MUSIC REVIEW: Metallica - Master of Puppets

"Proto-prog-metal milestone."

Master of Puppets illustrates why Metallica was one of the most important metal bands ever.

After giving birth to real thrash with Kill 'Em All, Metallica began refining their innovations with Ride the Lightning, which added a bit more maturity and compositional quality. Master of Puppets is a much larger step in the same direction, and had the band incorporating more progressive elements into their music. It'd be hard to count the metal bands doing half the pioneering things Metallica was doing.

The acoustic, quiet introduction to "Battery" explodes under an aggressive onslaught of hyperkinetic, muscular riffs and thick, heavy arrangements that characterize the entire album. That's not to say it's redundant, though. All eight songs are excellent, featuring enough variation of tempo and texture to ensure that they never get boring, which is crucial when some songs extend for eight minutes ("Master of Puppets," "Disposable Heroes," "Orion"). The result is like a thrash symphony of proto-prog-metal. Cripes, you could dissect the riffery of the title track and probably create half a dozen normal metal songs. That's part of Metallica's appeal: they cram a ton of ideas into their music, but all songs are perfectly crafted without the slightest sense of disjointed songwriting.

Speaking of the title track, it in particular sports a dynamic composition, where its middle section diminishes into a quieter, evocative guitar solo (one of the few played by Hetfield) before taking off all over again. "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" mirrors "Fade to Black" in its progression of intensity. It starts with haunting melodies, turning up the crunch for the chorus, then kicks into high gear with a weighty, fast riff and a glistening lead that carries the song to its vengeful apogee. Hetfield isn't quite a master lyricist, but for the first time in Metallica's career, the lyrics were insightful with effective diction. Note the telling and vitriolic "Disposable Heroes" or "Leper Messiah." Hetfield was never a great singer, but he was a good metal vocalist. Although his ferocity was tempered by youthful pipes, he still managed to convey the viciousness required of music so heavy, so furious.

And even when the band eschewed words and singing, they could impress. "Orion" is a marvel of metal songwriting, being an eight minute instrumental with precise, articulate solos (including a short-but-sweet one from the late bassist Cliff Burton) and big, chugging riffs. Most metal bands wrote instrumentals that were three or four minutes long...never eight. But Metallica did it, and they did it well enough to make songs like "Orion" and "To Live Is To Die" (from ...And Justice) among my favorite metal instrumentals.

Add my voice to the many, many fans who have rated this album five stars. If Master of Puppets isn't the best metal album ever, it's very very close.

MUSIC REVIEW: Nevermore - Dreaming Neon Black

"Bleak, fierce metal."

Nevermore clearly stands in an echelon above its peers in the metal wasteland. This is fierce, heavy stuff, but the band members also possess an important degree of genuine musicianship that other bands are sorely lacking. There is also a passionate vision looped around vocalist Warrel Dane's lyrical and musical ideas. The album's concept affirms this: it seems to be the story of a man losing his love to a cult of goofy mystics. Dane -- sounding like a blend of Matt Barlow (Iced Earth) and Geoff Tate (Queensryche), though not as good as either -- infuses the music with sincere feeling that comes through well, despite some overly emotive singing and some unsubtly pushy lyrics. Still, it's to Nevermore's credit that they capture any element of emotion with music so heavy. And it IS heavy, although songs like the title track and "Deconstruction" mix in softer acoustic moments for mood. The production raw and powerful, although it feels oppressively thick at times, which is unfortunate because it compromises some great vocal melodies from Dane. Songs like "Beyond Within" and "Poison Godmachine" are positively bloodthirsty, with devastating riffs and exciting leads. I liked the addition of female vocals on the title track. It wasn't her voice I liked, but the way she harmonized with Dane to heighten the atmosphere. Very nice. By all means check this out. Listen to some samples, and if you think you might like it, you probably will.

MUSIC REVIEW: Iron Maiden - Brave New World

"Iron Maiden's restitution."

It's been years since Iron Maiden has sounded so vibrant and creative. Brave New World is a fine achievement of quintessential heavy metal songwriting; a return to form for one of metal's preeminent bands. Maiden shows considerable growth here, but the energy captured on this record is nearly concordant with their zenith of intensity (I refer to albums like Piece of Mind and Powerslave). This is the album Maiden fans have awaited for years, ever since they began to lose their fervor with No Prayer for the Dying.

