Author Topic: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. I bless the rains down in Africa [#1]  (Read 66846 times)

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Offline cramx3

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Nightwish, Kamelot, BG... yeah, a few are successful here. Edit: Gloryhammer and Sabaton are huge too

Gloryhammer are starting to get a lot bigger. 

Offline The Walrus

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You have no idea what I'd do to see a Jorn solo concert. Things like that make me wish I was born in Europe.

Gloryhammer is definitely getting a lot bigger much to my chagrin
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Online Evermind

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Regarding the festivals, I think the biggest one we have this summer in Russia is this one:



Bands like Gloryhammer (or in our case Powerwolf) and Sabaton are huge as hell here too.

Quote
As for the 01011001 lineup, and their bands on tour... most wouldn't get a few hundred in the Toronto area.  Montreal they might do better.  Last tour, Nightwish played an 1800-seat theater.  Last time I saw Evergrey, it was to about 300 people, tops.  Kamelot and Nightwish a few years back ... saw them to about 600-800 people.  Avantasia was about 800 people, hence the reason Tobi didn't even come back to Toronto.

I'd actually say that's more people than Evergrey drew in Germany, although it was in a little town so I guess everyone just went to see their gigs in Dusseldorf or Munich or wherever.

Once again, this is quite fascinating to read.
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline pg1067

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Not trying to sound a judgemental ass here (yet :biggrin: ), but I'm genuinely curious: if any of you guys have heard 01011001 and know it well are among that amount of metal head americans to whom a lot of those names don't ring a bell, can you create a guest-list (with the singers' vocal melodies on the album in mind) that would've been "monstrous" for you? No big names like James Hetfield or Rob Halford, of course.

If I can't include "big names," then no, I cannot create a guest list that I would characterize as "monstrous," so this strikes me as a bit of an odd question.
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Offline pg1067

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Really though, you've never even HEARD of Daniel Gildenlow or Anneke van Giersbergen?

Definitely no as to the second person.  Gildenlow I vaguely recognized and just confirmed that he was one of the guys who did a guest spot on DT's Repentance.  I have no idea who he is otherwise (and the list of guests on Repentance is far more "monstrous" to me than the list on the Areon album).

But yes, I'll give it a listen.
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Online Evermind

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I was about to answer the previous post but read the follow-up and yeah, I'll refrain here just to not escalate this further. Bring on the next update!
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline The Walrus

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I figured in the context of a Dream Theater forum, a list of bonified prog veterans would be considered such, but I'll refrain from using the word monstrous in the future I guess. :lol  :lol

I'll share the next update shortly but I'm afraid nobody here will like it so I might do a double update this evening
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Online Kwyjibo

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Regardless of what anyone thinks, that is a monstrous guest list. Show me another act that has a guest list like that, Avantasia maybe, and there's a lot of overlapping between the two, but you americans wouldn't know most of those guests either.  ;)

Of course it's all in a certain genre, so if you don't really listen to that genre, you can't recognize the "monstrousness".
Must've been Kwyji sending all the wrong songs.   ;D

Offline Lowdz

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You have no idea what I'd do to see a Jorn solo concert. Things like that make me wish I was born in Europe.

Gloryhammer is definitely getting a lot bigger much to my chagrin

Gloryhammer are pretty much everything I dislike about power metal rolled into one cheesy roulade.

Offline Stadler

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If anyone would know, it's the promoter, but Ace Frehley - legendary guitar player from Kiss and RnRHoF member - is below "Palaye Royale" and "Avatar"?   What's he playing, at noon thirty??

Lame-o.
Quote


So my hobby is collecting CDs, and sort of my "minor" hobby is collecting soundtracks with non-album songs.   I rip the CD to iTunes and put the songs from the bands I like (and have other records from) in with the artist.  For those bands that I don't care for or don't have other albums from, are in a separate folder.  So I have a separate folder with bands like Seether and Chevelle and Hatebreed and Shinedown and Sevendust... and they just seem so same-y.  Not bad, per se, but nothing that jumps out and grabs. 

