Bella Morte Albums (5)
'Bleed the Grey Sky Black'
Release Date 1/1/2006
Tracks 12
Label Metropolis
See Album Tracklist and Review
'As the Reasons Die'
Release Date 6/8/2004
Tracks 12
Label Metropolis
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Don't be fooled by the death's-head graphics, or by the band photo that shows Bella Morte on-stage looking fierce and leather-clad in a soupy morass of dark green fog . Although there are definite elements of industrial rock and darkwave in their sound, Bella Morte's most distinctive feature is the sweet and surprisingly approachable voice of lead singer Andy Deane; the group's synthesized beats are strong without being martial or overbearing, and most of these songs feature -- believe it or not -- actual melodies. In fact, the songs on As the Reasons Die are almost uniformly excellent; with the exception of a waste-of-time instrumental titled "A Time Before," they offer unique and shifting combinations of funk, industrial, darkwave and EBM elements that always sound familiar but never come across as really derivative. Highlights include the rockish and guitar-driven "Last Days," the darkwave-influenced "Awake," and a gently regretful and mildly industrial song called "Undone." Very nice. ~ Rick Anderson, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
The third full-length release from this Charlottesville, VA, band continues its exploration of a unique industrial-synth punk-darkwave fusion that allows it to fit fairly well within the industrial mainstream while still pushing the stylistic envelope sufficiently to interest listeners from outside that scene. Although the band's name (along with song titles like "Living Dead" and "Regret") might lead one to expect brooding and death-obsessed lyrics, Bella Morte actually offers an impressive range of moods and lyrical themes here -- though granted, they all fall within a generally dark-to-darker mood spectrum. "Regret" juxtaposes a by the numbers industrial growl with faintly funky rhythms, whereas "Logic" finds the guitars moving further into metal territory as the vocals clear up and become more straightforwardly rockish. "Hope Again" harks back pleasantly to the Cure, circa Disintegration, and the album's title track is actually quite contemplative and builds intensity in a highly artful manner. Perhaps most surprising is "Whispers," a tender love song (as opposed to "Christina," which is a distinctly aggressive love song). Lest you think these guys are wussies, though, "Living Dead" explodes with an old-school punk attack. Relatively few bands of this general type are capable of this kind of stylistic variety; Quiet promises good things in Bella Morte's future. ~ Rick Anderson, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
A promotional sticker that Cleopatra's marketing department provided for Bella Morte's Where Shadows Lie describes this goth rock release as "Dead or Alive meets Bauhaus," an attention-grabbing description, to be sure. Considering that Bauhaus' relentlessly gloomy goth rock sounds nothing like Dead or Alive's relentlessly exuberant blend of Hi-NRG/Eurodisco and pop/rock, you might wonder how elements of Bauhaus and Dead or Alive could possibly be fused. But occasionally, that description is somewhat accurate; Bella Morte's imaginative cover of Berlin's "The Metro" successfully combines the type of moodiness goth is known for with an infectious Euro-dance outlook. Bella Morte's Berlin cover isn't really Hi-NRG, although it's as close to a goth/disco blend as the group gets. Most of the time, however, Where Shadows Lie doesn't sound anything like Dead or Alive. The bulk of the material is state of the art goth, and dark, shadowy offerings like "The Rain Within Her Hands" and "Neverland" have a lot in common with Bauhaus but nothing in common with Dead or Alive. Bauhaus meets Dead or Alive? For the most part, no. But if you accept Where Shadows Lie for what it generally is -- pure, unapologetic goth rock -- instead of hoping for something that's more expansive, you'll find the CD to be mildly uneven but appealing and memorable more often than not. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide
