C Z A R I N A - Arcana
Review by Mike Templar. Epilogue by Chris Magdalenski.
Galicia, Spain-based New York native and dark electro artist, CZARINA (styled as C Z A R I N A on all platforms) recently released her highly anticipated sophomore LP, Arcana, under German gothic label darkTunes Music Group. Cosmic, mystical, yet also feral and ferocious in nature, Arcana (meaning “mysteries” or “secrets” in Latin) is a celebration of epic proportions of nature, life, love, wisdom, faith, survival, consciousness, truth, the laws of the universe, and one’s own completion. The record showcases the vast dynamics and full range of CZARINA’s songwriting, composition, production, and artful lyricism, and has been meticulously crafted to mirror and articulate the mysterious depths and facets of the artist’s mind and spirit.
I remember CZARINA sinning in a tweet that Arcana should have been her debut album - it was the work that best identifies her. However, I think that Painted Holograms was necessary on her way for Arcana to be born in the first place. I would add that Painted Holograms may even have been under-noticed. Though, I agree with Vero Faye Kitsuné that Arcana is the culmination of her CZARINA career so far. Each track in Arcana harnesses an eclectic mix of dark electro, synthpop, orchestral baroque pop, gothic new age, and progressive rock into one, cohesive and thoughtfully designed sonic signature that is both ethereal and heavy-hitting, and has become CZARINA’s very own hallmark sound. I could also make some references here to bands and singers that I think sound similar. But this is still inappropriate, because without exaggerating, I think CZARINA has really managed to develop her own sound that deserves more attention on the international stage. Her album is available in various versions, which are graphically elaborate and also very exclusively designed by her husband, DeadlyKawaii. Some versions include, among other things, a set of mystical “Arcana” cards. I will specify more details about the different editions at the end of this review.
Note that CZARINA made several professional music videos for this album, which I highly recommend you to watch. These videos tell short stories in a visually elaborate way, in which CZARINA created her incredibly great costumes herself, and her husband responsible for most of the visual effects. Many of these videos also show the wonderful and fabulous nature of Galicia. You’ll find some videos in this article and CZARINA's Youtube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/c/CZARINAOFFICIAL.
But for now, let’s dive into the album titles and be assured that quite some titles will stay in your head after listening to them. I will use some of CZARINA's own title abstract and add my own thoughts in each song. Furthermore, check out what Chris Magdalenski has to say about the album at the end.
The album embraces mysticism and starts with the progressive rock and new age number “Celestial Satellites” — a ritualistic call on all forces of nature and the cosmos, featuring thunderous drums, a medley of tribalistic gothic chants and arpeggiated guitars against a backdrop of symphonic synths which all create the marquee soundscape throughout the record.
The first track is indeed a brilliant start of the album, telling about a pair of dancing satellites bound to the Earth's gravity and doomed to orbit the Earth until the end of time. This is not the first time CZARINA has used the theme of gravity, and it is indeed interesting if you think of gravity as a prison that holds us to the Earth's surface. Otherwise, the two satellites could float freely through the universe. As you may have noticed, the song doesn't have a classic beat, but uses offbeat snares. You'll find more interesting beat patterns and rhythms on the album and fortunately not only songs in classic 4/4 time, which makes the album much more exciting
Her critically-acclaimed, chamber-infused synthpop single, “Wonderland” follows as a special ode to her newly adopted home in Galicia, which she refers to as her “sacred wonder” and sanctuary of magic and mysteries.
The music video for this track is a search for seven mystical elements, or do they even stand for the seven chakras, which are to be opened? Then all the stars align and the chosen ones will liberate the earth. As mysterious as the song is, it's up to you to interpret this fabulous story. The track pulsates steadily as CZARINA performs with quite a wide range of vocal tones and choral interludes. A standout element of the song is the piano, which varies between two catchy, alternating melodic patterns. These and other well-composed elements and their vocal performances make many of the songs catchy tunes that stay in your head.
“Atomic: Ad Initivm” was the first single that has been released from the album and has in my opinion one of the most memorable chorus. The song also has pulsating bass and has some-kind of ethereal feeling to it as well as greatly chosen synthesiser sounds and a fast danceable beat. The song seems to reflect out of what we are built. But the biomedical field already has answered this! Has it really…? I think it’s a clever text and reminds me of „Popper's three worlds“ theory.
The monstrous art rock number “Excelsior” takes the listeners to new heights with tantric polyrhythms, odd meters and eclectic vocal, guitar and drum performances by the artist rendered into one continuous, giant crescendo crashing wave upon wave.
This song has a beautiful, repetitive bell melody in the background until it breaks out into a fulminant and strong chorus that pounds the toms like in a tribal ritual and is one of my favourite songs. Energetic, and with euphoric and meticulously combined background vocals, a story is told of achieving the sublime, which however can rarely be achieved alone and requires a partner — seems to be a veiled love song, which is what I'm reading out here. The song is accompanied by an electric guitar, which gives the song even more power, but never comes too much to the fore and only supports and reinforces the vocals.
CZARINA takes audiences further into a world of magic and spirit with the delicate Winter Solstice offering, “The Fox’s Wedding” — an organic and symphonic orchestration of wondrous love and spiritual union only the universe could conspire to design as inspired by East Asian folklore the track was named after.
“The Fox’s Wedding” is one of my favourite on the album too. The song shines with a wonderful soundscape and a mystical-chirping synthesiser in the background. This ballad is complemented with slow-striking violins, which give the song rather a heavy touch and yet the overall work tells of hope. The orchestral percussion, which contains the sound of castanets, rounds off the work and lets you revel in distant worlds.
