AURI – III – Candles & Beginnings – review

AURI – III – Candles & Beginnings – review
Nuclear Blast

Album number three from the Nightwish offshoot. And it’s very much, as you were.

This sees the core trio of vocalist, Johanna Kurkela, and the Nightwish alumni, Tuomas Holopainen and Troy Donockley, joined by Frank Van Essen (strings), Jonas Pap (cello), Juho Kanervo (basses), and drumming and percussion courtesy of Nightwish’s Kai Hahto.

Now I liked the first two Auri albums. But I didn’t love them. Would I have bothered if there hadn’t been a couple of Nightwishers on board? Probably not. And I’ve got albums from Johanna Kurkela and Altamullen Road. Records, I’m a lot closer to loving than the Auri releases. I think it’s telling that this is the first Auri album I didn’t buy the vinyl version of. Although I do have a ticket for the tour. But they are coming to my hometown, so it would have been rude not to.

One of the things I have trouble with here, are the actual songs. The writing is split fairly evenly, and as good a musician as Troy Donockley is, he’s no great shakes as a songwriter. I’ve heard “The Madness Of Crowds”. So that’s a third of the album gone, straight away. Actually, 40%, as he has 4 of the 10 tracks.

But elsewhere, there are things of wonder. The mid section of ‘Oh, Lovely Oddities’, ‘Libraries Of Love’, and ‘ Blakey Ridge’ is just delightful. Some beautiful mood pieces there, with the vocals of Ms Kurkela at the top of her game. There’s also some very tasteful string work dotted hither and thither, while Kai Hahto continues to show that he is much more than just a metal drummer.

‘Museum Of Childhood’ and ‘Shieldmaiden’ also have their moments, with the former being the song that I hit the repeat button on. But, it’s the only one. It’s been obvious for years now, that, whilst tied to the Nightwish money mast, this is what Holopainen wants to do. But, listening to the three albums, back to back, I sometimes struggle to remember which one I’m listening to.