Aina

Days of Rising Doom – The Metal Opera (The End)
by Martin Popoff

Woah, Aina is pretty much the final word in the metal opera sweepstakes, the apex of achievement and effort versus the disproportionately minimal attention the thing is bound to get. Comprising two discs, a DVD, a book a quarter inch thick (all housed in hardcover), plus the usual army of file-sharing performers, this is indeed a fantasy-steeped sight and sound package in which to get blissfully lost. A nice thing about this is that the pacing is truly dramatic, symphonic, often medieval and folky, not just an excuse to string together ballerina metal moshings. And though Aina is the brainchild of the well-networked Sascha Paeth and Miro (plus Robert Hunecke-Rizzo and Amanda Somerville), the thing flows more like a vocal showcase, a highlight being Glenn Hughes, nice touches being Candace Night and Sass Jordan. Wanna know more? Don’t go to the website. It barely functions.
(331 Rio Grande #58 SLC, UT 84101)