VENUS 5
“Venus 5”
Album Review by Iron Mathew

10/10

Venus 5 are a European melodic metal band featuring five of the most amazing and beautiful singers from across Europe – Herma Sick (Sick N’ Beautiful), Karmen Klinc, Jelena Milovanovic, Tezzi Persson (Infinite & Divine), and Erina Seitllari. The bands self titled debut album was released in 2022.

Now then, Venus 5 could have been named after the second planet from the Sun, but more likely, have been named after the Roman goddess of love and beauty. For both the band and album have beauty in abundance, and after just the one listen, you’re gonna be in love. Featuring eleven songs, ‘Venus 5’ is a punchy, highly melodious, addictive and catchy album, with additional inspiration drawn from the industrial and alternative metal genres. The coming together of five voices is incredible, each one sultry, seductive, and intoxicating – although I’m not here to confirm who’s singing on each song!

And according to a brief internet search – and stay with me ’cause this will make sense – a lioness is the quintessential symbol of female power, along with symbols of the divine sisterhood – women supporting women. And that’s exactly what Venus 5 are about – Herma, Karmen, Jelena, Tezzi, and Erina supporting each other to deliver an album that is gonna rock the metal world to its foundations! Kicking off with the hard hitting ‘Lioness’, (see, it did make sense) the band emphatically stamp their sight, sound, and sultry singing on the eyes and ears of drooling fans all over the world. I can just visualize five lionesses purring seductively while staring at me with their “melt your heart” eyes – and then I realize I’m staring at the albums cover! Oh boy, I’m day dreaming again…

…of beauty and a barrage of sonic pleasure. For ‘The Simulation’ is a more punchy proposition than ‘Lioness’. And a much sexier vocal performance too, the band oozing appeal and attraction in abundance. ‘The Simulation’ is industrial come alternative come melodic metal, offering head nodding and foot tapping to anyone who’s listening. An opening double that offers so much variation, becomes a triple – with the mellow balladry of ‘Nothing But A Heartache’, replete with blistering vocal displays that foreplays with my ears, nibbling on my lobes and blowing gently! As ‘Nothing But A Heartache’ progresses, it becomes a very powerful and passionate power ballad. Venus 5 punch hard (please forgive the pun) with ‘Bride With Blackened Eyes’, a hustle and bustle type song with more bombastic fury than has been heard so far. The band really mixing up the styles to bring their blend of metal to a very wide audience – but then what would you expect with five singers from five different musical backgrounds?

Keeping the heavy hitting bombastic nature of the previous song well and truly alive, the band move swiftly on with the thunder fuelled ‘Monster Under Your Bed’ – and a gorgeous pop music styled sing a long chorus. The vocals also display a little rasp and fry not heard before, making them sound sexier and becoming much more of a turn-on! Pleasure zones all over the body starting to tingle with temptation and desire! Rocking harder, ‘Inside’ is a meld of heavy rock and power ballad with a massive injection of good old fashioned traditional metal. ‘Inside’ continually changing gears, tempo and pace, and allowing for a little head banging too! Venus 5 upping the ante, expanding their radar to a much wider audience. The bands sound is gonna attract so many fans from so many different musical backgrounds, the envelope being pushed further than most bands do in their entire career.

‘Tom And Ms. Amy Lee’ – and I’ll leave it to you dear readers to interpret the songs meaning – is the most up tempo and energetic offering so far. A throbbing rhythm will have you smiling from ear to ear as the band romp through ‘Tom And Ms. Amy Lee’ at a classic “foot on the monitor” pace. With an incredible and dynamic change of atmosphere and feel, ‘Because Of You’ enters hard rocking power ballad territory – with all manner of metal and rock nuances. Projecting an air of swaying from side to side with arms held high, ‘Because Of You’ also emanates a hymn-like nature and a chorus aimed at a crowd sing a long. What an eclectic mix of songs ‘Venus 5’ has to offer. ‘We Are Dynamite’ brings all five singers together for a fabulous journey of up tempo and highly melodious metal – the sisterhood of Herma, Karmen, Jelena, Tezzi, and Erina all uniting as one. A definite favourite of mine, ‘We Are Dynamite’ is as gorgeous as the Venus 5 lionesses.

Moving back to the hard rocking realms of power ballad territory, ‘Save You’ is an arm waving, lighters in the air stroll that oozes gallons of sensuality. Every song on the album has been hard hitting, with individual grooves and nuances to make them stand tall and immensely proud. Every singer has brought their A game and delivered scorching vocal performances. And let’s not forget the rest of the band – Alfonso Mocerino (drums), Dann Arisi (bass), Antonio Agate (keyboards, piano, and electro arrangements), and guitarists Gabriele Robotti, Stefan Helleblad, and Aldo Lonobile (Secret Sphere), who also produced and wrote the album along with Jake E. (Cyhra), Stefan Helleblad (Within Temptation), and Per Aldeheim (H.E.A.T.). The album comes to a close with the most energetic and fizz fuelled song on offer – ‘Bury Me’ a crescendo building romp that explodes into life across a beautiful chorus of energy and pizzazz. ‘Bury Me’ has top level sing a long ability, and is a superb ending to what has been an exciting journey of bombastic beauty and searing sensuality.

Overall, an arousing wander through the genres of metal and rock, Venus 5 deliver an exhilarating and pleasurable listening experience.

TRACKLIST

Lioness
The Simulation
Nothing But A Heartache
Bride With Blackened Eyes
Monster Under Your Bed
Inside
Tom And Ms. Amy Lee
Because Of You
We Are Dynamite
Save You
Bury Me

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