Charlotte Wessels – The Obsession

I think it’s about 10 years since I first heard Charlotte Wessels‘ voice. I liked her singing from the first few notes. She was in Delain at the time. But their music never really impressed me. For years I’ve known she’s a great singer, but was somewhat indifferent to her music. After Delain changed their line-up, I didn’t even listen to what she was doing anymore. That is until her 3rd album post-Delain came into the world, and it quickly became quite the obsession (pun intended). It’s so weird to be rediscovering a musician I’ve known about for so long, and to feel like it’s the first time I’m hearing her. After just one listen of the single ‘The Exorcism’, I was completely hooked. Then I went to listen to the other singles, then to the full album, then to hitting repeat, then to reading lyrics, and as I’m writing this, I’m literally on my way to see her live. Who knows where it goes from here? I guess where I’m getting at is that there’s something in this music that just grabs me more and more with every listen. And it’s hard to put my finger on it so I’ll probably spend the rest of this review trying to articulate exactly what that is.

First off, this is not a “solo album”. It is released under Charlotte’s name, but it is a full band, and everyone involved is delivering an absolutely stellar performance! Do we even want to talk about what genre did this is? Beats me! Is it symphonic metal? Maybe! Is it prog metal or prog rock? Maybe! Does it have pop elements? For sure! There’s even a gospel choir. None of them is “the” genre for this album though, and I struggle to fit any of the songs in a specific category. Despite that, they all feel conventional and catchy enough that I think the average listener will at least find this entertaining, if not get completely hooked.

Charlotte Wessels – Chasing Sunsets

Each song is based on at least one, if not more, immediately gripping themes. All the chorus lines are insanely catchy without sounding generic, and the drums and riffs hit just the right balance between groovy and technical. That means that they can offer many jaw-drop moments of technical flamboyance or complexity, without needing to write overly clinical or complex parts. If I were to assume, I’d say the basic sketches for most of these songs were fairly simple and straightforward, but as the band put their creative touches into them, they kept leveling up like Pokémon until the final result became an entirely different monster. There are many details crammed into each song that complement each other to create an exceptionally exciting listening experience.

Charlotte Wessels – Dopamine (feat. Simone Simons)

For example, let’s look at the drums. Half of what’s going on there isn’t necessary, but all of it very welcomed. Once the grooves are laid down, the amount of variation, transitions and rhythmic acrobatics that come over that, all add an insane energy and dynamic feeling to the songs. Most of the songs could have worked just fine without them, but are spiced up so much with them. Take for example the transition into triplets during the chorus of ‘The Crying Room’. There’s also a strong progressive component when it comes to unexpected shifts in accents or snare placements, but they’re integrated in the compositions so subtly that nothing ever feels odd or disruptive. The songs have a fantastic sense of fluidity and continutity, as well as ebb and flow between softer and heavier sections. On the verses, there is often just keyboard and bass backing Charlotte’s vocals, and guitars may show up sporadically to throw in some muted chugs (‘Ode to The West Wind’) or add atmosphere through clean sections (‘The Exorcism’) but most of the truly heavy distorted parts usually come in the chorus and afterwards, and in the bridge sections. There’s also a surreal contrast between the immense sound of the guitar riffs and drums, and the tenderness in many vocal parts that just makes this album feel like travelling from mountaintops t0 seashores and back again on repeat. Something like the outro to ‘The Exorcism’ is guaranteed to force you into a stink face, but then there are moments like the verses in ‘Soulstice’ that are just breezy, comfortable and relaxing. The alternations between all these varying contrasts are superbly executed so that no change in the music feels too sudden, unnatural or jarring. It is a seamless flow of wild and shifting energies.

Charlotte Wessels – The Exorcism

When it comes to melodic choices, it is catchy, accessible and gripping, one might even say poppy, but nothing about it feels generic or boring. The keyboards are an integral part of the sound, with piano sections adding some spectacular depth and character (‘Soulstice’, ‘Serpentine’, ‘The Crying Room’). As it often happens to me, I struggle to tell what is keyboard and what may be digital arrangements, but the cinematic element in these songs is not just fluff added for extra layers. It’s a significant part of the composition itself.

With such a clever compositional foundation and so much attention to detail, all that’s left to do is bring forward the right atmosphere, and let the feelings out! And I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that Charlotte has like 3 masters and a PhD in the aesthetics of emotional vulnerability. Or maybe she’s just honest. So many contrasting feelings and sensations come together in her performance that I can’t even believe it can all come together on the same album and make sense. Her voice always seemed pretty and princessy to me, but there’s so much more to her delivery, as well as the lyrics on this album, than Disney princesses. A sense of melancholy and bittersweet ambivalence transpires through many of the softer vocal lines (‘Soulstice’, ‘The Crying Room’, ‘Soft Revolution’) that’s heartwarming but fragile at the same time.

Charlotte Wessels – The Crying Room

There also seems to be an exploration of fears and conflictual aesthetics with songs like ‘The Exorcism’ which swings between eerie, angry and hurt, or ‘Ode to the West Wind’ that sounds tragic and dramatic. I’d say there’s even an apocalyptic, doomy section on that one, where some monotone clean vocals from Charlotte are layered over Alissa White-Gluz’ screams in the background. Alissa has a guest performance on that song, and we also have Simone Simons from Epica on ‘Dopamine’ which is probably the most radio friendly song on the album. Charlotte herself also screams on ‘The Exorcism’ and that is actually the most powerful, epic and cathartic moment on the album.

Despite all the dark feelings though, the album sounds surprisingly bright as a whole, and seems to always return to happy moments and peaceful resolutions as its conclusion. I think the exploration of various dark corners of human experience, done in such a human and relatable way, makes the positive and exciting moments endlessly more believable than any intentionally “happy” music could, because this approach feels so real. Now I’m talking about moments like the choruses in ‘Praise’, ‘Soulstice’, and my favourite, ‘Soft Revolution’. There is wholesome imagery in the lyrics that just carries the listener into a longing for good times and peace. “Glorious the summer of bonfires and cherry wine” is a line that makes me involuntarily smile every time. The image of “monsters and witches dancing” in Soft Revolution also brings a playful and uplifting spirit, with a sense of childish innocence to it.

Charlotte Wessels – Ode to the West Wind (feat. Alissa White-Gluz)

I really hope reading this review got you curious about “The Obsession“. But I couldn’t possibly wrap it up without shouting out the ridiculously epic and flamboyant guitar solos from Timo Somers, who shreds like a maniac and does some fiery wailing bends to take certain songs to their peak epicness. ‘The Crying Room’, I’m looking at you. The guy’s a total show-off in all the right ways. And with that, the final piece of the puzzle completes this glorious musical phenomenon. Just a word of advice before I let you dive into the album: try mixing ‘Dopamine’ with a ton of caffeine! It’s a unique experience!

Track List:

1. Chasing Sunsets (04:16)
2. Dopamine (feat. Simone Simons) (03:36)
3. The Exorcism (04:48)
4. Soulstice (03:02)
5. The Crying Room (05:15)
6. Ode to the West Winds (feat. Alissa White-Gluz) (04:41)
7. Serpentine (04:16)
8. Praise (04:13)
9. All You Are (04:59)
10. Vigor and Valor (03:16)
11. Breathe (01:11)
12. Soft Revolution (06:52)