16. die ärzte – 13 (1998)As I already mentioned in my review of Geräusch, die ärzte are masters in meshing certain musical styles with each other and inject a sense of humour into them that is right up my alley, and there is no album where they were more successful with this than on 13. And while I praised Geräusch a lot already, there is a certain thing missing on it that you don’t even notice until you directly compare it with this album, and that is the perfect mesh of serious issues and humour, not only on the album, but in the songs themselves. Whereas on Geräusch you almost had the strict separation of serious and funny songs, the band manages to fill this album with songs that contain the best of both worlds.
Of course, there are still the odd completely serious song (Rebell) or those that completely consist of goofing off (Meine Freunde), but the majority of the songs succeed mainly because they successfully blend humour with content that actually bears thinking about, and they do so in a way that the humour doesn’t detract from, but rather adds to the song, like in Goldenes Handwerk, Nie Wieder Krieg, Nie Mehr Las Vegas, Männer sind Schweine or Grotesksong.
Even though this might seem like a contradiction to what I just said, the songs that I actually enjoy most individually are the more serious ones, like Rebell and Nie gesagt, but an album comprised solely of these songs wouldn’t work nearly as well as this album does, by providing the perfect balance between the two aspects of the musical identity of die ärzte.
Once again, the music itself is, at its base, rock, but with many influences thrown in here and there, be it jazz (Punk ist…), metal (Ignorama, Grau) and even some electronic elements (Männer sind Schweine). Still, compared to other albums, there is noticeably less musical diversity on this album, yet the album never feels boring (though that is largely because of the lyrics, so I suspect that someone who doesn’t understand German will get bored rather quickly).
13 really represents the musical peak of die ärzte, both lyrically and musically, a peak that they had been climbing up toward since their reunion in 1993, and one that they have, and will probably never reach again. One of the best German rock albums that I know.
Recommended tracks: Nie Wieder Krieg, Nie Mehr Las Vegas, Rebell, Der Graf, Nie gesagt, Grotesksong
15. Symphony X – The Damnation Game (1995)Both Symphony X’s first two and last two albums have been subject of heavy criticism, and even though I enjoy every album that the band has put out, I can understand where the critics are coming from when talking about the debut (bad production and a somewhat awkward-sounding singer), Paradise Lost and Iconoclast (too samey in sound throughout, as well a very one-dimensional Russell Allen). With The Damnation Game, however, the criticism leaves me honestly baffled, because this album is nothing less than one of the best albums that Symphony X have ever released.
The neoclassical influences of the band are very prevalent here, with The Damnation Game and Dressed to Kill being perfect examples of this, mainly through the use of the harpsichord for melodies, solos and unisons, which, coupled with the melodies used, gives the whole thing a rather baroque feel to it. However, even though many people find it annoying and cheesy, I have always, when done tastefully, enjoyed things like this a lot, so you’ll find no complaint from me here.
One thing in particular that stands out on this album, in comparison to other Symphony X albums, is the creativity and versatility of the bass guitar, courtesy of Thomas Miller, on this album in a way that only The Divine Wings of Tragedy can match (the production on the debut is too shoddy to be able to clearly say something about the basslines there). At many times (certainly more often than on other metal songs), Romeo and Pinella let Miller take the stage and impress us with his short and yet jaw-dropping bass leads, as can be heard on The Edge of Forever, for instance.
The rest of the musicians show that they are some of the best in their fields as well on this album, with especially Romeo’s and Pinella’s work as they trade off melodies and leads being nothing short of amazing. Especially Romeo’s guitar tone on this album is something to behold, clear and majestic as opposed to the almost synthesizer-like sound of recent records.
And lastly, we have Sir Russell Allen on the vocals, and this man is truly a beast. This album is his debut with Symphony X and he could not have made a better first impression. From his first appearance in the title track to the last moments of A Winter’s Dream, Allen’s performance on this album is flawless, showing him to be superior to previous singer Rod Tyler (who wasn’t a bad singer by all means himself) in all aspects.
This album probably isn’t the best place for a Symphony X novice to start – that honour goes to Twilight in Olympus or The Divine Wings of Tragedy – and just how great this album only revealed itself to me after many listens, but when it does click, it is definitely worth it.
Also, this album is proof that many of the best things of humanity come from 1995.
Recommended tracks: Dressed to Kill, The Edge of Forever, Whispers, Secrets, A Winter’s Dream