Press

10 / 10
“If HARTLIGHT’s ‘The Triumph Of Metal’ doesn’t end up opening for big-name bands like Dream Theater, Epica or Nightwish very soon, things aren’t right. This music belongs on the big stages of this world, and I can’t help but give it the highest marks. It really is a masterpiece and for me an early contender for the title ‘Album of the Year’.”
Bleeding4Metal

10/10
“… absolutely magnificent … such a big leap in all around quality … has completely taken my breath away … Noémie Marie absolutely soars … she was always a fantastic singer but on this album takes complete control and delivers her finest performance to date … I’m going to find it difficult to hear a better album this year and we are only in February!”
Banshee Entertainment

9,7 / 10
“At first you’re stunned … great … musical sophistication … captivating songwriting … brilliant sense for the perfect moment … delivers from front to back … gives a lot of pleasure … something really brilliant is coming up … already high up in my highlights of the year 2025 … terrific …”
Zephyr’s Odem

9,5 / 10
“Top-class Symphonic Power Metal … I already really liked the debut album! With the new album, however, the band has gone one better and improved in all respects … the new compositions show their full strength and are definitely already one of the absolute genre highlights of this year!”
Rock Garage

8,5 / 10
“… I love to see a band find their style and go for it … there isn’t a single weak or bad song on ‘The Triumph Of Metal’, so the album is far more than solid or even good: it’s great. I suspect that my opinion will only get stronger as I keep listening this year.”
The Prog Mind

8,3 / 10
“… effortlessly presents a mature, powerful and very melodic album thanks to a mixture of different genres. Noémie Allet, who is comfortable on vocals, delivers a fine performance accompanied by skilled musicians and orchestrations that are both engaging and epic. While the particularly rich and varied style sometimes seems to move away from Power Metal, Speed Metal and Symphonic Metal remain present throughout … surprises us … appreciated.”
Power Metal France

8 / 10
“… enchanting … medieval atmosphere, which is intensified by the choirs and the magnificent use of various string and wind instruments … lets you fly along with every intoned note … a sensual pleasure is guaranteed … solemn sonority … fiery symphonic blasts … conveys numerous emotions …”
Satan Arise

3,5 / 5
“… strong performances and a well thought-out sound … a commendable output in the field of Symphonic Power Metal, which offers a mixture of powerful vocals, technical instrumentation and rich orchestration”
Metal Underground AT

“… I love the heavyness … her voice has never sound stronger as here … so much power … so much strength … orchestrations were done so well … I am really impressed … phenomenal …”
Power Metal Ranger

“… great … not just for a very bright future for them but for this whole style of great music in general … pitched perfectly throughout … with a nice blend of more traditional fare with something a little newer and refreshing … indeed a huge triumph … have certainly put their own stamp on … undeniably earned themselves a place at the top table …”
Female Voices Of Metal And Rock

 “… excellent guitar work … solos are crisp and sharp and the riffs chunky where needed … HARTLIGHT have created a gem here, one well worth your time.”
Female Fronted Power

“… a tour de force of Symphonic Metal – with grandiose songs that sweep the listener away … arranged in such a way that the whole album fits together well as a whole.”
Rancor Metalzine

 “… represents an aesthetic change of course without losing its direction. The new album will still appeal to Symphonic, Heavy and Power fans, but it will also flatter Prog and Modern Metal lovers.”
Metal Alliance Mag

“… excellent … hits levels of the genre I wish more bands would try to achieve … from the solos to the soaring vocals to the orchestration of it all; this one is signed, sealed, and delivered to be one of the finest Symphonic Power Metal you may hear in 2025. This is simply how it’s done and even longstanding bands in the genre need to take note …”
Heavy Debriefings

 “… great Progressive Symphonic Metal …”
Progressive Rock Central

‘…The French-Swiss band took to the stage with a disconcerting confidence for a young band, and from the very first chords, the tone was set. Noémie, the voice of the band, impressed from the very first lines. Her vocal delivery is of a finesse and power that instantly captivates… Hartlight is one of those bands whose potential you can quickly guess. The band conquered the Rock’n’Eat audience tonight with brio…’
Noise Injection – Live Report

10 / 10
“… euphoric instruments and vocals … nothing conventional here … catchy and lively … the high notes by the female vocals is impressive … blistering guitar riffs … timeless … never in my life have I enjoyed an album so much …”
Project Metal Music

10 / 10
“… a blend that’s both emphatic and dramatic … fifty tension filled minutes … a magical journey of aural delight and discovery … the band are elegance personified … elevates the excitement level to new and uncharted heights … the vocal range of singer Noemie is so wide, ranging from soaring symphonic to a classic Heavy Metal roar …”
Metal Gods TV

98 / 100
“Forget everything you’ve heard so far when it comes to Symphonic Metal bands with female vocals, because a new band has arrived with the aim of elevating this genre to a level never seen or heard before … and it all starts with a vocalist, Noémie Marie, capable of a dreamy register, not too rocky, not too operatic, but touchingly beautiful.”
Via Nocturna

9,5 / 10
“… with antique motifs … great orchestrations and choirs … Noémie Allet proves to be a sensational singer, very expressive and with a powerful voice that captivates from the first moment … the Power Metal track ‘The Land Of The Star’ is beautiful with its proud chorus and Allet’s high vocals … all these hits … unpretentious, pleasant and intelligently played symphonic Power Metal without being overly pompous. A simply excellent debut.”
Melodic Metal Sound

