Album Review: Scarlet Dorn – Queen of Broken Dreams (SPV)

German dark rock quintet Scarlet Dorn will release their third album, Queen of Broken Dreams, on the 30th of September via SPV Recordings.

As epic and lavish as ever, Scarlet Dorn might sit in the symphonic-tinged rock camp alongside the likes of Within Temptation and Epica but, thanks to a thick dark and gothic vein, they’re very much their own thing.

A thing built on the foundations of anthemic symphonic rock and catapulted into the stratosphere by the vocals of the titular Scarlet Dorn. Early on, her incredible voice stands out on the animated Falling and the dramatic Born to Suffer. Two immediate examples of Scarlet Dorn’s exceptional catchiness while still sounding larger than life.

That really is no easy task. To sound ready for the radio but also extravagantly detailed and epic. Yet this band makes it seem all too easy. Just check out the immaculate keys of the title track, the groovy and sleazy touch that comes from Your Highness, the playfully dark tempo of A Light That blinds the Truth and the fairy tale melody of Meteor. Varied and interesting music with wide ranging appeal.

That certainly means it will be a bit more of a challenge if you’re more interested in harder and heavier music. Yet, that shouldn’t imply that Queen of Broken Dreams doesn’t have moments that see the band flare up and go punchier.

All that being said, there’s no escaping the fact that the album as a whole is very melodic and it’s something Scarlet Dorn do so well. Crafting emotionally wrought lows as well as challenging and captivating highs. Unstill Life is a track that has both. Whereas When You See Me Again is pure tear-jerking stuff, Love Wasn’t Made for Me is pure power-balladry at its finest and What Are We to Do features a more subtle vocal performance and a building power in the instruments.

Perhaps the most lavish track of all is saved for the end though as Scarlet Dorn hit a glorious high with Tonight. The piano melody, touches of cinematic sounds and chorus is very impressive. To such a point that it overshadows the finale of A Million Miles Away. Even if it is also a quality slice of dark rock with just a slight uptick of peppiness to end things in a more energised but still melody-laden way.

It’s another top release from Scarlet Dorn that shows, as they grow, that they are becoming more and more confident in how they express themselves. Comparisons to other bands are always going to be made but with releases like this, they are certainly beginning to stand out from the pack.

Scarlet Dorn – Queen of Broken Dreams Full Track Listing:

1. Falling
2. Born to Suffer
3. Queen of Broken Dreams
4. Your Highness
5. A Light That Blinds the Truth
6. Meteor
7. Unstill Life
8. When You See Me Again
9. Love Wasn’t Made for Me
10. What Are We to Do
11. Tonight
12. A Million Miles Away

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