Qntal V: Silver Swan - Dark Publications

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Editorial Reviews:

Album Description
The fifth studio album from one of the most respected medieval-electronic fusion acts in the world. This CD includes a gorgeous 24 page booklet with exclusive all new art from Brian Froud. Brian Froud, the world famous fantasy/faerie artist (Labyrinth, Dark Crystal, Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy book) designed all new artwork for both the regular and limited editions of this album. A must have for Froud fans!

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars

Comparison of the Regular 11-track vs. the 2CD set with 5 extra tracks November 3, 2006
13 out of 13 found this review helpful

About the Band:
Qntal is a German medieval rock / darkwave band that was originally founded in 1991 by Michael Popp and Sigrid "Syrah" Hausen (of Estampie) and Ernst Horn (of Deine Lakaien and Helium Vola). Horn left the band after its second album and was replaced by Philipp "Fil" Groth in 2001. With the addition of Groth for Qntal III, the band's already great music became slightly more dance-friendly and accessible. Their music is still drawn from historical sources and Syrah's heavenly female vocals are in Latin, German, and English (depending upon the song). Michael accompanies Syrah with a mix of traditional instruments that are then backed by Fil's keyboards - making Qntal a rare and exciting mix of old and new world music that will appeal to electronic and traditional music fans alike!

About the Album:
There are two versions of Qntal V: Silver Swan that have been released in the United States, a regular 11 track CD and a special addition that includes a second 5 track CD. Both additions include artwork created by Brian Froud, whom is best known for his Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book (which I also highly recommend - it is fun, twisted, and most creative). I originally bought the cheaper 11 track regular album and after my first time through the album felt that Qntal III (at the time one of my favorite albums) was the better album. The second time I listened through the entire album I was sad that I didn't buy the much more expensive special edition album, as I was floored by the beauty and artistry of Qntal V. I later went and bought the special addition and gifted the regular addition to a friend whom never had listened to Qntal before (she now likes the band as well - perhaps the cycle will continue).

If money is tight, I'm actually going to recommend you buy the regular version of the album. The second CD in the special edition is a multimedia CD that includes a small gallery of some of Froud's work in addition to 5 audio tracks (3 dancefloor oriented remixes and 2 new tracks). Of the 3 remixes, though Fil did an awesome job with them, I actually prefer the originals ... in otherwords, they alone wouldn't justify purchasing the special edition. However, the 2 new tracks are amazing ... particularly Veni (which is labeled as being a mix, and yet this is the first time Qntal has released this track). The Froud gallery is nice, but if you collect his work, there actually is some of his new album art included in the regular edition that didn't make it to the special edition. For some reason the liner artwork is almost the same between the two albums, but the order of the art is slightly different and a few pieces of art didn't make it to the other edition.

Recommended Tracks (For Regular Edition Only):
-Levis
-Altas Undaz
-292
-Monsieur's Depature
-The Whyle

Similar Artists:
-Corvus Corax
-Faun
-Estampie
-Helium Vola
-Irfan
-O Quam Tristis
-Collection d'Arnell Andrea
-Love Is Colder Than Death
-Sophya

3 out of 5 stars

3 AND THREE QUATERS STARS...NOT THREE. March 10, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

First off, I'd like to respond to the first review. Then I'll get to my review. I'm not sure if I am correct, but "Veni Veni" was a song put out by Helium Vola on their newest album. So I'm not sure if that's why Qntal is saying it's a remix or not. They could have remixed Helium Vola's version. Maybe not, though. It just seems sort of likey because the two bands are very closely tied. But maybe not...I'm not sure. I dont have that CD version.

Anyway, back to the CD itself: This CD was pretty good. It possibly deserves 4 stars, but in my opinion it's just right on that line. If I gave it 4 stars, it'd probably just be by the skin of it's teeth. So, it's best fitting just to give it 3 and three quaters stars. Most of the songs were very good. They definitely have a relaxing feel with a slight edge of down-tempo. Qntal even turned a poem by Elizabeth I into a song, which actually turned out to be very beatuiful. Most of the songs incorporate a medieval feel, but not so much as to when a person who hates folk musics of any sorts listens and completely hates it. The vocals are also very fitting for the genre of music. They are very mellow and almost sultry at times and really connect with Qntal's general sound.

Overall, the CD is pretty good. Nothing that I'm screaming about, but it's very nice if you want to listen to self-theraputic and/or calm and relaxing music of any sort with some folk roots.

5 out of 5 stars

Utterly brilliant album. December 10, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Being a fan of medieval, neo-folk, and darkwave music I must say that this is possible the best material I've ever heard that walks through all three genres. At times lush and serene, and times lively with old-world folk music, and at other times darker with epic orchestration. I have found this album to be much closer in feel to the band members' more folk-directed project, Estampie - which was a positive move in my opinion. Less obvious electronica has made for a better listening experience. These artists are obviously musicians and songwriters of the highest caliber - this will be tough for them or anyone else to top.

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