Offline The Walrus

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You have no idea what I'd do to see a Jorn solo concert. Things like that make me wish I was born in Europe.

Gloryhammer is definitely getting a lot bigger much to my chagrin

Gloryhammer are pretty much everything I dislike about power metal rolled into one cheesy roulade.

I like this take. Except you wouldn't believe how tired I am of explaining to people who are shocked that I hate Gloryhammer, that I love Rhapsody so much.  :lol :lol
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Offline The Walrus

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. We ain't even been to the ocean [#27]
« Reply #711 on: June 26, 2019, 01:39:04 PM »
27.
KINGS OF LEON
BECAUSE OF THE TIMES

Indie / Alternative / Garage Rock / dude idk

released April 2nd, 2007 via RCA Records



1. Knocked Up [7:10]
2. Charmer [2:56]
3. On Call [3:21]
4. McFearless [3:09]
5. Black Thumbnail [4:00]
6. My Party [4:10]
7. True Love Way [4:02]
8. Ragoo [3:00]
9. Fans [3:35]
10. The Runner [4:16]
11. Trunk [3:57]
12. Camaro [3:09]
13. Arizona [4:50]

BECAUSE OF THE TIMES is

Caleb Followill (Guitar / Lead vocals)
Matthew Followill (Guitar / Backing vocals)
Jared Followill (Bass / Backing vocals)
Nathan Followill (Drums / Backing vocals)

Caleb, Jared, and Nathan are brothers (Matthew their cousin), born and raised in Oklahoma before the band eventually formed in Nashville. This album is kind of the start of a transition from their indie/southern rock roots to a more polished commercial (some would say “pop”) rock sound. But this record is adventurous while still remaining true to their early sound, with a little bit of stylistic variation thrown in for good measure.

The album is bookended by two of their bets songs, “Knocked Up” and “Arizona” – the former being a song about a couple expecting a baby, and the latter about an Arizona whorehouse. In between there’s everything from a quirky indie rocker (“Charmer”) to more mellow poppy rock songs (“Ragoo,” “True Love Way,” “Fans”). Some of the more interesting stuff comes toward the end – “Trunk” has a strange vibe, for example, and “The Runner” is a quirky song with a folksy melody. It’s almost like you start drinking at the start of the album, have some merry fun times in the middle, and start to get the spins by the end before crashing in a bed crying over a girl you haven’t gotten over yet by listening to Arizona’s sweet bass line slowly fade away.

Speaking of the bass, the bass gets a lot of love on this album. It is easily heard on most songs and is usually playing something fun if not all that complex. But it always adds that little bit of zest to the music whether it’s simple (“On Call”) or active (“Arizona”).

Caleb’s voice is a major reason why I love Kings of Leon so much and on all their albums he sings a variety of ways but on Because of the Times he really stands out as a star performer. Not unlike Tom Waits, I love a lot of their sad songs most of all, because they sound like a guy who’s maybe had a couple too many and he’s just putting it all out there. But there’s also moments where it’s measured and restrained, like in “Knocked Up” where they let the beat just carry on and slowly bring the rest of the band back into the mix.

In Summary: Eh. I don’t think anyone here will like this music, but I love it, so check out the favorites if you want. I just think it’s good rock with a sound I really like, with a unique and interesting vibe. "Knocked Up" and "Arizona" are two of my favorite KoL songs ever so I highly recommend at least listening to those two if nothing else.

Katt’s Favorites: Knocked Up, On Call, Ragoo, Trunk, Arizona

Listen to “Because of the Times” by Kings of Leon on Spotify
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Offline cramx3

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If anyone would know, it's the promoter, but Ace Frehley - legendary guitar player from Kiss and RnRHoF member - is below "Palaye Royale" and "Avatar"?   What's he playing, at noon thirty??

Lame-o.

