Chimera [+ Enhanced Bonus Disc]

Love: Nothing earth-shattering, but the vocals and layered instrumentation come together nicely to make a pleasant, mellow, mildly upbeat song. From the very start of this album it’s clear that it very much lacks the darkness and moodiness of Delerium’s previous works. Instead, this is a bright, breezy, very summery kind of record.7/10

After All: I love this track. It probably has the catchiest hookline on the album -- Very infectious and rousing -- and as such was a good choice for first single. Straight-out pop track, but there’s nothing wrong with that when it’s as well executed as this. Can’t wait to hear the dance mixes – with some stronger beats I would imagine this could be quite a danceable track. 9/10

Just A Dream: Quite similar in feel to ‘Love’. Vocals are nicely done, they kind of merge into the music. One of my favourite tracks of the album. Mellow and dreamy, you can float away on the music. Definitely the best of Chimera’s ‘quiet’ tracks. I get the feeling this is kind of like what ‘Poem’ was aiming to be, only this is much better. 9/10

Run For It: Chorus is fantastic – very catchy, and although subject matter is downbeat, it has an uptempo feel. This will be the second single – it has the catchy hooklines that can do well in the charts. Overall, it has a kind of folksy feel, but it’s still a winner of a track. 7.5/10

Truly: Classy. The music and production are awesome and the vocals blend in beautifully. One of the better tracks on the album, this would make a nice single. Very contemporary, another straight-out pop song. I don’t have a problem with Delerium doing pop as long as it’s done well and this one is beautifully put together. 8/10

Serenity: How I’ve missed you, Rhys Fulber! An awesomely lush, textured, entrancing instrumental, recalling the best of Semantic Spaces and, more recently, Conjure One. Epic, dreamy, reminiscent of ‘Flatlands’, but with a female chant (or a choir boy??). Bliss. 9/10

Touched: And now things start to fall apart a wee bit… The lyrics are way too cheesy and saccharine for my tastes. A pretty nondescript ballad, recalling the blandness of ‘Poem’: not an unpleasant blandness, just rather unmemorable and by-the-numbers. I want something more kick-ass. 5/10

Forever After: I’m still unsure whether I like this or not. Is it a lively, original and spirited mixture of sounds…or is it just a mess? I’m leaning toward the former, but still have trouble getting into the spirit of it. Perhaps it will grow on me. Don’t exactly know where the vocals start or finish. 6/10

Fallen: Given that I didn’t’ like Rani’s contribution to the last album, ‘Underwater’ I was surprised by just how much I liked this. The melody is infectious and Rani infuses the song with a passion lacking on the previous and subsequent few tracks. 8/10

Orbit of Me: Similar to ‘Forever After’ and I’m similarly unsure whether I love it or hate it. This sounds nothing like the Delerium I know. Interesting textures, very trip-hoppy, although it’s kind of spoiled by that annoying synth that repetitively (and loudly) drones throughout the track and I’m not sure that I care for Leigh’s vocals this time. I’m hoping this one will grow on me, but thus far I’m not very impressed. 5/10

Magic: Initial impression: sickeningly sweet. Lasting impression: pass the sick bucket. The main problem is Julee Cruise’s vocals, which are naff and cloying to the point of being embarrassing (‘Maybe it’s just an old superstition, but you’re a warlock, aren’t you?’ WTF?!) No thank you. 3/10

Eternal Odyssey: Another instrumental in the vein of classic Delerium. After the last track, we needed something to pep us up. As ever, beautifully mixed, with rich instrumentation and gorgeous chants. Given that it lasts 10 minutes, it doesn’t have that much cohesion, it meanders a little in places. It’s still a much needed injection of darkness and depth following the dreadful ‘Magic’. 7/10

Returning: Kristy Thirsk is back!! From the moment I heard those angelic wails I breathed a sigh of relief. Perhaps not among the absolute Delerium/Kristy classics, this is still a fantastic song and much needed after the rather patchy second-half of the album. Kristy’s lyrics are typically obscure and suitably dark (unlike the horribly cheesy ‘loveliness’ of ‘Magic’) and her voice is as captivating as ever. Like Kristy’s earlier Delerium work, there are dark undertones, and a pseudo-gothic foundation, from which her angelic voice soars skyward. 9/10

Basically, this is a good album: yes, it does take a very pop-oriented approach. As I said above, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing from my perspective, so long as it’s done well. And I have to say, even though this album has its rough patches, it sure as heck beats the majority of the vacant drivel that populates the charts. The first six tracks are absolutely fantastic…unfortunately, things start crumbling toward the end. The vocals get unforgivably naff and cheesy and delerium’s forays into the realms of jazz and ‘lounge’ music seem rather misguided, not to mention fairly sloppy. My advice for future reference: firstly, don’t. Secondly, if you must, at least brush it up. ‘Forever After’ and ‘Orbit of Me’ are really rather messy, unpolished tracks. Either Stick to what your good at or GET GOOD at it before you do it. Good album, could have been better had a few of the gushing love songs been cut out and had the more experimental tracks been better executed.

This would have got 3 stars from me, but the disc also included that form of copy protection which is effectively just a CD with corrupted data on it, and there must be some doubt as to whether these can be classed as merchantable quality. It would not play properly in my CD ROM, at an rate.