🎶 Eye Of Melian
🌎 Netherlands
📀 Forest of Forgetting
® Napalm Records
📅 20/02/2026
Musicians are restless souls by nature, and many of them, not wanting to be confined within the narrow limits set by a particular bands, create side projects or even solo works. EYE OF MELIAN is the side project of Martijn Westerholt (DELAIN, WITHIN TEMPTATION) and Johanna Kurkela (AURI, etc.), who, together with Robin La Joy and Mikko Mustonen, brought the ethereal EYE OF MELIAN to life.
“Forrest of Forgetting” is their second full-length album and faithfully follows in the footsteps of their first, “Legends of Light” from 2022. What characterizes EYE OF MELIAN’s music is the atmospheric and cinematic nature of their songs, which could be used as anthems for the elves in Tolkien’s magical world, from which they draw their inspiration. It is impressive that there is no guitarist credited, even though we can hear classic guitar, as the dominant instruments are keyboards and violin, giving their music a mythical character. Kurkela’s ethereal voice blends harmoniously with the ensemble and transports the listener to a magical and almost dreamlike world.
EYE OF MELIAN’s music is quite reminiscent of NIGHTWISH if we remove the metal element, and even more so of AURI’s music, perhaps due to Kurkela’s very distinctive voice. There is a strong epic element, for example in “Blackthorn Winter,” or a Celtic folk touch, especially in the songs featuring Patty Gurdy on the hurdy gurdy and Troy Donockely on the flute (“Elixir of Night” and “Dawn of Avatars”), but also a cinematic aesthetic, as in the title track. A nice surprise is the cover of “Tears of The Dragon” from Bruce Dickinson’s solo work, “Balls To Picasso,” with the song’s chorus sounding amazing in Kurkela’s voice.
Overall, “Forest of Forgetting” is exactly what the title describes. Listening to it is like getting lost in a magical forest where you forget all your everyday problems. It’s not metal, of course, but we said that many musicians feel the need to communicate their feelings in many ways. This is what Westerholt does through EYE OF MELIAN.
★ 7,5/10
✍🏻 Kostas Boudoukos