I can tell you that Avatar has earned that right.  Having seen them play recently.  I don't think they are your music, but they put on a bigger and better show than Ace for sure and likely have a bigger fan base of younger people. 

I figured in the context of a Dream Theater forum, a list of bonified prog veterans would be considered such, but I'll refrain from using the word monstrous in the future I guess. :lol  :lol

Well I do think that list was monstrous but within the context of power metal world and if you consider in general, that's still a huge guest list to compare to any band.

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I figured in the context of a Dream Theater forum, a list of bonified prog veterans would be considered such, but I'll refrain from using the word monstrous in the future I guess. :lol  :lol

Well I do think that list was monstrous but within the context of power metal world and if you consider in general, that's still a huge guest list to compare to any band.

Yeah, what I'd ask those who say it is not monstrous is: How well does this compete against other guest lists, whatever the genre?

I mean, it's not like there are a bunch of albums out there featuring, like, Bruce Dickinson, Rob Halford, James Hetfield and Tony Iommi. So when you say that this guest list is not monstrous, what exactly are you comparing it to? Are you comparing it to an imaginary album that doesn't exist?

This album has a startlingly large percentage of the big name singers in a particular genre. That's about as good as a guest list gets, unless there are a whole bunch of albums with guest appearances by multiple worldwide superstars that have somehow just evaded my notice?
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Offline cramx3

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. We ain't even been to the ocean [#27]
« Reply #714 on: June 26, 2019, 05:20:22 PM »
Yea, if you look at it that way, it makes sense because the other genres of metal don't do these crazy big collaborations (that I know of at least)

It's actually a huge reason why I like the genre as it seems everyone is friends with each other and work together.

My ex-gf mentioned to me one time "how are all your bands connected like this?" it's just the genre I guess and maybe because it's more niche it makes it more close

Offline pg1067

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Yeah, what I'd ask those who say it is not monstrous is: How well does this compete against other guest lists, whatever the genre?

I mean, it's not like there are a bunch of albums out there featuring, like, Bruce Dickinson, Rob Halford, James Hetfield and Tony Iommi. So when you say that this guest list is not monstrous, what exactly are you comparing it to? Are you comparing it to an imaginary album that doesn't exist?

I wasn't comparing anything to anything.  The album in question featured a large number of people.  If that's how you define "monstrous," there you go, but that's not how I'd define it.  It has a large number of people who are apparently a big deal within a particular sub-sub-genre of metal, and I can buy into the notion that, within that context, it's "monstrous."  If, however, you want me to buy into the notion that it's "monstrous" without any qualifier, then I need bigger names, and the fact that such a thing has never occurred doesn't have squat to do with it.


27.
KINGS OF LEON
BECAUSE OF THE TIMES

Indie / Alternative / Garage Rock / dude idk

I really want to get more into the dude idk genre!   :lol
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Offline The Walrus

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. We ain't even been to the ocean [#27]
« Reply #716 on: June 26, 2019, 06:12:04 PM »
They get praise because of their vocal abilities and/or distinct voices. All the singers on that album are great! The dude idk genre is taking off.
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Offline King Puppies and the Acid Guppies

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Yeah, what I'd ask those who say it is not monstrous is: How well does this compete against other guest lists, whatever the genre?

I mean, it's not like there are a bunch of albums out there featuring, like, Bruce Dickinson, Rob Halford, James Hetfield and Tony Iommi. So when you say that this guest list is not monstrous, what exactly are you comparing it to? Are you comparing it to an imaginary album that doesn't exist?

I wasn't comparing anything to anything.  The album in question featured a large number of people.  If that's how you define "monstrous," there you go, but that's not how I'd define it. It has a large number of people who are apparently a big deal within a particular sub-sub-genre of metal, and I can buy into the notion that, within that context, it's "monstrous."  If, however, you want me to buy into the notion that it's "monstrous" without any qualifier, then I need bigger names, and the fact that such a thing has never occurred doesn't have squat to do with it.

