LUNARIAN – Burn The Beauty (2022)

Frontiers Music is releasing today “Burn The Beauty“, the debut album from LUNARIAN, a new musical endeavor centered around the stunningly talented vocalist / songwriter Ailyn. The record is a showcase for the immense voice of Ailyn, which she has displayed in her work with her former band Sirenia, Her Chariot Awaits (her project with Mike Orlando of Adrenaline Mob), Heart Healer (Magnus Karlsson’s band), and more.
For LunariaN, Ailyn teamed up with producer Aldo Lonobile (Secret Sphere, Sweet Oblivion) to write songs for an engaging, mesmerizing symphonic melodic metal album. And that is exactly what you get with “Burn The Beauty”.
The album is benefited by its dynamic songwriting, fortunately with all songs around the four mintute mark – ‘sympho’ music yet with an accessible ‘song format’, and of course its accessibility: number like ‘Don’t Wait Until I’m Gone’, ‘Embrace’, ‘Sacrifice’ or ‘Endless Sleep’ are pop-rock, melodic hard in nature, wrapped by a bombastic production.

Spanish singer/songwriter Ailyn has been performing professionally since the early ’00s. She started off as a solo artist before joining the group Charm, a vocal trio that played Japanese music. After leaving Charm to go back to a solo career, she wound up becoming the lead vocalists of the popular Norwegian symphonic metal act Sirenia.
Ailyn was a member of Sirenia until 2016, releasing four albums with them. She then took a short hiatus from her musical career before announcing her return with Her Chariot Awaits, a collaboration with Adrenaline Mob guitarist Mike Orlando. The band released one album, a self-titled debut via Frontiers Music.

In working with Frontiers on Her Chariot Awaits, Ailyn and the label developed a good working relationship and eventually brought her together with producer Aldo Lonobile to discuss the possibility of making a more symphonic metal sounding album compared to the contemporary hard rock sound of Her Chariot Awaits.
AIlyn headed to Italy to work with Aldo and record her vocals and thus “Burn The Beauty” by LunariaN came to life.

“Don’t Wait Until I’m Gone” kicks things off with bombastic, very delicately composed orchestral arrangements, but also with heavy guitar riffs and a great tempo shifts. Ailyn’s vocals are incredibly multi-faceted and very expressive right from the start.
“Dream Catcher” is more rapid. Michele Sanna and Mattia Gosetti provide the solid rhythm section, while Lonobile sounds inspired with a varied guitar work. The strength of Ailyn is shown here once again in a special way. Hardly anyone can sing as powerful, gentle, dreamy and vulnerable at the same time as the Spaniard does in this piece.

“Embrace” starts with sharp guitar work and fine keys arrangements. Quieter and more intense moments alternate well, the piece rises to the chorus. Lonobile’s solo is noteworthy. “Bleeding Out” is one of our favorites with its ingenious melody, voice and orchestration. The song is emotional, with great build-ups, subtle prog moments and an energetic, opulent finale.

“Embers” has a bit of synth melodic rock to start with. Powerful riffs quickly follow. Lonobile is in his element here. The vocals soar a bit above things and come across sublime. A catchy song. Title song “Burn The Beauty” starts with power drums and busy riffing. A few strings are added, and the song gradually builds up, becoming more and more powerful and intense. It also works well with various speed increases. A very varied number that can also come up with a certain drama.

In “Endless Sleep” Antonio Agate presents himself with energetic key/piano playing, there are opulent choirs (by Ailyn) and a brilliant lead guitar. The verse seems gentle at first, but the instruments and arrangements quickly add volume and the speed also increases as the song progresses. Very strong as the orchestration here, especially the string instruments were incorporated. Vocally it’s just fantastic, here and there moments from Ailyn’s recalling Sirenia.

The wonderful ballad “Invincible” starts with piano and some kind of ‘Game Of Thrones’ strings atmosphere. Vocally is more varied than ever, very emotional, with a melancholy feel as well. The guitars are more in the background, but lay a fine foundation. A beautiful song.
A very fine string section is used again in “Never Ending Circle”. The piece picks up speed quickly, where tension is achieved by changing the tempo, so there is a quieter verse part in this mega song, the chorus is all the more powerful and opulent, accompanied by enormous instrumental power. You can also hear really rich metallic riffing and on top of that, with an epic ending.
Symphonic metal bombast comes into play on “Scarlet”. Vocally, the Spaniard offers the whole range again, sometimes energetically, with correspondingly powerful instrumental accompaniment.

Seems LunariaN saved the best song for the end. For me, “Sacrifice” is the undeniable hit of the album, a top-class symphonic melodic metal grenade. Piano, keys, classical arrangements, all in perfect harmony. Lonobile comes with a brilliant guitar work, great riffs, which are in contrast to Ailyn ‘s sometimes very sweet, catchy performance. This contrast is what makes the song great.

Let’s hope that LunariaN’s debut will not remain a flash in the pan. Such high quality music definitely demands a sequel. With Ailyn and Aldo Lonobile a strong creative duo has come together here.
“Burn The Beauty” will appeal every symphonic metal fan with its versatility, but also melodic metal, melodic hard rock and even pop listeners.
Highly Recommended

01 – Don’t Wait Until I’m Gone
02 – Dream Catcher
03 – Embrace
04 – Bleeding Out
05 – Embers
06 – Burn the Beauty
07 – Endless Sleep
08 – Invincible
09 – Never Ending Circle
10 – Scarlet
11 – Sacrifice

Ailyn – Vocals
Aldo Lonobile – Guitars
Mattia Gosetti – Bass
Michele Sanna – Drums
Antonio Agate – Keyboards & Orchestral Arrangements

BUY
www.amazon.co.uk/Burn-Beauty-Lunarian/dp/B0B35R5Z9X