33.
SONATA ARCTICA
THE DAYS OF GRAYSProgressive Power Metalreleased September 18th, 2009
via Nuclear Blast
1. Everything Fades to Gray
(instrumental) [3:07]
2. Deathaura [7:59]
3. The Last Amazing Grays [5:40]
4. Flag in the Ground [4:09]
5. Breathing [3:55]
6. Zeroes [4:24]
7. The Dead Skin [6:15]
8. Juliet [5:59]
9. No Dream Can Heal A Broken Heart [4:33]
10. As If the World Wasn’t Ending [3:49]
11. The Truth Is Out There [5:04]
12. Everything Fades to Gray
(full version) [4:30]
13. In the Dark [5:24]*
*bonus track on my physical copy, digipak versionTHE DAYS OF GRAYS is
Tony Kakko (Vocals / Additional keyboards)
Marko Paasikoski (Bass)
Henrik Klingenberg (Keyboards)
Elias Viljanen (Guitars)
Tommy Portimo (Drums)
WITHPerttu Kivilaasko (Cello on 1, 6, 11)
Johanna Kurkela (Vocals on 2, 9)
This album released at a pivotal time in my life, a few months after I graduated high school. I picked up a girl on the way to go see Sonata open for Dragonforce, because we were both at an Edguy show a couple weeks before that and realized that on the Edguy message board. I had a bootleg copy of the new Sonata album and played it on the way to Chicago; I bought a real copy of the CD for each of us after the show. Then we dated for 2 years. How cute! *barf*
There are really only two power metal songs on this album. “The Last Amazing Grays” is a modern, sleek take on power metal, half a ballad full of metaphors about wolves and the next generation of people taking over and half a sweeping orchestral romp reminiscent of Nightwish. “Flag in the Ground” is just a rework of an ancient Sonata demo from their earliest days, and it’s okay, but fairly uninspired and generic. They are not the stars of this album because Tony Kakko’s heart stopped being in the speedy power metal game years before this album.
Instead, the real gems of this album are the ones that contain obvious passion from Tony Kakko, the ones full of interesting, dramatic lyrics that tell a story. “Deathaura” is a dark and mighty progressive, symphonic epic about a woman accused of witchcraft and the man who falls in love with her. “Zeroes” is a dirty rocker with some biting sociopolitical commentary and interesting lyrics. “The Dead Skin” is about an irreparably damaged relationship with some stinging words. “Juliet” is the next chapter of the Caleb saga, about a woman and her stalker. The album is bookended by the “Everything Fades to Gray” intro and reprise. From start to finish the album is bleak and depressing, full of songs about love and heartache and all sorts of other negative emotions. Tony Kakko has said he writes a lot of his music from the point of view of other people, but he really digs into their emotions when he writes his lyrics. Rapid-fire verses are augmented with Queen-like layers of harmonized backing vocals and add even more density to an already dense record.
I’m aware of the other bonus tracks, but my version specifically has “In The Dark” – and this is one of my favorite songs ever, not just for Sonata, but in general. I love the cool, nighttime vibe it has, the emphasis on piano, and that gorgeous a capella ending with the name of the song in the lyrics. It has some of my favorite Tony Kakko lyrics and reminds me of a really good time in my life. It’s cornier than the Illinois countryside but it’s true!
In Summary: It’s darkly sweet, and barely power metal, and at times the orchestrations are reminiscent of modern Nightwish. It’s a radical departure from speedy power metal and to me that is only a good thing. There are a thousand bands that sound like old Sonata Arctica, but almost none that sound like Sonata does on this record. Tony Kakko’s lyrics are my favorite thing about this album (he's arguably my favorite lyricist) and a big reason in picking my favorites, but songs like “Deathaura” have some bizarre songwriting choices (the song goes through several drastic mood and meter changes, and early on has the drums and vocals playing two different meters at the same time) which make it interesting to hear many times. Prog fans (and fans of bother darker songwriting and heartwrenching ballads) should listen to this, pure (power) metal fans should approach with caution.
Katt’s Favorites: Deathaura,
Zeroes,
The Dead Skin,
No Dream Can Heal A Broken Heart,
In The DarkListen to "The Days of Grays" by Sonata Arctica on Spotify