The Seventh Life Path is the seventh studio album by Norwegian gothic metal band Sirenia. It was released on May 8 in Europe, May 11 in the United Kingdom and May 12, 2015 in North America through Napalm Records. This will be the first record released by the Austrian record company since An Elixir for Existence.[1][2] It is their last album featuring longtime Spanish female vocalist Ailyn.

The Seventh Life Path
Studio album by
ReleasedMay 8, 2015 (Europe)
May 11, 2015 (United Kingdom)
May 12, 2015 (North America)
RecordedAudio Avenue Studios in Tau, Norway and Sound Suite Studios in Marseille, France (February - March 2015)
Genre
Length67:54
LanguageEnglish, Spanish, Japanese
LabelNapalm Records
ProducerMorten Veland
Sirenia chronology
Perils of the Deep Blue
(2013)
The Seventh Life Path
(2015)
Dim Days of Dolor
(2016)
Singles from The Seventh Life Path
  1. "Once My Light"
    Released: April 8, 2015

Cover art

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Sirenia contacted renowned artist Gyula Havancsák of Hjules Illustration and Design to illustrate the cover for their newest album.

"I got some instructions from the band for the making of this cover artwork. They wanted the character of death standing behind a white dressed woman. My first thought was: How can I show a beautiful girl without face? How can I avoid to show a girl face? Well, I draw a white hood on her face, with crochet part in front of her eyes. This part looks like as a big eye that watches the fate of humans. She pull a life thread, but this one soul is lost. We can see this line (could be silver for example) change to disgusting muddy brown between her fingers...and this thread runs into a hourglass..., it falls down in the sand."[2]

Regarding the other symbols in the cover art, Gyula mentions that the band:

"...wanted to see some roots and tree branches on the cover and the scythe that looks as the number 7 and a mountain with a path in the background. The mountain symbolizes life, the top of the mountain is the end of life. The highest point where you can look back your whole life. This is the meaning of the flexous path... The 7 number appears as 7 ravens, 7 snakes, 7 roses on the dried out wreath..."[2]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Morten Veland

No.TitleNote(s)Length
1."Seti"Instrumental with choral vocals2:05
2."Serpent" 6:31
3."Once My Light" 7:21
4."Elixir" (featuring Joakim Næss) 5:45
5."Sons of the North" 8:16
6."Earendel" 6:14
7."Concealed Disdain" 6:11
8."Insania" 6:39
9."Contemptuous Quietus" 6:29
10."The Silver Eye" 7:29
11."Tragedienne" 4:54
Total length:67:54
Limited edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
12."Trágica" (Spanish version of "Tragedienne")4:55
Total length:72:49
Japanese bonus track
No.TitleLength
13."Tragedienne" (Japanese version of "Tragedienne")4:53
Total length:77:42

Personnel

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Sirenia

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Session musicians

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  • Joakim Næss – clean male vocals on "Elixir"
  • Damien Surian, Mathieu Landry, Emmanuelle Zoldan and Emilie Bernou – The Sirenian Choir

Additional notes

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  • Spanish translation on "Tragedienne" by Ailyn
  • "The Seventh Life Path" was recorded in Audio Avenue Studios (Tau, Norway), additional recordings were done in Sound Suite Studios (Marseille, France)
  • Produced and engineered by Morten Veland
  • Pre-produced in Audio Avenue Studios (Tau, Norway)
  • Mixed and mastered by Endre Kirkesola at dUb studios (Oslo, Norway)
  • Cover artwork, design and layout by Gyula Havancsák
  • Band photos by Fotograf Tom Knudsen

Charts

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Chart (2015) Peak
position
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders)[3] 198
Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia)[3] 122
German Albums Chart[3] 68
Swiss Albums Chart[4] 77
US Heatseeker Albums[5] 18

References

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  1. ^ "SIRENIA - Announces New Album Details". napalmrecords.com. February 10, 2015. Retrieved February 13, 2015.
  2. ^ a b c "Facebook post". Facebook. Sirenia.
  3. ^ a b c "Sirenia - The Sevebth Life Path". ultratop.be. Retrieved 2015-05-16.
  4. ^ Steffen Hung (2013-07-14). "Sirenia - The Seventh Life Path". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2015-05-16.
  5. ^ "Sirenia - Chart history | Billboard". www.billboard.com. Archived from the original on 2014-05-26.
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