‘Unforgiven’ by Sophia Mengrosso — Raw, Real, and Unapologetically Powerful

‘Unforgiven’ by Sophia Mengrosso is a true catharsis. It’s a well-rounded album packed full of different tones and emotions while remaining focused and cohesive. The entire album is sung by Sophia Mengrosso, who studied opera before finding her heart in metal and hard rock. The record has a quality that feels both intensely personal and powerfully universal. “Dream” is short, creeping, and noisy. It’s like Sophia is warning you with her voice floating above the quiet noise of the guitars. “Under” is a guttural reminder of the worst parts of the past when you’re finally ready to let go of them. Sophia’s voice has a real power to it that commands attention rather than trying to scream over the music. “Demonizer” is like Sophia is tearing away at the parts of herself that keep her down. Lyrics of rage and the heavy music paired with the steady but forward-driving beat make for one of the hardest-hitting songs on the record.

“Unforgiven” has a special, haunting quality about it. It’s the part where she’s directly addressing all the pain someone has caused her and refuses to apologise for her right to feel. “Sweet Sacrifice” is an anthem for all the times you’ve given too much and ended up with nothing to show for it. The opening is almost like a purring hiss before the bridge explodes into an agonising scream of reopened wounds. “Taking What You Want” has a different type of heaviness. It is punching, loud, and satisfying. “Medicate Me”, turns the sound down a notch, but it’s a different, quieter darkness. “Another Dose” is like a continuation of “Medicate Me”, this song is another go-round on the same spiral, a familiar heaviness and sense of helplessness when coming back to an old injury to find it just as open and weeping as it was the first time.

The structure of “Mind Splits In Two” is a bit off, in a way that’s fitting for the title. It almost has this upside-down effect when you start listening, like Sophia’s voice doesn’t know if it should hit soft or punch hard.
“Sank in the World”, eases back down a bit, and the tempo takes on a bit of an almost ominous quality. It’s never hopeless, but she is very much lost here. “Down” sounds like it was born screaming, fast-paced and heavy, all at once. Sophia’s vocals whip back and forth between pulling punches and lunging for throats. “Haunted” is the full stop at the end of a thought that just won’t stop bouncing around your mind in the middle of the night. “Ship of Shattered Dreams” is the perfect outro to a journey like this. Broken, alone, adrift in silence, it captures the experience of being dropped into the middle of an empty room with no hope and no path to follow. ‘Unforgiven’ is more than a album. It’s an act of expression. With Sophia voice and her sound, she’s built a space where strength comes from speaking out.

Follow Sophia Mengrosso on Spotify, Facebook, X, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. Also Visit her Official Website