Tempting the Muse

Artist: Mysteria
Type: Album
Release date: 2006
Run time: 54:52
My Rating: 7

1. Closer to Heaven (4:58)
2. Elysian Fields (6:26)
3. Sky Chill (3:26)
4. Tempting the Muse (6:08)
5. Elixir for Sunsets (4:47)
6. Lift (4:11)
7. In My Soul (4:58)
8. The Loveliest Sin (5:12)
9. Awake Inside a Dream (4:58)
10. Lover's Embrace (5:30)
11. Star Gazer (4:14)

Comments

According to the sticker affixed to the shrink wrap, this album is "in the spirit of Enigma, Delerium and Dead Can Dance..." The problem with this is Enigma, Delerium and DCD don't actually have much in common, beyond Delerium occasionally using Gregorian chant. I strongly suspect that the sticker was affixed by Intentcity Records rather than Mysteria themselves (or rather "himself", as Mysteria appears to be one man: Mark Adams Allison).

Indeed, it does seem quite like Mr Allison sat down and listened to a bunch of different albums before sitting down to compose this, as sometimes his influences are perhaps just a little too obvious. "In My Soul", for instance, could have walked off a Moby album. Despite the fact that the result ends up feeling quite derivative of other works, it occasionally hits gold, such as the excellent melody of "Lift", and the beautiful soulful lyrics of "Sky Chill".

Oddly the text inside the cover lists the last four tracks in the order "Lover's Embrace", "Star Gazer", "Awake Inside a Dream", and "The Loveliest Sin" - I'm fairly certain the order on the back cover is the correct one.