OK this part stood out to me. Basically because most of the people involved with the Ayreon albums are all big names within Prog Metal and Power Metal, hardly "sub sub genres of metal."

Then again I understand some people find a few bands within a genre and don't dig any further in to it. I think this is pretty common with people around my parents age (my parents are definitely like this), who grew up between the late 60's and early 80's and listen to all the bands from that era and don't care to discover new stuff. Now, before anyone starts getting all defensive, I'm not saying everyone in that age group is like this. It just seems more common in that age group than say those of us born in the 80's or early 90's.
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Offline Stadler

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. We ain't even been to the ocean [#27]
« Reply #718 on: June 26, 2019, 07:55:49 PM »
On paper, Kings of Leon should be right in my wheelhouse, but for whatever reason, I listen and it does little for me.

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. We ain't even been to the ocean [#27]
« Reply #719 on: June 26, 2019, 07:57:57 PM »
On paper, Kings of Leon should be right in my wheelhouse, but for whatever reason, I listen and it does little for me.
This is pretty much how I feel about the band. They have a couple songs that I enjoy somewhat, but other than that, nothing.... :-\
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Offline The Walrus

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. We ain't even been to the ocean [#27]
« Reply #720 on: June 27, 2019, 07:19:52 AM »
I was right, nobody cares about Kings of Leon. Discussion about Ayreon just plowed right through it  :lol Next album sometime today...
« Last Edit: June 27, 2019, 07:26:02 AM by Kattelox »
From a Mega Man Legends island jamming power metal to a Walrus listening to black metal, I like your story arc.
"I don't worry about nothing, no, 'cause worrying's a waste of my time"

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. We ain't even been to the ocean [#27]
« Reply #721 on: June 27, 2019, 07:32:26 AM »
I was right, nobody cares about Kings of Leon. Discussion about Ayreon just plowed right through it  :lol

That's how monstrous that list of guests is!
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Online Kwyjibo

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. We ain't even been to the ocean [#27]
« Reply #722 on: June 27, 2019, 07:44:38 AM »
I was right, nobody cares about Kings of Leon.

I've heard of them but never heard them so I can't comment.
Must've been Kwyji sending all the wrong songs.   ;D

Offline cramx3

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. We ain't even been to the ocean [#27]
« Reply #723 on: June 27, 2019, 07:50:32 AM »
I was right, nobody cares about Kings of Leon.

I've heard of them but never heard them so I can't comment.

Same, just listening to the linked songs now and this is not my cup of tea.  I didn't know much about them, but I thought I'd enjoy them more than I am.  But now I recognize the voice and realize I have heard them before, Sex on Fire.  I do like how a rock band is popular but maybe this is really how I feel:

On paper, Kings of Leon should be right in my wheelhouse, but for whatever reason, I listen and it does little for me.

Offline The Walrus

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. We ain't even been to the ocean [#27]
« Reply #724 on: June 27, 2019, 07:52:40 AM »
Well ya'll are gonna see them again for sure. :neverusethis:

This next one... I'm just gonna drop it here and let ya'll discuss it cause I know I think my takes on this band are in the minority (SHOCK AND AWE!!).
« Last Edit: June 27, 2019, 09:32:03 AM by Kattelox »
From a Mega Man Legends island jamming power metal to a Walrus listening to black metal, I like your story arc.
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Offline The Walrus

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Katt's Top 50 Albums v. It's never over til the fat lady sings [#26]
« Reply #725 on: June 27, 2019, 10:01:36 AM »
26.
SONATA ARCTICA
UNIA
Progressive Metal

released May 25th, 2007 via Nuclear Blast



1. In Black and White [5:04]
2. Paid in Full [4:24]
3. For the Sake of Revenge [3:23]
4. It Won’t Fade [5:59]
5. Under Your Tree [5:14]
6. Caleb [6:17]
7. The Vice [4:09]
8. My Dream’s But a Drop of Fuel for a Nightmare [6:13]
9. The Harvest [4:19]
10. The Worlds Forgotten, the Words Forbidden [2:57]
11. Fly with the Black Swan [5:08]
12. Good Enough is Good Enough [5:32]