So, Blaze Bailey out, Bruce Dickinson in. A good trade, to say the least, but even better with the canny melodic sense and creativity of guitarist Adrian Smith, who also returns. This ups the line-up to three lead guitarists, which might sound excessive, but it's remarkable how well they make it work. The arrangements don't sound cluttered at all, and overall the band handles this approach intuitively. If anything, they should have explored more complex guitar harmonies than they did. The production is stunning and gritty, and succeeds and isolating and preserving the ineffably energy of Iron Maiden's music.

As always, Iron Maiden is defined by the impetus of heavy metal's intensity with a shrewd melodic awareness unique among metal bands. The difference is that the band shows considerable progression here. While there are cuts that just ooze the classic Maiden sound (like "Wicker Man," "The Mercenary," and "Fallen Angel"), while others explore the band's more ambitious tendencies. Shades of these inclinations have often been evident ("Rime of the Ancient Mariner," "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son," "Heaven Can Wait," for instance), but here the band delves into them farther. Behold the Middle Eastern influences of the epic "The Nomad," the mix of quiet and loud passages in "Thin Line Between Love and Hate," and the lush orchestrations of "Blood Brothers." So, while the band retains their classic feel, they also expand on this with rewarding results. Truly, they are one of the most sophisticated heavy metal bands ever. (Steve Harris does enjoy many progressive rock bands, you know.)

My only complaints are that the band sometimes protracted the songs unnecessarily. "Mercenary" and "Fallen Angel" are ok, save for the fact that they are too repetitive. "Dream of Mirrors" is, again, a great song, but it should have been 2 or 3 minutes shorter because a lot of it is needless repetition. I'm left thinking that the band was trying too hard to impress at times.

Still, despite these complaints, I can't deny that this truly is a recovery for Maiden. Good job boys. (Sweet cover art, too!) Now how about another solo album, Bruce?

GUEST MUSIC REVIEW: Queensryche albums, post-Promised Land

Submitted by: ASTRO CHIMP


Astro Chimp, one of Lord Chimp's allies in the fight for justice, has provided Lord Chimp's Revenge with a comprehensive overview of all Queensryche's albums since Promised Land, which we regard as their last really great album. So is everything since then as bad as some people say? The answer is: probably not! Read on to find out more.

___________



I little while back I kinda ripped on Queensrcyhe, and I think I want to moderate that opinion a bit. Now, Queensrcyhe was clearly at their best up to Promised Land. But I think that if one gets over expecting them to be a progressive metal band (which they only really were on a couple of albums anyway), and just take them as being a hard rock/metal band that will always keep you on your toes, then there's been some good stuff since. I'm going to take the time to go through their albums since Promised Land, since many people have not given them much attention due to a more-or-less knee-jerk reaction.

Hear in the Now Frontier




Ok, this one is not that great, There's a couple of songs on it that are nice ("Sign of the Times", "Some People Fly"), but mostly it's blah. And not because it's not metal (remember, I'm disposing of the metal requirement here), but just because it's not very inspired. Maybe there's a few other decent songs in there, but I can never get through it from start to finish (although I do like those songs I mentioned).

Q2K




Well, I know this one gets a bad rap as being "Q2Gay", but I actually dig a fair amount of it. There are some blah songs, and some bad lyrics (typically the ones where Geoff lusts after his wife, which reappears in uncomfortable fashion at times on Dedicated to Chaos), but songs like "Liquid Sky" and "Falling Down" are decent rockers, When the Rain Comes is quite wicked, and "Right Side of My Mind" is a bonafide QR classic. Maybe it's the rock fan in me, but Q2Gay is not all that gay. I do listen all the way through from time to time and enjoy myself.


Tribe




I actually dug this one a lot when it first came out, although now I find it a bit depressing. It has DeGarmo back on it (although he didn't rejoin as a member), and it has some cool songs...but like I said, it's got an overall dark vibe and production that rather than setting a mood gets rather depressing at times. Still, not bad. Not great, but not terrible.


