Artist: Caamora Album: She Label: Metal Mind/MVD Website: http://caamora.net Reviewer: Bill Knispel

Track List: CD 1: Overture The Storm The Veil Covenant of Faith Rescue The Cave The Bonding Ambush Judgement History Confrontation Vigil Shadows CD 2: Fire Dance Cursed Closer Disbelief Murder Eleventh Hour Resting Place The Hermit (bonus on digipack and vinyl only) Sands of Time Embrace The Night Before Fire of Life Everything bigger than everything else. That seems, in many ways, to be Clive Nolan’s modus operandi. From his work in Arena, to albums such as Jaberwocky (with Oliver Wakeman), Nolan’s taken symphonic/melodic progressive music to its most over the top limits. And She is no exception. The first full length release from his latest project Caamora, this sprawling 2-CD concept album based on H. Rider Haggard’s Victorian novel She: A History of Adventure is just about everything one would expect from this prolific British musician. Nolan is not alone on this release; wisely, he’s taken on a number of other voices to help realise the main characters for this work. Joining him are Pallas frontman Alan Reed, Magenta chanteuse Christina Booth and newcomer Agnieszka Swita. Also joining this collective from an instrumental standpoint are well-known bassist John Jowitt (IQ), guitarist Mark Westwood (Neo) and Scott Higham (ShadowKeep) on drums. Wisely, Nolan has also enlisted an actual string section to thicken and enrich the lush orchestral musical landscapes he’s crafted, rather than relying on synths and keyboards to create a thinner, more digital backing. As mentioned previously, this album is based on a Victorian novel by Henry Rider Haggard, who had written several novels that continue to be well regarded to this day (Allan Quatermain, King Soloman’s Mine, all swashbuckling adventure novels set in the context of the Scramble for Africa). In brief, the premise of the story is as follows (taken from Wikipedia, which offers up the most concise precis of the novel I have seen): A Cambridge professor, Horace Holly and his ward, Leo Vincey, travel to Africa, following instructions on a potsherd (the “Sherd of Amenartas”) left to Leo by his biological father. They encounter a white queen, Ayesha, who has made herself immortal by bathing in a pillar of fire, the source of life itself. She becomes the prototypical all-powerful female figure. She is to be both desired and feared. She is a breathtakingly beautiful creature who will not hesitate to kill any one who displeases her or stands in her way. The travelers discover that Ayesha has been waiting for 2000 years for the reincarnation of her lover Kallikrates, whom she had slain in a fit of jealous rage. She believes that Vincey is the reincarnation of Kallikrates. In the climax of the novel, Ayesha takes the two men to see the pillar of fire. She wants Leo to bathe in it as she did so that he can become immortal and remain with her forever. His doubts about its safety lead her to step into the flames once more. However, with this second immersion she reverts to her true age and immediately withers and dies. Before dying she tells Vincey, “I die not. I shall come again.” She (the album) is filled with many impressive musical set pieces, any of which would likely be a highlight if this rock opera/musical were to be mounted as a full-fledged stage performance on or off Broadway. “Overture” sets the scene, opening the album with passionate vocals from Agnieszka Swita, while musically several themes that will be revisited throughout the piece are introduced here for the first time. The title might suggest a fully instrumental piece, yet this is in fact a full song with vocals throughout. Perhaps a more fitting title would be “Prologue” rather than “Overture,” as it serves more of a story-based introduction than a musical one. Fantastic choral vocals and eastern-tinged acoustic guitars are added to powerful vocals from Christina Booth to create “Rescue,” one of the most impressive set pieces on this release. “Rescue” is fantastically scored and arranged, creating an almost visual effect through the music and singing. This is the first genuine hair-raising moment on She, and one the entire group of musicians should be rightly proud of. An ornate, almost Baroque opening theme leads the listener into “The Cave,” where our adventurers (Nolan and Reed) are led toward the presence of Ayesha, She Who Must Be Obeyed. Booth is again the female voice, and she mixes incredibly well with Reed and Nolan. A heavily synth-driven piece, this is again slightly more scene-setting and less expository. A similar musical theme (in fact, it may well be exactly the same one) as heard in the opening strains of “Confrontation” opens “Vigil.” Left alone with Leo, Ayesha pours out her heart, begging him not to fall into the arms of death. The music sets off Swita’s vocals wonderfully, with synth strings and harp wring out every drop of intensity from her voice. Moments near the end of the song feature Swita hitting notes in a manner which, combined with the musical backing, elicit comparison to Annie Haslam and Renaissance...yet another literally hair-raising moment. As the penultimate track for Act/CD 1, this is an intense one indeed without once touching on anything that could be called rock. The first half of this release closes with “Shadows.” With Leo mystically recovered from his fatal wounds, both he and Holly are brought back into the presence of Ayesha, where Leo declares his intent to follow her wherever she may lead. Neither have any idea who the Kallicrates is she refers to, yet Leo again declares his intent to follow. Ayesha asks him not to be hasty, as her domain is darkness. This group vocal section leads to a piano ostinato and a vocal showcase for Swita, singing in a lower, throaty register that is at once ominous and disconcerting. One might almost think that she is ‘losing it’ in character, before one of the largest melodic hooks this side of classic pop radio arises, bringing with it one of the more powerful melodic lines and vocal performances on the whole album. The song builds in intensity through this section, closing out the first half of the album in fine form indeed. The second act begins with a flourish on “Fire Dance,” as a large orchestral chord is hit and held, leading to an ominous musical theme. The music opening this track is grand and cinematic in scope, truly fitting the concept of an overture to its fullest. Nolan’s vocals