Review Summary: Ministry of Magic are a relatively new Wizard Rock band that are just one more reason to love Harry Potter.
It really is interesting to see how far Harry Potter has come in the last 10 years, starting out from just a children’s book to a seven book trilogy and so much more. There’s no denying how popular it’s become, and even now there are 5 films made with two more following up, a theme park being built in Universal Studios, and an array of different bands all singing about different Harry Potter themes. Most of you who are following this should know of the atrociously over-rated “Harry and the Potters”, a wizard rock band which are supposedly the showcase band of its genre. For all you out there who have heard Harry and the Potters and hated the I tell you there is still hope for this genre, and they are Ministry of Magic.
The Band:
(Jason Munday)
- Melodic/Harmonic Mastermind
- Guitar Hero
(Luke Conard)
- FL Studio Pro
- Charming Good Looks
(Aaron Nordyke)
- Vocals
- Lyrical Genius
In 2007 Ministry of Magic comes out of the cauldron and presents us with “The Triwizard LP”. What sets Ministry of Magic apart from the rest of the bands in this genre is that they can actually sing (for the most part). They use synthesizers and don’t use instruments except for an acoustic guitar in “Acendio” and “This Book is so Awesome”, which isn’t a bad thing because they are very catchy. They prove this right from the first track “The Hero”, a mixture of electronics and pop-rock vocals which I can only seem to compare to the back up vocalist of “Hollywood Undead”. It’s a great start for the album but it isn’t the best track. The next track “Accio Love” features one of the female vocalists from the wizard rock band “The Moaning Myrtles” who comprises mostly the main chorus in the song. Aaron is also heard in this song singing mostly the verses. It’s a very nerdy love song about Ron and Hermione and is one of the really soft ones on the album.
The band is unique in the sense that they use Techno, Rap elements, R&B elements, and rock. The rap and r&b elements can be found on “Marauder’s Map” and “Page 784”. Marauder’s Map is a rap about the magical map, which showcases some of the lamest/coolest lyrics on the album which anyone who follows the movies or books would fins humorous. Page 784 is the final track and it’s a dud. While the concept of snapping in the background and the calming vocals overtop of the other band members humming in harmony is cool, it just falls short and doesn’t leave a memorable impression.
The techno comes into play on the songs “Snape Vs. Snape” and “Escape from Azkaban”. Snape Vs. Snape is a very well produced song and is probably the best on the Triwizard LP. It’s the only other that features a female vocalist from another wizard rock band called “The Parselmouth’s”. The vocals sound more crisp and clear here than any other song on the album. Both the female vocalist and Aaron sing parts of the verses and harmonize together in the main chorus. Escape from Azkaban has a much darker and more dramatic feel to it than any other song on the album. About mid-way through the song screams can be heard in the background with humming overtop of it. It’s the most electronic song here and probably second best.
As for the other songs on this LP, well both “Meet me on Diagon Alley” and “I Heart Weasley’s” aren’t that great just because of the production in the vocals, especially the main chorus of I Heart Weasley’s. “The Villian” and “Masterpiece Theatre” are just two tracks with spoken dialogue and music in the background. They aren’t something that you would really want to listen to after hearing it once. “This Book is so Awesome”, a cover of “Harry and the potters”, is similar in lyrics and music. However, Ministry of Magic’s version is actually good (mostly due to the vocals).
In conclusion I believe that Ministry of Magic is a band that will receive no credit or hype just because they’re a wizard rock band. However, this band is truly something to look into. They combine many elements to produce great music and Aaron’s vocals sound great throughout the majority of the album. There are of course some real downers here as well, such as the production of vocals in a few tracks and when Jason Munday sings which is truly horrid from time to time. Taking everything into consideration though I would still have to give them a great rating and look forward to hearing more from Ministry of Magic.
Recommended Tracks
-Snape Vs. Snape
-Escape from Azkaban
-Marauder’s Map
Stream: http://www.myspace.com/ministryofmagicmusichttp://www.myspace.com/ministryofmagicmusic
