To-Mera Exile Review

To-Mera Exile - (September 24th, 2012)

Exile brings To-Mera to album #3. What has changed, whilst what is new? For me I've have always had a love/hate relationship with progressive because it straddles between wankery, and overtly  emboldened sense of a superiority complex.

I've tried to 'get into' what To-Mera does, yet its been difficult because it does not gel with me in anyway. The reason? It borders upon smugness. Don't get me wrong, Exile is crisp, concise, and descriptive.

Structurally, Exile meanders, it wants me to care, but at the same time it fails for my attention. Much of it I think is in how its presented. It could work if the songs weren't so inclined in being literal to the album cover its conveying.

Besides the cover Exile has a decent amount of riffing, keyboards, stick to the script drumming, and operatic vocals. The vocals are definitely not my thing. To-Mera use a lot of flowery passages, interwoven with hefty guitars, yet the vocals glib along into very odd melodies.

I would have liked this if I wasn't so pigeonholed with my eclectic tastes. I commend To-Mera for sticking to what works, I just couldn't get into it. This would be perfect for goth rock, or operatic fans in vein of say Nightwish, and Arkona. Thanks for reading.

B.