take on an almost operatic timbre at first, followed shortly by Reed and Swita in turn. One might be worried that the second half of this piece might open weakly, but “Fire Dance” takes care of those fears quickly. From a story line standpoint, this is an important piece as well, as it begins to set up the eventual denouement of the entire work. During “Confrontation” (on CD 1), Christina Booth as Ustane is sent away by her queen, having been given the choice of life in exile or death before here. Here we see her return, in a powerful scene where Swita follows through on her threat. Enraged with jealousy, as well as anger at having been ignored by one of her subjects, Ayesha curses Ustane to death. The music matches the scene for intensity, with moments of heaviness that come close to rivaling metal from a power standpoint. Scott Higham’s drumming is again a highlight, handling the slower sections with grace while pounding it out where necessary. This is followed by a gentle elegy, Booth begging Reed and Nolan “Closer” as she passes from this world to the next one. This is a track that really changed this reviewer’s perception of the album, and began to push the material much closer to the world of musicals than rock. Booth’s vocals are fragile and pained, matching the gentleness of the arrangement. Jaunty acoustic guitar may create the idea that the track “Murder” will be a bright one (despite the title), but one look at the title closes off that avenue of thought pretty quickly. John Jowitt’s bass line is powerful and driving, and some of the string/wind parts sound uplifting, but Swita’s vocals are delivered in a breathy rush, as if the years of holding back a horrid secret are forcing her to tell everything at once. There are some nice melodic hooks in here, but “Murder” is pretty much a showcase for Swita’s vocal skills, and here she impresses fully. Having told her tale, Ayesha turns to Leo and asks him “Are you sure that you could kill me/Can you truly claim my life?” Leo (Nolan) is at once confused, as he begins to fall for her. An eerie piano-esque theme runs under their initial vocal parts, and with a crash, intense musical backing underpins some powerful duet vocals from Nolan and Swita. This would be an impressive piece in a live setting (and in fact is, as proven on the DVD release reviewed HERE). I have to admit the opening beats on “Resting Place” didn’t sell me on this track immediately…the faux-electronica feel seems quite at odds with the grandiose music which typifies much of the album. Swita’s vocals are sweeter than on any other part of the album as she sings to Nolan, presenting to him and Leo the perfectly preserved body of Kallicrates. Swita’s exposition ends as she draws Leo in, destroying the body of her former lover and declaring her intent to remain with Leo for eternity. The song shifts to a heavier rock mode, with a tasty mark Westwood solo leading back to a more strident, powerful female vocal. As Nolan enters the song, the music becomes uplifting, helping to elevate one of the biggest hooks the album has to offer. Almost arena rock at its very best, the song moves from less than impressive to one of the more memorable ones on the album inside of three minutes’ time. “Our destiny lies days away – Our answers are defined.” There is a sense of impending activity on “Sands of Time,” as Nolan, Swita and Reeds vocals all take on an added edge. Reed asks what will happen to their quest, while Leo replies that his path has been set, and that his journey was apparently always leading him. A synth line cycles, building intensity in the same way a quick violin ostinato would on a suspense film soundtrack. The pounding, almost dinosaur beat that drives the choral vocal sections seems almost larger than life. Nolan and Reed share a final moment in “Embrace the Fire” as adventurers and friends before Leo takes the final step…to walk into the Fires of Life and embrace immortality with his queen Ayesha. Rich piano tones set off Reed’s husky tenor wonderfully, leading to a slightly skittery rock beat that is more reminiscent of his work with Pallas (or Nolan’s material with Arena). The brotherly love the two have shared seems lesser than the new found love Leo has found with his lost love, yet there is a sadness heard in both of their voices as they realise that this is both an ending and a new beginning. She closes out with a massive 10-minute epic that tries to jam several scenes’ worth of action into a can barely designed to fit it all. Things start out well enough, with both Ayesha and Leo ready for him to walk through the fire. As they walk toward the fire, something happens. Waiting in the fire for Leo, the fires of life reverse their mystical workings on Ayesha, aging her 2000 years in the blink of an eye. At that moment, the mountain which held the fire begins to crack, raining down fire as Ayesha’s powers fade along with her life. The music matches this, intense, imposing, signaling impending doom. Reed begs Nolan to come with him, telling him “This cruel volcano craves our death.” A short interlude sounds almost like another song entirely, as the spirit of Ayesha appears, begging Leo to wait for her, as she will return for him one day. The gentleness is a welcome respite from the imposing music and breathless vocals that precede it, yet the respite is brief, as a reprise of both the last vocal themes and the initial orchestral themes lead the listener out on a powerful note. She is more than just a neo-prog album; in many ways, it’s the closest thing to a full-blown rock musical that I have heard arising from the progressive rock world. There are countless moments I could easily see being staged on Broadway, and there’s a tunefulness that is both memorable and at times almost cloyingly sweet. Enjoyable in general, She is perhaps best taken in a live setting, where theatrics and staging perhaps help to offset the 2 hours of bombastic music Nolan has written for this project. The Singers: Ayesha - Agnieszka Swita Leo - Clive Nolan Holly - Alan Reed Ustane - Christina Booth The Instrumentalists: Guitars - Mark Westwood Oboe - Alaster Bentley Horn - Mark Kane Cello - Hugh McDowell Keyboards and orchestrations - Clive Nolan Basses - John Jowitt Drums and Percussion - Scott Higham The Choir: Anoushka Reynolds, Jamie Fletcher, Tina Riley, Penny Roberts, Siobhan Clarke, Agnieszka Swita, Pete Morton, Mark Westwood, Scott Higham, Clive Nolan, Daniel Holmes