’s greatest and undeniable strength. Even if Helle Bohdanova‘s vocals and this soundtrack-like feel are the main drives of the music, the instrumental side together with the oriental and Eastern elements ground the songs and add depth and texture to the lyrical content. As such, each track is like a chapter in a book, painting a different picture or talking about a different aspect of the story, individual and complex, yet intrinsically linked to the overarching narrative. Even the two tracks sung in Ukrainian have a charm of their own. Intro “Téoura” prepares the listeners for the voyage with synths that soon give way to an oriental melody worthy of MYRATH that flows into the first proper track, “Dunes,” whose heaviness is a bit unexpected for a song about the endless Sahara Desert. It kicks off with harsh vocals, heavy guitars, and powerful bass lines that contrast with the dreamy atmosphere of the chorus and the oriental beauty of the bridge.
The heaviness continues with groovy “Camera Obscura,” where the pattern is reversed – there are melodic cleans in the verse and harsh vocals in the chorus while pounding drums and hard-hitting riffs propel the track forward at a steady pace. There are pockets of heaviness in these two songs that make them feel somewhat more aggressive, though this aggressiveness never really overpowers their melodic nature. Up next, “Daleki Obriyi” (“Far Horizons”) is sung entirely in the Ukrainian language, Helle Bohdanova alternating once again between cleans and harsh, as death metal riffage meshes together with a layer of synth melodies that create a sort of ebb-and-flow movement, thus complementing each other while also enhancing each other’s peaks. Switching gears and styles, “To No One I Owe” feels jazzy and ballady despite a few intense instrumental passages, being one of the album’s most beautiful moments. There’s something mesmerizing about Helle Bohdanova’s cleans on this record that I can’t quite put my finger on and this track really capitalizes on her techniques, nuanced voice, and varied vocal styles. On “To No One I Owe,” her vocals feel breathy yet well-supported and add an introspective quality to the lyrics.
This album is not just musically nuanced, but also lyrically intricate. It doesn’t just tell Sofia Yablonska’s story in a linear perspective, but also dives deep into her fears and ambitions. While the aforementioned track feels like a statement of intent about what her goals are and what she wants to achieve, the following two tracks deal with her love of the sea and fear that her luck might soon run out. As such, rolling synths, resonant bass, and haunting vocals make “Incurable Disease” feel like a voyage on stormy seas, as a serene atmosphere elevates the chorus and clashes with the powerful verses. It’s all about free-flowing melodies with this track, and everything works well together. “Nomad’s Luck” opens with beautiful Asian melodies but soon harsh vocals and guitar riffs mix together to create an ominous sound, while the particularly infectious chorus creates pockets of beauty.
Depicting Yablonska’s experiences in China, “The Golden Shell” boasts bright and vibrant Eastern melodies and gorgeous clean vocals, being the album’s most beautiful moment. This song showcases what “Dunes” or “To No One I Owe” could have become if fully immersed in oriental sounds or a jazzy ambiance instead of going for heaviness just for heaviness’s sake. But this is just a small criticism of an otherwise excellent album. Continuing the Chinese saga, “Opiumist” features a cameo appearance from Finnish vocalist Tuomas Saukkonen (WOLFHEART), who darkens the synth-driven track with his intense harsh vocals. Album closer “Zénith” is the second song to feature lyrics sung in the Ukrainian language and balances between deep swinging basslines and a dreamlike atmosphere created by sparkling synths and Helle Bohdanova’s vocals. This is a very gentle note on which to end such an adventurous album.
In conclusion, it’s not for nothing that IGNEA are considered a band-to-watch, having already won the Best Ukrainian Metal Act Awards in 2020 for their concept album “The Realms of Fire and Death.” However, they have outdone themselves with “Dreams of Lands Unseen” by mixing together seemingly disparate elements so as to widen the scope of the album’s storyline and stay faithful to the source material. This blend of styles and ethnic melodies makes “Dreams of Lands Unseen” one of the best-sounding albums I have had the pleasure of listening to in a long while; Max Morton (JINJER) has done a really good job with the mixing and mastering. Besides being sonically rich this album is also daring and adventurous in how the band chooses to put Sofia Yablonska’s experiences to music and their attention to detail and musicianship have ultimately made it a fascinating listening experience.
Written by Andrea Crow
Tracklist
- Téoura
- Dunes
- Camera Obscura
- Далекі Обрії
- To No One I Owe
- Incurable Disease
- Nomad’s Luck
- The Golden Shell
- Opiumist
- Zénith
Lineup
- Helle Bohdanova – vocals
- Dmytro Vinnichenko – guitar
- Oleksandr Kamyshyn – bass
- Yevhenii Zhytniuk – keys
- Ivan Kholmohorov – drums
Label
Napalm Records