UNIA is

Tony Kakko (Vocals / Keyboards)
Jani Liimatainen (Guitars)
Henrik Klingenberg (Keyboards)
Marko Paasikoski (Bass)
Tommy Portimo (Drums)

WITH

Tuomas Airola (Cello / Conductor on 12)
Elar Kuiv (Violin on 12)
Anna-Leena Kangas (Viola on 12)
Oskari Hannula (Strings on 12)
Tarja Vanhala (Choir conductor)
Celestina Choir (Choirs)
Peter Engberg (Acoustic guitars / Bouzouki / Chromaharp / Kavaquinho / Q-chord)
Milla V (Spoken words on 6)
Kati Niemelä (Violin / Viola on 12)
Michael “Starbuck” Majalahti (Additional vocals on 1, 6 / English consultant)

First, screw Sonata Arctica’s first two albums. They're good, but Sonata Arctica did not live and die with cookie cutter power metal no matter how catchy the choruses were. The Ninth Hour was the first (and so far only) album they’ve released that actually disappointed me, but everything else, I love. I’m grateful they left the old power metal behind and have continually tried new things on post-Jani era records. This album is an explosive release of all the material Tony had wanted to put on the last few records but couldn’t because the fans expected speedy power metal in the vein of Stratovarius and other keyboard-heavy groups.

Unia means “dreams” in Finnish and this album is all about that. It’s all about exploring weird, new territory, singing nonsensical lyrics about dreams and nightmares, while retaining the classic Sonata Arctica/Kakko-esque storytelling and mouthful of words. Thickly layered vocals and multiple vocal parts are reminiscent of Queen, a big influence in Tony’s songwriting. The keyboards range from filthy synth lead voices to bells and sickly dark synth pads, groaning and twisting like black sludge through the songs. The guitars are surprisingly heavy, but offer little in the way of memorable riffs; they are mostly utilized as a means of adding percussive distortion to the songs, creating a thick and heavy foundation for Tony’s singing, which is the real star of the album. God, this album – there’s nothing but gems on this tracklist.

And it’s true – listen to any song on this album and Tony is up front in the mix, and almost always present. There are very few moments on the album where Tony backs off and the instrumental side takes over. He commands the songs, and they seem to evolve on his command, with entire sections abruptly starting and ending on a single word, with the snap of a finger he is able to manipulate the direction of the songs like some kind of magician. Coming off the heels of a full-bore power metal record, it is amazing what he created with Unia in my opinion. Every song really is a treasure here.

One of the best songs tells a story about a man dying in an avalanche and meeting Cygnus, the black swan, and essentially becoming the Grim Reaper. The poetry is sublime on “Fly With The Black Swan” and I highly recommend it, as well as “The Harvest” with some really enigmatic and bizarre lyrics but comes roaring at you like a tidal wave of boiling water. I’ll cap off this section with just a few of my favorite lyrics on Unia:

- "All the good things in my life dwell in my mind / Took a wrong lane, every day I hear myself say / Sickening's this feeling, my life, my hopes, my dream's but a drop of fuel for a nightmare"
- "Haven't seen you in weeks, no clouds in the sky to rain me a drop / Loving touch I need / And I'm killing time by the lake, diving off the cliff, many times scarring myself, colliding on the lake bed so dry"
- "Diving in the seas of sin without knowing where lies the bottom / Idle moments spawned you idle people, no morality, no soul"
- "It's hard for me to hate myself right now / Finally I'm understanding me / One day we may have whole new mes and yous / But first I need to learn to love me too"
- “We cannot wait for you, for limbo, forever / Don’t make us walk away – packs stay together / Fear would be justified, will be there soon / The things that you do will infect us too”

Although the rest of the band is noticeably uncomfortable speaking English, Tony has a fucking masterful command of writing English lyrics.

