Worlds Beyond – Rhapsody Of Life

Worlds Beyond
Rhapsody Of Life
Out: January 31^st, 2025
Playing time: 53:48

The Symphonic Metal band Worlds Beyond from Ghent in East Flanders (Belgium) was founded in 2017 by guitarist Tijmen Matthys. However, he started writing songs back in the summer of 2016. He quickly found fellow musicians and the first live performances followed. It is impressive that there have obviously been no line-up changes since then. After various singles, the debut album ‘Symphony Of Dawn’ was released in 2020. Now the follow-up ‘Rhapsody Of Life’ is in the starting blocks.

‘Familiar Skies’ initially impresses with a deep bass melody that is repeatedly underpinned by orchestral power. Later, the drums boom and the riffs bang. Always accompanied by powerful orchestration. The violin sounds a little weird and discordant at first. Then Valerie De Kempe convinces with her clear, powerful and at the same time very cleanly sung soprano. Towards the end, string tapestries can be heard. But you can also start a song with heavy guitars, as ‘Unwind Our Story’ proves. After the hard riffs, things calm down a little and you can enjoy the beautiful soprano voice. Interrupted again and again by heavy riffs. ‘Sleepless Dreams’ is a beautiful ballad. Valerie’s elf-like vocals are accompanied by electric piano and strings. She sings in the highest notes, sometimes to the pain threshold. Many a glass would burst here. The violin sounds much more melodic here. ‘Breaking Free’ starts off ballad-like, before powerful orchestration once again takes over. But you don’t have to do without powerful drums and beautiful guitar melodies here either. The catchy refrain is easy to sing along to. ‘The Calling’ starts as a piano-violin ballad. This is accompanied by Valerie’s enchanting vocals. Later, a power ballad with powerful instrumentation can be heard. Piano and strings are obviously very popular for Worlds Beyond. These also introduce the next power ballad ‘Beyond Reality’. In ‘The Spark’ we hear exactly the same musical pattern. But fortunately, it becomes more powerful again. The tempo picks up a little at times. There is also another way. In ‘Enchantment’, guitars can be heard right from the start. The contemplative part is also over now. The violin in particular increases the tempo, as do the drums and guitar. ‘The Moment’ is once again dominated by quieter sounds, whether piano, strings, guitar or vocals. Once again, the singer soars to the highest notes. Another power ballad. Is the air out here? Another ballad follows with ‘One With The Stars’. But there is still the title track ‘Rhapsody Of Life’ – an epic monumental work with a playing time of just over ten minutes. At first you hear spoken words. But then the instruments kick in. The violin stands out first, followed later by strong guitar hooks. Before it slips back into ballad territory and the singer lets her clear-as-a-bell soprano sound out. Fortunately, there is some musical variety here, with the violin once again taking centre stage and underpinning the spoken words. It becomes more powerful again in the mid-tempo range. The song is characterised by several melody and rhythm changes. In addition to the spoken words, epic, bombastic choruses can also be heard. And an outstanding, extremely melodic guitar solo. So, Worlds Beyond have reserved the best for last.

Rhapsody Of Life’ features well-crafted Symphonic Metal. However, it has to be said that there are also some boring moments on the album thanks to the many contemplative and balladlike parts. I would like to see more variety on the next album, especially in terms of instrumentation and arrangements. A little more heaviness would also certainly do the overall sound some good.

Worlds Beyond – Unwind Our Story: https://youtu.be/hNTBCt36SfQ?si=DhLUxLvphOJ-Po54

Lineup:

Valerie De Kempe – Vocals
Tijmen Matthys – Guitars
Jakob Declercq – Violin
Robbe Adriaens – Keyboards
Ewoud Dekoninck – Bass
Wout Debacker – Drums

Track list:

• Familiar Skies
• Unwind Our Story
• Sleepless Dreams
• Breaking Free
• The Calling
• Beyond Reality
• The Spark
• Enchantment
• The Moment
• One With The Stars
• Rhapsody Of Life