SOPHIA MARIE – Twisted

Shane | 27 September 2012 | Reply

Label: Self released
Released: 2010
Review by Shane Pinnegar
8/10

Classy and mature hard/heavy rock with loads of riffs and plenty of great songs, Sophia Marie – now playing under the moniker WICKED WENCH – possesses a fantastic, rich voice and a songwriting knack which makes her relative unknown status quite inexplicable.

Post-intro opener Voodoo is at once seductive and menacing, Marie’s voice beguiling and hypnotic and quite unique.

In turns epic and haunting, her voice recalls some of the leading lights of modern symphonic metal in its depth and range, but never tips over towards the operatic – Sophia Marie is all rock, as songs like Set Me Free and Don’t You amply display.

Marie and producer Rob Agostini have done a fantastic job to balance the atmospherics and power of these songs, and the guitars especially (courtesy of Agostini and Chris Gosper) sound fantastically crisp and clean, and hints of Eastern rhythms and timings only add to the thrall of the album.

Saving some of the best for last, the closing double of Mr Big Shot and Got You Twisted are instantly addictive and have the hooks and riffs to stay with you for days.

Taking the unique approach of selling the album door-to-door has paid dividends for Sophia Marie, having shifted a lot more copies of this album than most artists on a major label can move these days.

Her vocal, songwriting and marketing talents combined mean there is no ceiling to what Sophia Marie might be able to achieve with her next release.

http://www.facebook.com/wickedwenchband