Nuclear Blast
2010
1. The Wicked Symphony
2. Wastelands
3. Scales Of Justice
4. Dying For An Angel
5. Blizzard On A Broken Mirror
6. Runaway Train
7. Crestfallen
8. Forever Is A Long Time
9. Black Wings
10. States Of Matter
11. The Edge
Going into this one I've gotta say my expectations were pretty low. The last Avantasia album was far from there best effort and featured a couple songs which stimulated the ol gag reflex. That being said, I liked the other couple they've done so I figured I'd give this a shot.
Not in a million years did I expect an album this good. Not at all. With the way Tobias Sammet has been headed musically with Edguy and Avantasia and some of the poppy shite that was creeping in I really didn't expect another great album from Sammet. Really I had just about given up hope, but apparently hope is not lost for this guy. This album is simply put, awesome. Great catchy power metal with a lot of epic punch to the music. Unlike the last album this never really gos into light and poppy. Sure the production is still slick with the songs being easily digestable, catchy, and seemingly aimed at making singles, but this is damn solid. I mean the catchy riffing of Dying For An Angel and the big chorus are surely made for single play, but this is the kind of polished style I like. Damn is this song addictive and I'm not even really a Scorpions/Klaus Meine fan. Then you have a track like Scales Of Justice with Tim Owens wailing to some fine heavy power metal. Tim Owens and Tobias Sammet actually strike a pretty damn good balance between their respective vocal abilities. Owens brings the heaviness and Tobias Sammet brings some nice melody to the mix. All the vocal talent here is top notch in fact and features names such as Russell Allen, Jorn Lande, Michael Kiske, Andre Matos, and more. Every vocalist seems to bring a really nice feel to the music too as if the songs Really were made for them.
Musically this is not as symphonic as the band started but there still is a really larger than life feel here I think. Maybe more of a power metal opera than a symphonic metal opera so to speak. There are still some symphonic touches, but more subtle ones. Nothing wrong with this approach and this album reminds me why I have loved Tobias Sammet in the past. Talk about a bounce back for me from the last album. Totally recommended to any fans of power metal. Between the vocal talent and the extremely good songwriting you can't go wrong with this one.
Highlights: Dying For An Angel, Scales Of Justice, Blizzard On A Broken Mirror, The Wicked Symphony
Rating - 4.5/5
2. Wastelands
3. Scales Of Justice
4. Dying For An Angel
5. Blizzard On A Broken Mirror
6. Runaway Train
7. Crestfallen
8. Forever Is A Long Time
9. Black Wings
10. States Of Matter
11. The Edge
Going into this one I've gotta say my expectations were pretty low. The last Avantasia album was far from there best effort and featured a couple songs which stimulated the ol gag reflex. That being said, I liked the other couple they've done so I figured I'd give this a shot.
Not in a million years did I expect an album this good. Not at all. With the way Tobias Sammet has been headed musically with Edguy and Avantasia and some of the poppy shite that was creeping in I really didn't expect another great album from Sammet. Really I had just about given up hope, but apparently hope is not lost for this guy. This album is simply put, awesome. Great catchy power metal with a lot of epic punch to the music. Unlike the last album this never really gos into light and poppy. Sure the production is still slick with the songs being easily digestable, catchy, and seemingly aimed at making singles, but this is damn solid. I mean the catchy riffing of Dying For An Angel and the big chorus are surely made for single play, but this is the kind of polished style I like. Damn is this song addictive and I'm not even really a Scorpions/Klaus Meine fan. Then you have a track like Scales Of Justice with Tim Owens wailing to some fine heavy power metal. Tim Owens and Tobias Sammet actually strike a pretty damn good balance between their respective vocal abilities. Owens brings the heaviness and Tobias Sammet brings some nice melody to the mix. All the vocal talent here is top notch in fact and features names such as Russell Allen, Jorn Lande, Michael Kiske, Andre Matos, and more. Every vocalist seems to bring a really nice feel to the music too as if the songs Really were made for them.
Musically this is not as symphonic as the band started but there still is a really larger than life feel here I think. Maybe more of a power metal opera than a symphonic metal opera so to speak. There are still some symphonic touches, but more subtle ones. Nothing wrong with this approach and this album reminds me why I have loved Tobias Sammet in the past. Talk about a bounce back for me from the last album. Totally recommended to any fans of power metal. Between the vocal talent and the extremely good songwriting you can't go wrong with this one.
Highlights: Dying For An Angel, Scales Of Justice, Blizzard On A Broken Mirror, The Wicked Symphony
Rating - 4.5/5
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