Michael Cretu, the man who is 95% of Enigma (as he suggested in his recent Internet chat session, the only "interview" he will give this year), figured out after Enigma 2 (_The Cross of Changes) that people don't necessarily want to hear his music in the clubs anymore. Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi capitalizes on the best elements of past Enigma albums, adds new idiosyncracies and themes, and follows a more unique stylistic approach.
The first song past the introduction, "Morphing Thru Time" (which some speculate will be the second single from the album), foreshadows a certain maturity not witnessed on Enigma 1 or 2 with a slow, easy beat (quite a welcome change), a nicely executed chord progression, and Cretu's vocals, though loud as usual, actually adding dignity and intensity to the song and doing the lyrics justice (much unlike "Why!", which exemplifies his ability, especially on Enigma 2, to ruin an otherwise respectable song by screaming one line over and over). "Morphing" also demonstrates the use of elements from Enigma 1 (Gregorian chant) and Enigma 2 (Middle Eastern influence) in Enigma 3--and yet these elements are reinvented.
Cretu has also tried to jettison the Dopey Title Syndrome which hurt the last album (see "I Love You...I'll Kill You" and "The Dream of the Dolphin"). Lyrics are hard for Cretu, and this is one of the few thorns that stuck in my side upon close evaluation of the album. However, many of the songs incorporate only unrecognizable vocals or no vocals at all.
Some may find the frequently used new-agey background chords and the reverbing of the...well...everything, to be a bit annoying, expecting something rougher to happen once in a while. Understand, though, that Cretu conveys foreboding and general darkness not through dissonance, but through an emphasis on dark harmonies in nearly every song (except "The Child In Us" and "Prism of Life"). Such vibrant, affecting musical structures are most prominent in "Almost Full Moon" (featuring a very sly drumbeat and well executed synth maneuvers) and "Shadows In Silence" (incrdible utilization of background vocals). "Beyond the Invisible", the first single from the album, is a bit overdone, however, and does not follow in this vein as sucessfully as it should.
While it has its faults, Enigma's third installment shows Cretu greatly improving his skills of craftsmanship and understanding of aesthetic quality, and easily inspires more wonder, calm, and sensuality than his previous studio engagements combined, not to mention other chart-topping albums as of late. If Cretu continues in this fashion, his next couple albums may well turn up masterpieces.