Mindcrime II




This one is actually quite wicked. It has the exact same sound as the first one (they went to great lengths to get the same equipment and relearn tunings, etc...and they did a good job). The one thing that is not so good, especially considering how the original built and built and built to an amazing end...is that there is a substantial section after the middle part, or a few songs, that is just kinda blah...not much happens musically, and I'm not sure what is going on story wise. The disc ends decently, but its the first half that really kicks ass. "I'm American", "Hostage", "One Foot in Hell", "Signs Say Go"...all kickass straight up metal tunes that fit well in a MC sequel. It would be an decent album for old school QR, but it's pretty wicked for new QR. Worth a listen, and goes good back to back with the original. Cannot come close to that original Perfect Masterpiece, though.


American Soldier




Ok, this one is actually wicked. Not like their old stuff (not much in the way of solos and stuff), but it is just wicked. Concept story about the affect of war on people from the view of actual military members and their families (interspersed with actual interviews that the band made), the album claims no bias whatsoever and just lets the people tell their story. Really awesome stuff that totally maintains the spirit of QR from the day, if not the sound. I think this on is really really good, even though it took me years to get around to picking it up.


Dedicated to Chaos






A strange one. The band is afflicted by some wish to be popular again, and is falling into the trap of saying 'people just listen to their iPods on shuffle, so there's no need to make a structured album' and 'groups like Lady Gaga are huge these days, which rely on rhythm rather than guitar riffs and solos, etc...', so that's the approach that we need to try (these are paraphrases, but are admissions that the band made on numerous occasions). There are actually some good songs on it. Get Started is a decent rocker to open up, even if the lyrics are a bit lame, Around the World is actually a sweet ballad that reflects the Beatles calls of "All you need is love" that is actually quite moving, and album closers "The Lie" and "Big Noize" have that QR spirit. And the album sounds great (really nice production). But most of he rest of the songs are kinda blah (I don't claim to know the middle songs very well yet), and some of the songs go back into the Geoff-trap of drooling over his wife...which is just awkward. Nothing wrong with being turned on by your wife...but man, keep it out of the lyrics, dude. Yeesh. I break this disc out every now and then, but its a case of tune in to the good stuff, tune out during most of it.

They're already working on their new one (prolific!), so hopefully Wilton has his way and they put guitar melodies and riffs back in...it doesn't have to be metal, just more inspired and less lame lyrics! There's so much fucked in the world now, socially and politically, that this should be QRs time to shine!!!

So yeah, as a rock fan I don't mind Q2K, MC2 is pretty wicked for about half of it, and I actually dig American Soldier a lot. Maybe also because I come from a family with lots of military service, my wife is in the military, I have a strong interest in military history, and have long considered joining (I know, that clashes hard with libertarian views...what can I say), but I don't think so...it's just a really cool album.

Anyway, thanks for reading my thoughts! Love QR.

MUSIC REVIEW: Iron Maiden - Live After Death

"Live heavy metal at its finest."

A live recording cannot capture the intensity of a heavy metal concert. Comparatively speaking, however, Live After Death does it better than any other live metal album. The raw sound quality belies the fact that this album was recorded in the mid-80s (it sounds better than 99% of all modern live metal recordings). Even better though, is the fact that this concert comes from a time when Iron Maiden, the quintessential metal band, was young and full of energy. I wasn't there, but I can tell that this show was a blast.

Song selection is perfect, encapsulating most of the band's best songs from their preceding studio albums, and each one is impeccably performed, often with greater intensity than the studio counterparts. The mini-epic "Powerslave" definitely gains something special when the crowd screams at Bruce's stylish entry. "Hallowed Be Thy Name"'s tempo is jacked up a bit and the song gains more intensity as a result. This version of "The Trooper" makes the studio version seem tepid in comparison. Then there's "Phantom of the Opera," which is simply incredible with Bruce's sinister intonations.

It's awesome. If you don't buy it, you suck.

Bruce Dickinson - Accident of Birth

"Bruce in top form; heavy metal done brilliantly."

Accident of Birth perfectly encapsulates everything that heavy metal should be. Fine musicianship, soaring vocal deliveries, fervent aggression, and enthusiastic performances brimming with intensity. The follow-up to "Tattooed Millionaire" and "Balls to Picasso," AoB is more of an overtly fiery metal album, with better, more intense arrangements yielding stronger results on the whole. TM and BtP were good, but more in the vein of hard rock sensibilities and not exactly what one expects from Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson. I find AoB's musical approach more interesting and better in the end.