The album continues with the baroque and chamber electro “Medusa” — a dark incantation inspired by the famous Greek myth that calls for all hidden truths to be unveiled.
This song is full power from beginning to end, blaring a beat at 140 BPM. The fast songs on this album are more in the realm of Assai and above than Allegro. The song tells of the truths that outlast all lies in the end. A wake-up call to become aware of the end again — something that is ignored to absurdity in our time. Also this song shines with well-chosen synthesizer and again by an immersive bass, which crackles nicely in the higher frequency ranges in the wide stereo image, just to my taste.
In “Cities In Dust” CZARINA pays homage to gothic icon Siouxie Sioux and covers the dark, apocalyptic vision with cinematic orchestral arrangements, giving the darkwave classic her own signature imprint.
I must confess that I did not know the song, or at least could not remember it. I discovered lots of good music much too late, I must admit. CZARINA's cover is her very own version; she gives the song her own signature and the result is more than successful. She also uses a bell synthesiser, which plays the background melody, as in the original. Furthermore, a gong sounds at selected places. CZARINA's ability to modulate words almost arbitrarily in tone and to sing in the most varied vocal registers comes into its own here very well. I could imagine this cover very well in an epic and cinematic work as a soundtrack.
The record reaches its summit and enters post-apocalyptic realms with “Lost Lands” Inspired by Denis Villeneuve’s Dune remake, “Lost Lands” rumbles in its thunderous, progressive metal treatment, cinematic soundscapes, and valiant lyricism that harkens bravery in the face of calamity.
“Lost Lands” is another massive work of vibrant energy that contrasts with the more mellow vocals in the verses, but which become stronger in the chorus. Every now and then a guitar plays in the background, adding even more intensity to the song that rather already has. This song is massive and vehement and tells fittingly in the imperative what to do. I said at the beginning that I do not make comparisons to other artists, and even if each has its own unique style, Björk comes to mind from time to time when I hear Arcana in some parts. Björk also manages to create massiveness in some of her work and also an often used pulsating bass with almost tribal percussion can be seen as a parallel. As an example, I reference to the song "Hunter" from the album "Homogenic" (1997).
The record finishes off in a cosmic trance with a final journey to outer space in “Til The Last Star: Cosmos” — a sentimental, spacewave pop ballad about traversing the ends of the universe for a chance for true love.
“Til The Last Star: Cosmos” is another favourite song of mine, even it might be the most commercial one on the album, but I find it such a beautiful song to which I can withdraw and dream. Maybe also for the reason that I myself often create darker music. In the end it possibly tells the most important story of all: "The truth is in your eyes". That's all I'll say about the last track.
The album Arcana is a powerful work of art in every way: Musically, artistically, visually, lyrically and vocally. I am always careful to call something perfect, because too perfect is often avoided due to unconscious reasons. But what CZARINA has created here with the support of her husband in the graphic area and with the help of Von Hertzog (Co-Producer, Mixing and Mastering Engineer) is pretty perfect. The lyrics have content, the songs are professionally composed and conceived, even if I have the feeling that a lot of intuitive work has also gone into it, which actually always makes everything a better work. Vocally, CZARINA delivers an incredible and extensive work here that I don't think very many artists can do; notice all the background vocals, the second voices and the variance in the pitch and modulation of her voice — an incredible result!
I highly recommend everyone to listen to a few songs, most enjoyable of course with the help of the greatly produced videos.
- Mike Templar
Chris Magdalenski is a SciFi/Fantasy novelist as well as a guitarIst and electronic music composer and creates his own music under the name Dark Matter Seance. Read what he says about Arcana:
To say that I am a huge fan of CZARINA's work is an understatement.
Since discovering her on social media a couple of years ago I can confidently say that she has been added to the canon of not only my all time favourite artists, but also my favourite people.
She is a modern day Bowie, with all of the talent and artistic vision channeled into a persona that is something akin to a trans-dimensional mystic priestess. A enigmatic guardian that stands at the nexus of our reality and infinite others.
Her skills in music are matched by her skills in art direction, storytelling, and performance. To listen to a CZARINA song is to be transported to another place and time, with the most recent album featuring thundering beats and primal vocals that evoke fever dream visions of a strange alternate history when magic and technology exist side by side in a continual battle against the forces of darkness.
If by now you’ve deduced that this isn’t a traditional album review then you’re getting to the point of my musings on not just her newest album Arcana, but her entire body of work. To me, going though each song one by one and breaking it down from a critical perspective isn’t necessary. There are plenty of individuals out there who are far more capable of doing that than myself. I’m far more interested in talking about the experience of listening to a CZARINA song, or watching a CZARINA video or live performance, because that is exactly what it is; a fantastic experience that is teeming with energy, inspiration and musical passion.
Don’t take my word for it. Check it out for yourself.
About Arcana:
All songs in Arcana were written, composed, arranged, performed, recorded and produced by CZARINA in her home in Galicia, except for “Cities In Dust” which was originally written by Siouxie Sioux, Budgie and Steven Severin. Von Hertzog (VHxRR, Information Society) of The Social Club (Reading, PA) served as Co-Producer, Mixing, and Mastering Engineer, providing additional production input and final touches to finesse the large dynamics of CZARINA’s new sound. The album art and all visuals were created by DeadlyKawaii and CZARINA together.
Arcana is available as a special limited edition CD package featuring all 10 tracks on Bandcamp and darkMerch.com. In celebration, the record release is accompanied by a special limited distribution of CZARINA’s very own branded Smoked Black Rosé Cider also called ARCANA, handcrafted and distributed by Skald Cellars (PA) in the US only. The record will also be followed up with a series of new music videos which will be released throughout the year under darkTunes Music Group.
For more CZARINA, visit czarinaofficial.com.
