Aleah – Aleah

Label: Svart Records
Releasedate: 01-07-2020

It has been four years since Aleah passed away. Her flame still burns strong and her spirit still alive through many projects such as Trees of Eternity and Hallatar. Aleah’s life partner Juha Raivio already gave hints of a solo album with a collection of many unreleased songs….and now is the time. The new posthumous solo album of Aleah is out on her birthday, July 1st, via Svart Records. This release consists of two parts: Acoustic and Electric.

Album I: Acoustic

Here we get to the core of the things, it is just the guitar and Aleah’s enchanting and captivating voice. This part is raw to the bone, it almost feels demo-like, there are no extra elements or fancy atmospheric arrangements and this is the beauty of it. The focus is on the lyrics and I guess I don’t have to say the melancholy is the highlight. The more I think about it, some songs even pierce the heart and you might find yourself a bit teary-eyed. So magical and melancholic, and that is how it should be. My personal highlights: Sacrifice, Closing Under Pressure, Water and Wine.

Album II: Electric

This part brings us that electric, the energy and the fire. Three songs in the acoustic part – Vapour, Breathe, My Will – are also featured here, with a different atmosphere. The arrangements bring a nice diversity without modifying the core of the songs. What captivated me the most were the songs Sacrifice and The Tower; the darkness and the exotic vibes that one experiences is just indescribable! I also couldn’t stop but wonder if these two songs were a homage to Aleah’s homeland. Speaking of exotic, I need to mention the guest artist Anilah on Sacrifice; her work and the magic she brings is fantastic and takes this song to another level!

At this point, I think it wouldn’t make sense to compare these both parts. Melancholy is the key highlight in both albums with Album I being more raw and Album II being more exotic. While listening to both parts, the colors blue/purple for Album I and orange for Album II flashed in my mind, creating some kind-of nice contrast. Both parts surely complete each other quite well and it is an interesting experience to listen to same songs on a different perspective.

There is so much to be said but one thing is certain; Aleah is heavy, melancholic and packed with many different emotions. Very rarely do I find it difficult to explain how an album makes me feel and “Aleah” is one of those albums… You need to feel it to be able to experience and talk about it. Take your time, prepare yourself and get ready to go on a journey. Thanks to everyone involved in making this happen and especially to Mr. Juha Raivio for carrying the flame.

Tracklist

Album I: Acoustic
01. Vapour
02. Sacrifice
03. Open Sky
04. My Will
05. Breathe
06. Closing Under Pressure
07. Water and Wine
08. Terrestrial Torrents
09. Touch My Face

Album II: Electric
01. My Will
02. Sacrifice (feat. Anilah)
03. Inverted Enlightenment
04. Vapour
05. The Tower
06. Breathe

Links:

Facebook
Bandcamp
Svart Records Official
Juha Raivio Facebook