The music of Brave, formerly known as Arise From Thorns, is quite hard to classify. It’s mainly poprock, but there are also some progressive metal elements mixed in it and the beautiful voice of singer Michelle Loose adds a somewhat Celtic atmosphere.

I’m not familiar with their earlier work, so I can’t compare it to that. I’ve heard however that this album sounds hopeful than the previous album and EP. What I’ve found after listening to Searching For The Sun a few times is that Brave’s music is very pleasant to listen to. Many of the songs on this album are quite calm with melodic vocal parts. They actually reminded me of the poppier songs of Clannad.

This is probably because of Michelle’s voice.

When it comes to the music I especially like the drum rhythms and acoustic guitar. They give songs that might have sounded quite ordinary without them just that special touch. My favorite song is “Trapped Inside”, probably the heaviest track on this album. It reminds me of Tea Party, especially the guitar parts.

Overall this is a very nice album, well produced, well played and a pleasure for your ears. Especially when you like female voices and music with a warm atmosphere, this CD is certainly worth checking out.