Dovorian is a lockdown project of Adam Sayer. Adam writes and records all instruments with additional inputs by Tom S. Englund of Evergrey handling vocal arrangements and lyrics, and Jonas Ekdahl, also of Evergrey, on drum programming. The album also features Johan Niemann (Evergrey) on bass for “Heathens” and Vikram Shankar (Silent Skies, Redemption) with a piano performance and writing on “Someone Like You.” The inclusion of members of Evergrey and the outstanding skills of Vikram add even more elegance and finesse to an already fantastic album.

https://dovorianband.com/

Band Members:

  • Adam Sayer – All Instruments
  • Tom Englund – Vocals

September 29, 2023

Tracklist:

  1. Hunters
  2. Miracles
  3. Hole In My Heart
  4. Awake
  5. Seeds
  6. Weapon Of Choice
  7. Too Little Too Late
  8. Heathens
  9. Dreaming
  10. The Final Paper
  11. Someone Like You
  12. Never Out Of Sight

The title track leads off this Melodic Metal album, opening with a short intro before going for a subdued riff that moves in and out of the mix. The vocals start eerie, and haunted, then move up in phases before going for a full belted sound. The keyboards are ambient and control the emotion of the track more than any other instrument, even the voice in many cases. The way Dovorian layers in the different instruments and voices is quite astounding.

Each of the tracks is a stand-alone song; they have their own tone, texture, and timbre. While there is no central concept to the album as a whole, there is a common thread running through the whole thing. The songs all feel like they were written to go together, feeling like they belong here, all in the same place. The melodies and emotions are consistent, covering various topics from life.

There are heavy tracks, like “Miracles,” that are guitar-heavy and fast-paced in some places, though this track also has a very melodic chorus. “Hole In My Heart” opens melodic and ambient then goes heavier. Still, both those songs sound like they belong here. Dovorian knows how to compose songs that are different, yet similar. They are not stuck in one style or pattern. The diversity is quite attractive, striking different chords with each song, evoking different feelings.

“Awake” has the classic Power Ballad feel, adding another element to the album, and showing another side of the writing style. Then, “Dreaming” goes more into the Hard Rock arena than many of the other tracks, adding even more texture to the album. No two songs end up conflicting with each other as they all stand on their own merit.

There is such a wide variety of music on this album that, amazingly, there are two main composers for the entire thing; one handling the music and another the lyrics. There are so many styles, and so many genres, and they all mesh so well. Hats off to Dovorian for this one.

MZ Ratings:

Musicianship:

  •             Guitars – 9
  •             Rhythms – 9
  •             Vocals – 9
  • Songwriting – 9
  • Production – 9

Overall – 9.00