Bruce's panache for writing brilliant lyrics based on mythological tales and historical elements are intact here. More importantly, Bruce's phenomenal vocals are better than ever. They retain the utmost intensity of his finest days with Maiden but have developed considerably, becoming more visceral and husky. Songs are gritty and harrowing, and this album shows that Bruce's songwriting was clearly on a roll. Over the course of an hour, this album covers plenty of ground. "Darkside of Aquarius" is a classic the likes of which Maiden wishes they could have done in their time without Bruce. "Taking the Queen" is a chilling, slow heavy song that is incredibly evocative. "Man of Sorrows" is like a power ballad about Aleister Crowley. "Road to Hell" is a catchy, fast-tempo cut. The album ends with the beautiful elegy "Arc of Space," with nylon string guitar, violin, and cello, a touching song from an artist you wouldn't expect to write something like this. And that's just the beginning, because all the other songs are good too. But it's wonderful. Bruce's reunion with Adrian Smith was definitely a good choice. Smith adds an important melodic element that makes the songs so much better.

A great album; it really shows you how good heavy metal can be.

Bruce Dickinson - The Chemical Wedding

"A work of genius."

While Iron Maiden was facing with mixed results with their non-Bruce albums, Bruce Dickinson was enjoying a lucrative solo career that proved proved he was not only a tremendous heavy metal vocalist, but a solid songwriter as well. That said, Chemical Wedding is undoubtedly the peak of his solo career. Furthermore, it is arguably better than anything he did with Maiden as well. I love Maiden, so I don't say this lightly. Bruce's vocals have matured considerably over the years, and have reached a more dynamic quality while not sacrificing his youthful intensity. Lyrically, the album is an evocative, thought-provoking concept album that proves to be incredibly rewarding once its theme is revealed. [Chimp Note: This is actually not officially a concept album, but I find it hard to interpret it to be anything else.]

By comparison, this album is heavier sonically than any of Bruce's other work or any of Iron Maiden's discs. This was clearly a conscious decision as they customized their guitars to make this album heavy as hell. You won't hear a guitar tone like this elsewhere, and that gives the album a dirty, gritty quality that has no comparison. Roy Z and Adrian Smith are one hell of a duo, and if Bruce's vocals weren't so dazzling, they'd steal the show. Clean solos slice through the mix, and poignant riffs are ceaselessly launched at the listener in wave after wave of heavy melody. Guitar interplay weaves and merges in an engaging manner, made all the more enjoyable by the clean, heavy production.

But while the guitars are excellent, they never take focus away from Bruce. Never before has his adopted a broader sense of dynamics as with this album. Listen to the sinister verses in "Book of Thel", or the soaring octaves in the chorus of "Trumpets of Jericho", or the constantly shifting dynamics of "The Alchemist." As always, the vocals are etched with Bruce's trademark intensity and vigor. Over the years, Bruce's voice has been refined to an ideal timber, and in my opinion he sounds better than ever. He is more than the heavy metal "air raid siren" -- he is a well-rounded vocalist.

As for my interpretation of the whole "concept that is not a concept": The album is a (non-story) concept album that deals with man's relationship with God (at least that's my interpretation of it). Ultimately, the meaning of the lyrics are one of the album's best points, but less lyric-oriented listeners will enjoy the lyrics from a superficial level as well (stuff about the devil, mythology, religious stories, etc. -- all the stuff that makes for good metal lyrics). Still, understanding the lyrics is an important, rewarding part of this disc, so I encourage all listeners to think about it for a while. (To understand what Bruce was trying to say, only the relationship between tracks 1, 2, 3, 9, and 10 must be understood.) The only problem with this album is that the chorus of "Killing Floor" is kinda of annoying sometimes. But it's a minor complaint, as I enjoy the rest of the song.

I regard this as one of the best metal albums of the 90s. Even this year's hailed and laudable Maiden album "Brave New World" (which I enjoy) has nothing on the power, originality, and brilliance of The Chemical Wedding. I encourage any heavy metal fan to pick this one up.

Queensryche - The Warning

"Smart metal."

