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Well this was a surprise. Let's just say that from the art and song titles I was expecting this to be really, really bad. Autumn are a band from the Netherlands who started out as an overwrought Gothic band (their debut was actually called When Lust Evokes The Curse) and have now, with their third disc, moved into the accessible realms of modern Goth Metal among the likes of Flowing Tears and Elis.

If you like the catchiness of Evanescence or Lacuna Coil but can't stand the nu-metal leanings and alt-rock bullshit sensibilities, then this is an album to get into. Autumn have no remnant of boo-hoo-my-mascara left in their sound, and this is snappy, insanely catchy stuff. I'd be inclined to dismiss this as too poppy, but actually, the music is far too complex for that. Opener "Satellites" is pretty accessible, but songs like "Closest Friends Conspire", "Blue Wine" and "Shadowmancer" are heavy and rhythmically dense, with syncopated vocal lines that make them compulsively memorable. This isn't a perfect album by any stretch, with the title cut being a bit annoying, and the last few songs losing momentum. But there is some great stuff here, and cuts like "Angel Of Desire" are about as good as Goth Metal gets. Recommended.