In Summary: It’s huge, it’s exhausting, it’s daring, it’s exciting. This album is one of the biggest growers in my collection. It took over 2 years for some of these songs to click, specifically “The Vice,” so I understand how this album rubs people the wrong way. However, in my opinion, this is easily one of the best Sonata Arctica albums, one of the best progressive metal albums ever, and at the very least one of the most unique records I’ve ever heard. Most people who know Sonata have an opinion on this record. If you don’t, well, give it a shot. Almost every one of these tracks is different from the rest. It’s got some absolutely gorgeous ballads, some epic storytelling (a continuation of the Caleb saga, for example), and some bizarre, inventive songwriting. More bands need to take risks like this, but only if they have enough artistic shit in their pants to pull it off the way Tony did with Unia.

Katt’s Favorites: In Black and White, Paid in Full (music video), My Dream’s But a Drop of Fuel for a Nightmare, The Harvest, Fly With The Black Swan

Listen to “Unia” by Sonata Arctica on Spotify
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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. It's never over til the fat lady sings [#26]
« Reply #726 on: June 27, 2019, 10:16:01 AM »
I've already said how I feel about SA including this album, but I don't think I mentioned that this was my first album and introduction into SA.  I was not swayed by the power metal stuff from before this album, I heard Caleb and thought it was solid (still do) and knew the band might be up my ally so got this album sometime after it was released as it was their newest then.  I just wasn't impressed, and maybe it's because I didn't give it two years to grow.  I didn't enjoy it much from the beginning and I gave it multiple shots and came back to it multiple times.  I later got the first two albums and really enjoy those much more.  I've got no issue straying away from that power metal and into this style, but it just didn't click for me. 

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. It's never over til the fat lady sings [#26]
« Reply #727 on: June 27, 2019, 10:22:22 AM »
Took me seven years to get into this album. Now I think it's absolutely brilliant. I actually had this in my Top 50.

It's also hilarious how my two of my favourite tracks (It Won't Fade and Caleb) aren't among your favourites. :biggrin:

Regarding our discussion in SA thread about Tony sounding bored on the new material, this album is a perfect example of Tony being engaged as hell in singing all the crazy lines. This is the enthusiasm I look for.
« Last Edit: June 27, 2019, 10:27:41 AM by Evermind »
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline The Walrus

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. It's never over til the fat lady sings [#26]
« Reply #728 on: June 27, 2019, 10:25:04 AM »
Took me seven years to get into this album. Now I think it's absolutely brilliant. I actually had this in my Top 50.

It's also hilarious how my two of my favourite tracks (It Won't Fade and Caleb) aren't among your favourites. :biggrin:

Regarding our discussion in SA thread about Tony sounding bored on the new material, this album is a perfect example of Tony being engaged as hell in singing all the crazy lines. This is the enthusiasm I look for.

I mean, I love every song on the album, but if I had to choose 4-5 that I personally would want people to hear first, they are the songs I linked. But Caleb - specifically the last couple minutes - is probably my 2nd favorite song in the Caleb saga (behind Don't Say A Word), and It Won't Fade is a masterpiece of a song. Always thought it was about Jani's waning involvement in the band, when Tony wrote that, but it could just simply be another wolf song. And YES, Tony sounds like he's firing on all cylinders on Unia. There's none of that enthusiasm or energy present on The Ninth Hour, or half of Pariah's Child even, and the new single has me more worried than usual about the new album...

cram, that's a shame. Only a couple songs took that long to grow on me, because they were/are so bizarre, but most of the album was love at first listen for me, although I still remember the first time I put it on and thought, "What the FUCK is going on here?"
From a Mega Man Legends island jamming power metal to a Walrus listening to black metal, I like your story arc.
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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. It's never over til the fat lady sings [#26]
« Reply #729 on: June 27, 2019, 10:28:28 AM »
It Won't Fade was my choice in roulettes for a while a few years ago.