Okay, so The Warning is easy to overlook when you compare it to Queensryche's next few releases. But it is still a great album that does not deserve to be completely overshadowed by subsequent releases. There's no denying that there's some great material here. It is the band's first full album (their first release being an EP), and for the most part it retains the feel of their first album, i.e. heavy metal with a soaring vocalist. The difference is there are a few progressive elements tossed in here and there. Not enough to call Queensryche a straight-up prog metal band, but enough to make it more interesting than the music of the EP and a lot of other ho-hum metal that was around at the time.

In a lot of ways, The Warning is not too different from all the other above-average heavy metal that came out in the 80s (barring those proggy touches). But there were differences. Most notably was the Geoff Tate, the band's incredible vocalist, the uncontested god of the metal tenor! His unmatched mastery of high ranges was absolutely amazing, and even more so because it comes across with such striking effortlessness that I'm still impressed every time I give this disc a spin. Tate's voice isn't quite as dynamic as on the band's later releases (I'd say his vocal delivery peaked with Mindcrime and Empire), but at this point he suited the straightforward metal exceedingly well. Tate is one of the crucial elements of Queensryche's incredible powerful delivery. His soaring but not overwrought vocals lend considerable intensity and empathy to the music. Of course, there are also the aforementioned pinches of progressive music, like interesting melody changes, segmented songs, and the like.

The music is good, with weaving guitar interplay and acute melodic solos. The band didn't have the atmosphere nor the 'darker' feel of later albums, but that didn't stop them from writing good music. The epic opus "Roads to Madness" is a monster of a song, and it remains one of the best in their catalogue, with its insightful lyrics, ambient guitar work, an engaging melody/tempo shift near the end, and dynamic orchestration courtesy prolific composer Michael Kamen. "Take Hold of the Flame" is an incredible song of inspiration. It is also one of Tate's best songs from a vocal perspective (that chorus!). Just listening makes you want to raise your fist to the air. There's plenty of other good material, like "No Santuary", "N M 156", and the title track, but on the whole the music isn't a consistently excellent as their superior releases, and this is what keeps it from getting five stars. None of the songs are bad, mind you, but the overall level of quality just isn't up there with the best the band offers, if you know what I mean. Nonetheless, its highlights make it essential.

Conception - In Your Multitude

"NORWAY'S FINEST EXPORT."

Conception's incredible album Flow blew me away, so naturally the next step was getting the rest of their catalogue. Compared to Flow, In Your Multitude is heavier sonically but lighter in terms of song diversity, and I don't like it as much overall, but insofar as metal band is concerned, you rarely find music this good.

The band draws from a variety of influences. However, this is not balls-to-the-wall prog metal...it's metal with a progressive flavor. Guitarist Tore Ostby's technique is heavy, fast and clean, although the agressive riffs sometimes take a backseat to more florid pieces. If you'd only heard Flow before this, the opener "Under a Mourning Star" will knock you on your ass. It's so heavy! Other songs run the aural gamut, from beautiful acoustic and classical guitar solos to vicious, fast searing guitar riffs, to slow, heavy grinds. The drummer? Topnotch...he's true percussionist. The bassist is very tight; sometimes the songs leave him to establish the rhythm and he fares very well. The most notable aspect of Conception is their vocalist Roy S. Khan. In a world where most European metal singers plague their music with overbearing accents and terrible pronunciation, Khan stands head and shoulders above his peers. His accent is prominent, but it never compromises his pronunciation...it actually complements his sound. His unique sound is decidedly refreshing, and his emotional power -- combined with his excellent lyrics -- are superlative. Oh yeah, those lyrics...they're good, really good. The band examines interesting themes, like the lugubrious "Santuary" or the insightful "A Million Gods." Good stuff...it proves that "metal" and "intelligence" can exist in the same sentence.

Get all of Conception's CDs...they f'ing RULE. The band's catalogue also includes The Last Sunset, which is their eclectic debut. If you like these guys its worth picking up. As well as their second album, Parallel Minds. Problem is I think all these albums are out of print. Too bad. Good luck getting your hands on this awesome music.

Queensryche - Queensryche [ep]

"Essential for a 'Ryche fan."

