Label: Self released
Date: November 19th, 2021
I’m not supposed to even touch this record. Shouldn’t even get near it. Leave it to the spam folder. But that’s not the band’s fault. I’ve only ever taken up this review because I was intrigued about how does gothic metal sound, if created on the Croatian Adriatic coast. Other than that, I should’ve stayed away. The PR agency will call me non supportive if I don’t send out an e-mail with the link to the review and I’m so not going to do that. What’s more, I’m not going to do that for anyone.
As for the band, this is as pleasant of a surprise as I’ve heard in a while. Especially for a newcomer. From Croatia, no less! From a sunny side of the country, the coastline most often associated with summer vacations, beautiful seaside and amazing wine. And then there’s this gothic metal band which comes up with some really neat music.
Think about the young The Gathering, or Ewiniar’s colleagues from across the Adriatic, Lacuna Coil. That kind of gothic metal. Led by the melodic and somewhat melancholic musical backdrop with a lovely cherry on top of the darkened cake, Mrs. Katarina Tramontana’s voice. Katarina and her uglier half, the husband Mr. Marin Tramontana stand firmly behind this project. And with some conviction!
I mean, sure, the duo keeps to the traditions. There’s hardly any swerving around the long ago set standards. However, what they’ve created is still very good. The songs are extremely moving. They flow along with gentle precision, even if they are strongly set within their bedrock. They do evoke melancholic feelings, yet show a glimmering light at the end of the tunnel. Through all the clichés, shamelessly used and abused, Ewiniar presents tracks that are easy to remember, get you hooked almost in an instant and stick with you long after you stop spinning them.
With all of that in mind, an important aspect of this all is that Ewiniar is quite unimposing. They are a new band and fresh on its feet. As such, they do not try to reach beyond their grasp. The record is composed of fine riffing, imaginative keyboard passages, somewhat toned down rhythm and a vocal duality where Mrs. Tramontana sticks to what she does best, without attempting unsurmountable heights, while Mr. Tramontana keeps to the background, just adding some flavor.
Furthermore, this “unimposing” character of the album does not mean this is a shy outing of a band that is not yet sure of what it wants to achieve. Ewiniar is very convincing and displays a certainty in what they are doing. It’s this strong footing that makes “Burning the Night” such an instant winner.
It’s obvious they’ve got much more in store than what they crafted for the debut, but they are taking it one step at a time. And there will come a time when Ewiniar will make a definitive footstep on the scene, just as long as they keep to the course set on “Burning the Night”. They will let go of the safe havens and drift into the unknown. With what I’ve heard here, this must end up an epic journey. From my side, I’m wishing you a long and fruitful marriage!
