Macbeth
Romantic Tragedy's Crescendo

Today, Macbeth is a completely different band from what it was at the beginning; only the drummer and leader Fabrizio remains from the original line-up. The musical visions that drive it have also changed (at least according to what reviews of "Malae Artes" and the band members themselves say in numerous interviews): today, without forgetting or renouncing what has been done in the past, the focus is more on catchiness, choruses, direct melodies, and tracks of short duration, vaguely following the path traced by Lacuna Coil and Evanescence.

Once upon a time, it was the Norwegian scene, that of the most elegiac and decadent gothic metal, that animated and inspired the music of the Milanese combo. "Romantic Tragedy's Crescendo," their 1998 debut for Dragonheart Records, is, from the title and the cover, a declaration of intent: Macbeth aimed (and still aims, but in a more modern way) to recreate the atmospheres of a Shakespearian tragedy, painful and full of passion, with the dark shadow of death perennially hovering over the scenarios, amidst beautiful love stories and romantic, nocturnal settings. This might raise a doubt among the most malicious: since they once closely resembled Theatre of Tragedy (the most famous band in the genre when this album was released), and now Evanescence, are Macbeth perhaps great copycats?

The answer is without any shadow of a doubt negative: as already mentioned in the review of "Vanitas," the group has a uniquely Mediterranean passion on its side, which can also be felt on this album, distinguishing and earning them appreciation, to which they add heavy metal influences and particularly meticulous attention to melodies. Another continuity between the two albums is the keyboards, enveloping and explosive as per tradition; also constant are the spoken interludes with strong impact (what chills when the two singers whisper mysterious phrases to each other). If we then consider the fact that playing the roles of Beauty and the Beast (or of Romeo and Juliet, as you prefer) there were Vittorio and Cristina, we can analyze the diversity of the two line-ups for what is one of Macbeth's distinctive traits, namely the vocals. Thus, he is perpetually anchored to a guttural style, not very varied and deep to tell the truth (excluding the violent scream that assails us at the end of "Thy Mournful Lover"); Andreas, the current singer, is much more aggressive and comfortable in screams and has chillingly effective clean vocals. She, on the other hand, proves to be much more skilful than the succeeding Morena (my judgment is limited anyway to listening to "Vanitas"), even though she doesn't shine for remarkable interpretative skills or operatic vocal ranges, at least spares us style falls and off-key notes. The elements therefore seem to balance.

Continuing with comparisons between the two albums, "Romantic Tragedy's Crescendo" perhaps lacks a bit of heterogeneity, sparks of genius and theme variations, but it does not have, unlike "Vanitas," filler episodes or unlistenable songs; the nine tracks are all sufficient and inspired, albeit rather homogenous. Standing out among them all is the beautiful symphonic ballad "Moonlight Caress," with its sweet nocturnal atmosphere, delicate like the moonlight illuminating the pale face of a woman, streaked by the tears of relentless suffering. An innocent masterpiece, one unfortunately not found in the next album.

In short, as you must have surely understood, my scales do not tip neither one way nor the other, they are stable and reflect an absolute parity between Macbeth's first two albums. Despite the change in line-up, the band certainly did not lose its essence, maturing a sound greatly indebted to the past, which after listening to this debut equipped with a primordial and innocent charm, I feel inclined to call glorious. Now all that remains is to see where the modernizations of "Malae Artes" have taken them.