If you're not terribly excited by Queensryche, this isn't for you. It's just not awesome enough to win any converts, I think. But for fans it is a must-have. With their EP, Queensryche was initially placed amongst the legions of heavy metal bands thought they would later break the shackles of convention with more challenging releases. Although the EP is mostly straightforward metal, it's solid stuff. Geoff Tate's vocals are totally overwrought but he's one hell of a singer. His command of high octaves is unmatched, and his pronunciation is impeccable despite the pitch. The music is pretty standard fare, but the energy with which it is delivered is purely frenetic.

It's poorly produced, it only has five songs, and it's fairly standard as far as metal goes. So why would you -- as a fan -- want this? Three reasons:

- "Queen of the Reich" is sort of like the band's anthem. The lyrics are amusingly cheesy (think Iron Maiden), but the song is an awesome rocker with an unforgettable main riff and a brilliant performance from Tate.

- "The Lady Wore Black" is a great 'power ballad' rocker, affixed with lyrics that tell an interesting story with evocative music.

- "Prophecy" is a song taken from the sessions while recording Rage For Order. I don't know why it wasn't put on that album, but regardless...it's available here. Without this song (which is rather good, by the way) Rage For Order doesn't seem complete.

(The other songs are ok, but you could live without them.)

Like I said...fans - get it.

Queensryche - Rage for Order

"Cyberpunk Metal - One of the 'Ryche's best."

Before Rage For Order, there was little that markedly separated Queensryche from its peers. Their self-titled LP and The Warning were mostly pretty straightforward metal releases. Good metal, of course, but metal one way or another. Sure, they were great musicians, great songwriters, and frontman Geoff Tate was one of the best male vocalists around, but still, in a lot of ways, they were just another metal band. But that changed with Rage For Order. Suddenly, the progressive touches of The Warning became more prominent, and the band's budding maturity was right on course. Queensryche was one of the pioneers of progmetal (though they were never progmetal themselves) and this shows it more than before. It also shows that being progressive is about exploring new ideas and sounds, not necessarily rockin' the odd-time signatures and whatnot.

In a way, the album is cyber-punk-metal stuff, with the evident themes in the lyrics, but in spite of the inherent cliche it never becomes lame. The music is kind of futuristic sounding, and maybe they were watching Blade Runner or something while writing some of these songs. Some 80's cheese rears its head from time to time, but it's not overbearing enough that it becomes deleterious to the music. Rage For Order was obviously looked at from an album perspective as opposed to a "song" standpoint, and this gave the band room to experiment with different sounds, from the darkly beautiful "I Will Remember" to the heavy, hard-edged anthem "Chemical Youth".

Here, Geoff Tate's vocals have expanded beyond the Dickinson-esque wail to better utilize his tremendous range. He hadn't quite reached the same level of dynamics attained in Operation Mindcrime or Empire but it was enough to put him head and shoulders above his peers. The DeGarmo-Wilton guitar duo is genuinely impressive. Their brilliant, weaving interplay made them one of the best duos in heavy metal, and their solos were more than just stylistic requisites...they actually served as heights of intensity for the songs.

The production is super-dated (the engineer was some kind of crank I bet) but solid musicianship and writing alleviate any sense of thinking the album is all that dated. It remains one of Queensryche's best albums.

Conception - Flow

Phenomenal Songwriting

I'm sure many Conception fans gave this album one spin and screamed, "They sold out!" Leading up to this release, Conception had been a _heavy_ metal band with some progressive qualities and an outstanding vocalist. So it may have shocked from longtime fans to hear Flow's opening track, "Gethsemane" (which means "a place of suffering"). Instead of the typical fast, fierce & crunchy opener, Flow begins subtle. A mid-tempo riff, ethereal synthesizers, quiet verses, and a soaring chorus.

On the whole, Flow is less heavy than its predecessors, but at the same time the Ostby/Khan writing core has improved tenfold over previous albums. Although many refer to them as a "prog-metal" band, they don't really have many of those qualities. However, the diversity from song to song has increased a great deal, which keeps the album markedly fresh: the industrial inflections of "Reach Out"; the Soundgarden-like "Tell Me When I'm Gone"; the emotional and slow-building power ballad "Cry."

