 Tristania stood apart from the others with their use of three distinct vocal styles in the "operatic soprano Vibeke Stene, clean-singing counter-tenor Østen Bergøy, and harsh, black metal-style shrieker Morten Veland".Their second album "Beyond the Veil" in 1999 made use of a ten members choir and featured violin passages from Pete Johansen of The Sins of Thy Beloved, earning "rave reviews" across Europe.By then, the band had risen to "the top of the goth metal heap" with their "lush, symphonically enhanced" approach.