8 / 10
“Never stingy with orchestrations … a Power Metal opera with an emphasis on bells, choirs and a harmony that grabs the heart … with this first album, HARTLIGHT leave their mark … succeeds in distinguishing itself both through its almost unique style in France, through its engaging harmonic orchestrations and through a singer who delivered a great interpretation. These are good prospects!”
Power Metal FR

95 / 100
“… very well done … a strong, melodic, symphonic debut … excellent musical structures with multiple layers and rhythms … well accentuated, dramatic tempo changes … very refined, textured sounds on multiple musical levels …”
Darkzen Dragon

17 / 20
“… in the style of Battle Beast , Ancient Bards, Xandria and Delain … an opus that is as sunny and exhilarating as it is strongly emotionally charged … atmospherically and rhythmically diverse, stylistically varied, with a good sound engineering … you can follow from start to finish without any detours … a serious hope in a field where it was not necessarily expected …”
Spirit Of Metal

17 / 20
“… beautiful … oriented towards the gothic and dark arts … excellent album … an absolute must …”
Aux Portes De Metal

16 / 20
“… Noémie Marie shows all her talent and vocal range … musically rather gloomy and melancholic, in contrast to the ‘happy Power Metal’ that you often find in Europe … an album of high quality … impressive … you will have to reckon with this new player in the future when it comes to Symphonic Power Metal …”
French Metal

8,7 / 10
“… let the soul of your sword speak … first-class band … a real discovery … I was really surprised by their rare qualities, I was almost carried away … this is a band that really deserves our attention …”
Belgian Metal Shredder

8,5 / 10
“… excellent and versatile vocalist Noémie Marie … songs flow between symphonic, gothic, power and progressive, but always maintaining a high level of quality and melody … a good album, all songs will please most Metal fans …”
Sounds From Apocalypse

8,5 / 10
“… pure, varied and melodic symphonic metal where they reach straight for the top quality shelf … singer Noémie is far from the usual operatic approach … she has enough power to really go forward and stand up to the bombastic orchestration … sophisticated and well realized, most of the songs eat their way into the ear canals and stick there for a long time … one of THE (underground)surprises for me so far this year in the Symphonic Metal sector …”
Rock Garage

8,2 / 10
“… lots of bombast. Noémie Marie knows how to convince with her clear-as-a-bell soprano voice, without falling into opera mode … a convincing debut work … there is a lot of epic music to be heard, but also classic Heavy Metal. Both form a balanced melange.”
Keep On Rocking

8 / 10
“HARTLIGHT delivers an accomplished first record! The ensemble is very clean and masterful. There is here a certain talent that only asks to find its public!”
Pavillon Webzine

8 / 10
“HARTLIGHT show themselves to be very multi-faceted … fat riffs … dreamy, folky melodies … soundtrack-like sound collages … virtuoso, but not overdone … the vocals of front lady Noémie Allet are not as operetta-like and theatrical as usual for the genre, but bright and clear, yet always powerful and expressive … very interesting …”
Crossfire

8 / 10
“… balances melancholy and energy very well … lots of great riffs and spacious instrumentals, and the vocals are quite good … really excel on their more cinematic and theatrical tracks … I really do think this band will find themselves and produce some fantastic records in the future …”
The Prog Mind

7,5 / 10
“… exaltation of Gothic-Symphonic with female vocals, with an eye on Fantasy Power … a compendium of majestic arrangements, epic sounds and dramatic suggestions … vocalist Noémie Marie, capable of weaving textures that are as elegant as they are theatrical, enriches the whole … tasty … reflects the personality and determination of the band, which is a candidate for a leading role in the world of music and within the genre …”
Rock Hard IT

7 / 10
“… charismatic vocals … fantastic guitar solos … very good sound … a more than solid start … should be able to establish themselves effortlessly in the scene …”
ReviewRalle

7 / 10
“… an extremely attractive and very worthwhile debut … interesting insight into their musical conception in which elegance, pathos and aggression manage to coexist harmoniously … fresh and lively, full of interesting cues … HARTLIGHT prove to be very adept at alternating the right doses of melody and musical solidity. Bravo!”
Metal IT

3 / 5
“… pleasant to listen to, especially if you are a fan of certain Symphonic Power with female vocals … Noémie is much more expressive than in the past and definitely effective and versatile … musically never banal, but always well done and equally well played … a good debut album …”
All Around Metal

“… very unique … I just got enveloped in it … really cool … dark magic … amazing … love it …”
Power Metal Ranger

“… a high-quality debut … when making Symphonic Metal, you have to make sure that what you’re doing sounds good and coherent – and HARTLIGHT have done really well here … imagine the sounds of Therion, Epica and After Forever, you get a pretty good idea of where you are … melts the genres a bit and everything is beautifully carried through by Noémie’s voice and the strong riffs and beautifully arranged orchestral parts … with a touch of Power Metal …”
Rancor Metalzine

“…what a beautiful sound … the vocals of Noémie Marie will have you holding on to every word … awesome album … what a debut …”
Rockerhead

“… a beautiful Sympho Metal album in power and prog … all melodic … the sublime voice of Noémie enhances the effect as well as the imposing orchestrations of Adrien. All this gives the music a great personality that will appeal to a wide audience … I advise you not to miss it and to follow the group closely with its significant potential.”
OdyMetal

“… oozing an immense infectious nature to satisfy even the most peckish of appetites … a sparkling, stunning album … truly unique blend of Heavy, Progressive, Power, Gothic and Symphonic Metal …”
Frenzy Fire Metal & Rock Reviews