Flow seems less about being metal and just writing great songs. There's no doubt that it is metal, but this isn't the threatening, aggressive sort of music the band was formerly known for. Ostby's outstanding solos are short, sweet and melodic. "Cardinal Sin," its heavy main riff a trumpet-like blare, sports a hook-laden chorus and rapid-fire percussion. A song like this would actually be popular on the radio, I think. The gorgeous ballad "Hold On" is quiet, just violin, harpsichord (I think), and Khan's incredible voice. And what a voice! Definitely one of the best singers in metal, his unique low timbre, Norwegien accent, and phrasing made him possibly the most distinctive part of Conception's sound. (Conception is no more, but Khan has recently joined the melodic power metal outfit Kamelot, improving that band by a ridiculous level thanks to his songwriting skills and voice.)

It's sad that talent like this goes unrecognized. Conception broke up after recording Flow, and the bandmembers left to pursue different avenues to demonstrate their ability. As I mentioned, Khan joined with Kamelot, and Tore Ostby has formed a new band called Ark. Both are excellent, but I do miss Conception. This is one of the most perfect albums I've heard, where production and songwriting unite for absolute greatness.

Metallica - S&M

Metallica's 'greatest hits' with a symphony is a mixed bag.

I like most of a lot of Metallica songs and I think S&M is an interesting twist on the Greatest Hits/live album concept. Bolstering their powerful music with the addition of a full orchestra serves to make their music even more intense...at least sometimes. I love classical music as well as metal, so this album was instantly very intriguing to me. I was blown away the first time I heard it, and as I devoted more time to discovering the vast plethora of intricate orchestral adjuncts, my enjoyment soared.

But I must say that, like most Metallica fans, I enjoyed their pre-Black Album days more than anything they've released with producer Bob Rock. Bob Rock sucks for Metallica, that's a fact. Their music was toned down and simplified with the Black Album (as well as with the subsequent Load and Reload), which is -- inadvertently -- the problem with S&M. The orchestra does a beautiful job complementing Metallica's older songs. Songs like "Master of Puppets", "Call of Ktulu", "One", and "For Whom The Bell Tolls" work exceptionally well, because the lush soundscapes of the orchestra effectively bolster the musical complexity of these songs. Those songs were kind of proto-progressive metal; they were at least a little 'symphonic' in the first place. However, tracks like "Fuel" and "The Memory Remains" are boring plods that gain nothing with a symphonic contribution. Battery, a great thrash song, just doesn't work with strings and brass clashing with the thrash.

The two new songs, "No Leaf Clover" and "- Human" are a mixed bag too. "No Leaf Clover" is an above-average piece, primarily because of the incredible string arrangements, but it feels otherwise uninspired. "- Human" seems completely out of place with an orchestra, and I wonder what it would be like without it. Actually, I don't even really care because that song is pretty lame.

Song choice is also a problem, I think. While I can understand wanting to choose songs that were accessible to Metallica's newer fans, the overall album would have been better with more tracks from the bands glory days. ...And Justice For All got screwed big time...only one song? Granted, that song is one of the band's best ("One") but I would have loved to hear that album's title track here. I think Metallica just hates that album because they got lazy and the songs are long. Lars used to whine in all the interviews about how tired he would get playing AJFA songs. "Kill 'Em All" didn't get a single song. This is mostly understandable, but I could really see "The Four Horsemen" being played here. I think a more even selection of songs would have been appropriate.

In the end, despite the faults I've pointed out, S&M's merits overshadow its flaws. The production is excellent, Hetfield sings like never before, and the sheer amount of work that went into this show is purely commendable. If your a longtime Metallica fan or a newbie wondering where to start with one of the industry's most definitive metal bands, get S&M.

Queensryche - Operation: Mindcrime

"A marvel of heavy metal and storytelling."

Despite being an inconspicuous pioneer of the progressive metal genre, Queensryche delivers a clear-cut, albeit highly sophisticated, heavy metal with commercial appeal with Operation: Mindcrime, arguably their finest album to date. Taking their lyrical ambition several steps beyond previous works, Operation: Mindcrime is a concept album telling the story of a cynical, idealistic man named Nikki who joins a zealous left-wing organization set on assassinating political and religious deadbeats. Tragic romance, drug addiction, betrayal, and insanity are all elements of this great story. Anchored to some of the 'Ryche's best songwriting, music and story amalgamate into a truly memorable album.

