River Of Diamonds, the sixth solo album by the queen of Scandinavian Gothic Metal, continues on the path set by the EP "Have Courage Dear Heart" ( 2021), which received great international acclaim. All tracks on the new album were composed by Liv's longtime friend Tommy Olsson (Theatre of Tragedy, Long Night) at his Black Rider Records studio in Tau, near Liv Kristine's birthplace of Stavanger in Norway.
Carefully spending time with the compositions that kept coming out of Tommy's studio in 2021 and 2022 felt just right, like a yin-yang experience: music & pre-mix (Tommy O.), own lyrics and melodies, the finishing touches (mix & master by Eroc) and visuals (photos by M. Rohbach) merged into exactly the album Liv Kristine had passionately longed for.
Our immortal Day starts slowly, like with a mystical touch and suddenly opens Pandora’s box! We first hear Liv’s angelic voice but she get’s joined by an almost whispering Østen Bergøy (Long Night, Tristania, who digs up a deep bass with his voice). The music is very melodic and warm: made for listening with your headphones and at a high volume! I really adore the global sound! It’s clear Liv is back and has left the hard personal times behind her and is now finally able to focus on a complete album!
"I just love that Sisters of Mercy feeling" (Liv about the song).
No Makeup starts with a sound that reminds me of older The Mission tracks until Liv starts to sing. The lyrics feel like very personal whilst the song is a typical Liv song lifted by her beautiful voice! This song is clearly a perfectly crafted diamond, dressed up like a Queen between 10 other rare gems!
Maligna starts like a classic gothic rock song with an 80’s touch. Old school fans will absolutely adore this track! Liv’s voice shines like the brightest sun, whilst the lyrics are dark as the night! I love this sickening duality!
Gravity starts slowly with a piano, an acoustic guitar and a bit of electronics. Her voice sounds like gently weeping. It’s a fragile and yet strong song! Towards the end this tracks gets powered up with a bombastic touch and a louder sound without loosing the gentle touch from the start.
In Your Blue Eyes could be a referral to Liv’s eyes and starts slowly in an acoustic way but builds up slowly and becomes a rocker. I can almost feel the love for these blue eyes. Towards the end we get a nice mix of The Mission versus Fields Of The Nephilim.
River of Diamonds is the title track and here she is joined by none other but Fernando (Moonspell) rendering the gothic rock feel! After 6 songs I can already conclude that this new album is bringing up Diamonds: one after the other as if she found a real river of diamonds. Her vocals are once again top notch as if her voice will never age! WOW!
Pictured Within:Liv's husband, Michael Espenæs is the voice behind the highly emotional male vocals on Jon Lord's masterpiece "Pictured Within" (as yes: it’s indeed a cover version). I adore the classic touch with the piano and the cello. It’s a very magical and dreamy track! I’m wandering if a movie might use it during a romantic moment. It’s highlight 7 out of 7, so far! It’s also very clear that this album has a lot of variety! Dang: this album almost makes me write poetry! Can’t find a weak spot or a dull moment! It’s a masterpiece!
Shaolin Me starts with an Asiatic touch and mixes classic instruments with a rock touch and on top het angelic voice. It’s clear that this album explores and dives into new worlds! I really like it!
Love Me High:Liv Kristine's sister Carmen Elise Espenæs (Savn, Midnattsol) appears as an exceptional duet partner on this faster track. I adore the passage’s where both voices sound like melting together and make it hard to separate them from each other. This song demands for more songs like this! It’s a great sisterly love kind of song! Be ready to become emotional after listening to this song and it also gives me goosebumps!
Serenity has a modern sound and mixes electronics with guitars and drums whilst Liv’s keeps on singing like an angel.
If I am Dreaming carries a bit of sadness and melancholia. The song starts with an acoustic sound. It’s the perfect song to bring fragility and mix it with real emotions! This song might shut up a huge audience, just to listen to her voice and get dragged into the world of this song. This is again a highlight (and sorry for repeating myself).
True Colours is another cover and the last track on this album: I’m sure Cindy Lauper must be very happy with this magical and fragile new version! Ecor (Rocco Cogliati) on keyboards and piano does what he has to do to make this one an outstanding cover and Liv’s voice did the rest! I adore the original but this one really nailed it and brings up the right feelings needed to make this song the way it should be!
“Each song follows a path of strong authenticity and unbound creativity, which is my innermost and first criterion since “Theatre Of Tragedy” (1995), “Deus Ex Machina” (1998) and “Lovelorn” (Leaves’ Eyes). The lifeline that flows through all twelve compositions unveils a heart-based personal path, a sense of deeper truth and a soul vision of pure bliss consciousness - an eternal river of diamonds.” (Liv Kristine)
Dang: this album almost makes me write poetry! Can’t find a weak spot or a dull moment! It’s a masterpiece! It’s also very clear that this album has a lot of variety! I added the whole album to my personal playlist and I’m sure it will be played a lot! Can’t wait to see her bringing these songs on stage!
But as my wife said: this ain’t a metal album. The global sound as evolved to a more ethereal and more kind of The Breath of Life-style (cold/dark wave with a heavenly voice).