My copy of the album also has To Create a Warlike Feel (a bonus track) between The Harvest and Worlds. I was pretty familiar with the album way before I had a chance to buy it, so first listen to that version caught me off-guard big time. :lol
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline The Walrus

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. It's never over til the fat lady sings [#26]
« Reply #730 on: June 27, 2019, 10:31:44 AM »
It Won't Fade was my choice in roulettes for a while a few years ago.

My copy of the album also has To Create a Warlike Feel (a bonus track) between The Harvest and Worlds. I was pretty familiar with the album way before I had a chance to buy it, so first listen to that version caught me off-guard big time. :lol

I like that song, but that would throw me for a loop too  :lol I like the bonus tracks on this album a lot, but the copy I actually own has none sadly. However, it IS missing a full page out of the booklet! It was a widespread printing error. I think there's only one or two lines for Fly With The Black Swan before it goes right to the thank-yous and credits  :lol
From a Mega Man Legends island jamming power metal to a Walrus listening to black metal, I like your story arc.
"I don't worry about nothing, no, 'cause worrying's a waste of my time"

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. It's never over til the fat lady sings [#26]
« Reply #731 on: June 27, 2019, 10:35:09 AM »
It Won't Fade was my choice in roulettes for a while a few years ago.

My copy of the album also has To Create a Warlike Feel (a bonus track) between The Harvest and Worlds. I was pretty familiar with the album way before I had a chance to buy it, so first listen to that version caught me off-guard big time. :lol

I like that song, but that would throw me for a loop too  :lol I like the bonus tracks on this album a lot, but the copy I actually own has none sadly. However, it IS missing a full page out of the booklet! It was a widespread printing error. I think there's only one or two lines for Fly With The Black Swan before it goes right to the thank-yous and credits  :lol

Just checked and same here!

Quote
Cry for help...
FLY WITH THE BLACK SWAN

Once I got caught in an avalanche,
I must have died,
When a Black Swan flew to the rescue and cried
An offer I could not refuse.

GOOD ENOUGH IS GOOD ENOUGH

*lyrics for that song*

At least I have Good Enough is Good Enough lyrics because of To Create the Warlike Feel being on the album and so the page count is a bit different from yours. :lol
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. It's never over til the fat lady sings [#26]
« Reply #732 on: June 27, 2019, 10:44:37 AM »
HAHA. That's awesome. I know a lot of people who crap on Good Enough but that's one of my favorite Sonata ballads. So beautiful!
From a Mega Man Legends island jamming power metal to a Walrus listening to black metal, I like your story arc.
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Offline pg1067

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Really though, you've never even HEARD of Daniel Gildenlow or Anneke van Giersbergen?

Definitely no as to the second person.  Gildenlow I vaguely recognized and just confirmed that he was one of the guys who did a guest spot on DT's Repentance.  I have no idea who he is otherwise (and the list of guests on Repentance is far more "monstrous" to me than the list on the Areon album).

But yes, I'll give it a listen.

I started listening to this album on my way into work this morning.  For reference, I don't have a long commute, so I only got through the first track (Age of Shadows) and about half way through the second track (Comatose).  Not a great start.  The first track had a bunch of strong vocal performances, but it was not at all interesting musically.

I won't clutter up this thread with further commentary on it.  If I find something interesting, I'll go over to the thread for the band.
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Re: Katt's Top 50 Albums v. It's never over til the fat lady sings [#26]
« Reply #734 on: June 27, 2019, 12:02:57 PM »
pg, your posts about Ayreon have me curious about your musical taste, familiarity with prog, favorite musicians etc. Just curious, nothing more. At least you're giving it a try.
From a Mega Man Legends island jamming power metal to a Walrus listening to black metal, I like your story arc.
"I don't worry about nothing, no, 'cause worrying's a waste of my time"