Review: Günter Werno – Anima One

Style: Orchestral, Classical, Progressive Metal (mostly instrumental)
Recommended for fans of: Casey Crescenzo, score composers, melodic prog metal in general
Review by: Sam
Country: Germany
Release date: 10 March, 2023

You may have caught my recent Vanden Plas reviews; I suddenly had a writing stroke and wrote three reviews in three days. They are my favorite band ever besides maybe Virgin Steele in their golden era, so writing about them came quite easily for me. My fellow writer Andy brought to my attention that their keyboard player had released a solo live album this year. Usually I don’t care for live music, but this is an orchestral piece that is meant for a live performance. The story behind it is as follows: after performing Jon Lord’s “Concerto for Group and Orchestra“ with Vanden Plas at Fruchthalle Kaiserslautern, the culture officer for the venue asked Günter if he could write an original composition. Challenge accepted, and here we are.

What makes this interesting is that it’s really a classical piece that also uses rock instruments, but not in a way that makes them front and center of the music. These rock instruments are obviously performed by the rest of Vanden Plas, and whenever they join in the fun you can hear their trademark melodic style coming through. Günter also occasionally breaks out the synthesizer which helps in giving a modern feel to the piece. But what’s front and center are the orchestral instruments performed by the Pfalzphilharmonie Kaiserslautern: violins, horns, trumpets, and so on. 

Anima One is split into three movements: “Animabilis”, “Animosus”, and “Animato”. “Animabilis” is a very cinematic movement, opening with melancholic piano playing and it builds a lush, dream-like atmosphere with strings as though you arrive at the entrance of a fantastical world, and through a beautiful guitar solo by Stephan Lill the gates open as it completes the introduction. After a quick transition back to the piano, Vanden Plas come in and bring the prog metal into the fray, combining with the orchestra for an epic, driving section. The rest of the movement goes back and forth between a pretty folk atmosphere a la Wilderun or Xanthochroid and huge orchestral parts supported by the band where the strings fire on all cylinders. All in all it’s a spectacular movement, and is easily one of my favorite songs of the year.

The second movement, “Animosus”, opens in a similar fashion to the first with a lone piano and slowly encroaching strings, but instead of emphasizing grandeur it adopts a foreboding tone with somber keys and sinister strings. Still ever so dream-like and fantastical, we enter the mid-section of the story where tension mounts. Around four minutes in, the band starts ramping up for an early crescendo, hammering on the double bass alongside an intense guitar-keyboard unison as the orchestra explodes and transitions into a more peaceful section, though danger still lies on the corner at every turn. Eventually a chromatic synth line rears its ugly head, providing a source of hardship in the story as it becomes the thematic center of the movement’s final section. It’s uncomfortable and sucks you in by way of tension; however the battle is ultimately won, as a glorious melodic guitar solo announces that all is right with the world again.

Finally, “Animato”, the final and longest movement, is also the most active one with the most involvement from the band. The first 10 minutes are bright and upbeat, possibly because of the villain’s defeat in “Animosus”: triumphant orchestration is back, happy melodies take over, and upbeat drumming patterns provide backbone. But every victory lap has a dark side: to mourn those who have fallen along the way. Halfway through the piece becomes somber, and vocals from Andy Kuntz and Astrid Vossberg take center stage for a ballad-style vocal duet. It’s very sweet and leads in the final crescendo of the album, but it’s also a tad cheesy and takes too long for my liking, reminding me a lot of the ballad parts in the Netherworld saga Vanden Plas put out eight years ago (compare to “Misery Affection” in particular) that would also take up too much space sometimes. It’s not a huge blight, but it does leave a sour aftertaste in my mouth of what is otherwise a phenomenal record.

I am of course unfathomably biased in this review, but I genuinely think Anima One is a spectacular release all things considered. It deftly combines classical music with progressive metal and modern music. Its themes are wonderfully constructed and built upon in an accessible manner, incorporating modern instruments for familiarity at the right moments. If it wasn’t for the overlong ballad and a little bit too much clapping at the end taking out some of its steam, I may have given it a perfect score, but besides me being petty this is just fantastic. Go give it a listen.

Recommended tracks: 1^st movement – Animabilis (also everything, but it’s a good teaser)
You may also like: Vanden Plas, The Night Watch, Vanaheim folkestral songs (bandcamp)
Final verdict: 9/10

Related links: Spotify | Facebook

Label: Frontiers Music SRL – Facebook | Official Website

Günter Werno is:
– Günter Werno (keyboard, piano, organ, songwriting)
– Pfalzphilharmonie Kaiserslautern (orchestra)
– Stephan Lill (guitar)
– Torsten Reichert (bass)
– Andreas Lill (drums)
– Andy Kuntz (vocals)
– Astrid Vossberg (vocals)