Unitron Kobra and the Lotus-Kobra and the Lotus

Kobra and the Lotus is a fairly new band, with this being their first album with their more Power metal-oriented sound as opposed to their first album which followed a more traditional sound.

The music is full of heavy speed metal riffs and amazing double bass work. This isn't just power metal though, there are also elements of traditional heavy metal and symphonic metal. The symphonic influence is most heard in the closing song 'Aria of Karmika'. The song 'Forever One' is another stand-out track, having plenty of crunching guitar riffs and really putting the 'power' in power metal. There are softer moments at times though, with the beautiful piano intro of 'Sanctuary' before the heavy guitar comes in. My personal favorite would probably be 'Nayana (Eyes)', I love the chorus in that song. 'Welcome to My Funeral' is another standout song and favorite, with the amazing cymbal work at the beginning.

Kobra Paige's vocals are among the most amazing I've heard in metal. Her vocals really have a traditional metal feel, reminding me of what a female Rob Halford or James Rivera would sound like. Paige's vocals are at one of the strongest moments on 'No Rest for the Wicked' with her lower vocals perfectly complimenting the shredding guitar at the start. The lyrics are strong as well, being about dark fantasy themes.

Overall, this album is definitely one of my favorite power metal albums of all time. I highly recommend this album for any fans of power metal, and I think it's a true metal masterpiece.

Hope you found this review helpful.

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adg211288 Kobra and the Lotus (2012) is the self-titled second album by the female fronted Canadian traditional heavy metal act Kobra and the Lotus (although for some reason it seems to be being promoted as their debut, which it is not). The band’s line-up has largely been reworked since the release of their debut full-length Out of the Pit (2009), leaving only vocalist Kobra Paige and drummer Griffin Kissack the only two members performing on both releases.

Despite their branding as a traditional heavy metal act, the music on Kobra and the Lotus has a little bit more to do with power metal to my ears. That's the harder hitting US variant for the most part though there are definitely nods to the more guitar driven European styles as well. Opener 50 Shades of Evil really assert's the band's power metal side, but there is also a portion of the album which certainly is more about classic sounding heavy metal driven by Kobra Paige’s powerful singing, excellent guitar leads and classic galloping style heavy metal rhythms straight out of the school of Iron Maiden. If you want metal if other words you've certainly got it with this one.

To my ears the band prove best at doing power metal but they do traditional heavy metal pretty well too. Other highlights include Welcome to My Funeral, Forever One and Sanctuary. The music itself is fairly standard between the two styles; the closing Aria of Karmika adds a few symphonic elements as backing but mostly Kobra and the Lotus set out to bring classic metal and they succeed at that exceptionally well. Kobra Paige is the real star though; her powerful voice is quite unlike any other female singer in metal I've yet heard.

Kobra and the Lotus are yet another band in the current influx of high quality female fronted metal acts releasing an album in 2012 and I’m beginning to think there’s no end to the acts coming out with a style like this at the moment. Of course that’s certainly a not a bad thing. In their case they do, as stated, show an even better aptitude for power metal during this album than they do traditional heavy metal, so while I would like to hear them fully go down this route I can’t deny that it is a well crafted album with no dips in compositional quality and honestly, that’s all I really look for in a heavy/power metal album in 2012. Great work.

88/100

(Originally written for Heavy Metal Haven: http://metaltube.freeforums.org/kobra-and-the-lotus-kobra-and-the-lotus-t2429.html)