Until now, you could have tagged Lovelorn Dolls’ music as falling, broadly speaking, into a pop-goth category, and few would argue a case against you for doing so. But, with “Beautiful Chaos,” the latest single taken from their fourth album, Deadtime Stories the band seems to take a step into more gritty and menacing realms.
There is still a touch of their signature gothic fantasy, dreamscaping about the song, but here, the once sonic fairytale land that they usually reside in seems to have taken a slide into the realms that the likes of Tim Burton draws inspiration from. It is still fantastical and woven of mythologies and bedtime stories, at least metaphorically speaking, but now, there is no small amount of grit to add to the grandeur, additional muscle driving the melodies, and a delicious, even darker design at work.
And, as they mix analog sounds with digital textures, layer their incendiary guitars with beguiling electronica, and mix their cool, clinical lucid dream menace to more abrasive sonics, they emerge as a bridge between early _punk gothique _ synth pioneers such as Rosetta Stone or Clan of Xymox and the more metallic infusions and symphonic scope of, say, Evanescence or Lacuna Coil.
It’s a great song and a sign that the gothic scene, even after all this time, is healthier than ever. Though healthy, might not be quite the right word, if you know what I mean.
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