Perhaps the reason O:M is such an excellent piece of work is its emotional redolence. We shouldn't feel sorry for Nikki in his situation (he's not really a nice guy, after all), but we do because of the story's closed system. Since all the characters are scumbags (especially the lowlife hypocrite of a priest), Nikki wins our sympathy just because he's trapped in a nightmare from which he cannot escape, and he's among the least vile of the characters. It also helps that vocalist Geoff Tate sings with a passion heightened by his inhuman vocal ability. His mastery of upper ranges is matched by few, if any, and he delivers the narrative lyrics with conviction and intensity. Definitely one of the greatest vocal performances ever put to a metal record.

The story's conveyances score high marks for great metal songwriting. Songs are concise, aggressive, and every one is worthwhile. The band scored some lucrative singles with "I Don't Believe In Love," lyrically cheerless but musically exhilarating, and the stunning "Eyes of a Stranger," the captivating rocker that serves as the story's terrific coda, as well as carrying overtones for a broader thematic matter. More ambitious songs also make an impression, especially with Michael Kamen's fabulous orchestrations. The timorous overture to "Suite Sister Mary" leads into a lush 10-minute track combining chanting choirs, intense guitar lines, and brilliant character interaction between Nikki (Tate) and Mary (Pamela Moore), sung of course. The only thing that would have made this song tastier is some harmonization between Tate and Moore, which would have sounded great, but let's not get picky. "The Mission" is one of the most underrated songs the band ever wrote, yet concurrently one of the best, with powerful lyrics, arrangements, and emotionally striking solos.

After this, Queensryche released Empire and Promised Land, an outstanding commercial hard rock album. The work that followed these was notably weaker, and it's doubtful that the band will ever again hit the peak of songwriting found here and on their next release. Mindcrime are both worthy additions to your collection if you want some of the best metal and hard rock out there.

Symphony X - Symphony X

"Everything starts somewhere..."

This album marks the humble roots of one of today's leading progressive metal bands. But you wouldn't see their potential judging them solely according to this release. Guitarist Michael Romeo's talent is astonishing, with the best neoclassical leads since this side of Malmsteen. Aside from the occasional great song, this album is mostly weak. Three things are responsible:
(a) Rod Tyler can't sing, and he can't even compensate for lack of skill with a cool sounding voice. He was ditched for the next album, where the mighty metal vocalist Russell Allen would step in.

(b) The production is _really_ bad. The next album's production is pretty weak too, but this is just rotten. The band themselves say it sounds like a demo. Since the production can't underscore the band's fervor, the good songwriting present is basically unappreciable.

(c) Some of the songwriting is just _wild_. But not the fun kind of wild that you see with Liquid Tension Experiment (I hate to compare, but I had to)... this is just wild in a weird way. It's sort of like what happens when a band tries to cram too many ideas into their music and it just sounds messed up.

But if you're a Symphony X fan, it's good to have this in the collection, because there's some good moments.

Iron Maiden - Seventh Son of a Seventh Son

"One of Maiden's Best"


This is barely a review, it was motivated by FOOLS who seem to target this album for the "crime" of using SYNTHS! I honestly don't know how anyone that appreciates good classic metal can cut down this album. It's firmly situated in the upper-echelon of Maiden's catalogue. The song writing is incredibly strong. People dismissing the lyrics as corny are missing the point entirely. This is a CONCEPT ALBUM... and it's MAIDEN. What kind of lyrical material were you expecting? It's trying to tell a story, Maiden-style, but too many pabulum-fed fools can't understand this. Maiden has never been about delivering astonishingly deep music with reams of depth and relevence to world issues or anything...it's about cheap-thrill metal that sounds great. As always, Bruce's urgent vocals are incredible and are sung with his ineffable intensity. Being a Maiden album, the music is awesome and intricately layered, with their powerful signature riffs and mind-bending solos. People complaining about synthed music are simply ignoring what this album is about...the use of synthed audio adds to the drama and the power of the story. It doesn't detract from the music in ANY way, but it isn't thoughtless either. Unfortunately, certain mindless people can't accept diversity and effect if it offends the sensibilities of THEIR ideal image for Maiden. Every song on 7th Son is excellent...some parts are slow, some are fast, but all are powerful. This is quite possibly the pinnacle of the band's albums.