Stratovarius Community

The Album is out. What do you think? I'm listening to it right now. I'll wait until I've finished with the CD.

Fuuuck, AoA is released in Finland on wednesday :s can't wait!

I just listened it this afternoon. And I have to say I really like it. This new style of music is not bad at all. I think I have to listen it a few times more to really give my opinion.

I have to say that Sins of my beloved, Ixion's wheel and So she wears black are my fav ones (specially So she wears black which is my favourite one maybe, I love that song).
I like the album a lot, anyway I have to listen more. It's different from previous TT's works. And he is making really mad and different solos.

Sounds all very interesting! I'm looking forward to it!

I am nearly finished but I also nearly fell asleep listening to it. The Album is boring. The only good song is "Into The Future". The rest is IMO boring and uninspired. Behind the Mask is the worst track. Sounds like boring Alternative Metal. I liked the version that was up on Gus' MySpace 100 times better. I already said my opinion on "Age of Aquarius". "Sins of my beloved" is boring. The Pre-Chorus and the chrus are okay thought. "Ixon's Wheel" is a bit better. "Ghost of Fallen Grace" is okay. "Heart of All" is also very boring. "So She Wears Nlack" is medicore. "Kyrie Eleson" is the 2nd worst track.

Sorry, exept of 3 tracks I don't like it at all.

I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!! GGGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!
:funhi:

this is all about as useful as saying "it's not/ it is honky tonk, therefore is sucks, do not buy".

But this is all I can say. I was bored after listening to it. Except those 3 tracks mentioned above I didn't like it at all.

Does anyone of you remember The Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nóg (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mystic_Knights)? The Song "Into the Future" sounds like it is the new theme song of this show.

There are many types of reviews, some are more informative and some are more personal.

The album is kinda boring but not so much.. I agree in part with Ragehead91 about the 2 worst tracks and also (for me) the album needs more keys and guitar solos.
My favorite tracks of the album are "Into the Future" "Ixion's Wheel" and "So She Wears Black" so far..
I really like the voice of Gus in this album..
A little thing called my attention, Into the Future sounds to me very familiar to a Mago de Oz song (don't remember which one now)

In general the album is good, it could fit in my personal top 10 of the year so far...

It's already out.

I'm such a blind forgetting fool, I've got to get this right away when I get the money.

Ragehead91 wrote:I am nearly finished but I also nearly fell asleep listening to it. The Album is boring. The only good song is "Into The Future". The rest is IMO boring and uninspired. Behind the Mask is the worst track. Sounds like boring Alternative Metal. I liked the version that was up on Gus' MySpace 100 times better. I already said my opinion on "Age of Aquarius". "Sins of my beloved" is boring. The Pre-Chorus and the chrus are okay thought. "Ixon's Wheel" is a bit better. "Ghost of Fallen Grace" is okay. "Heart of All" is also very boring. "So She Wears Nlack" is medicore. "Kyrie Eleson" is the 2nd worst track.

Sorry, exept of 3 tracks I don't like it at all.

hmm - I think the only silly song is Into The Future

I think into the future is the best track. It sounds kind of cheesy and like the new theme song of The Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nóg but it very good.

I think it sounds great personally, it's got a different touch to it however once you get into the sound it takes you away on a journey.

I like the album in general. My favs are so she wears black and kyrie eleison in combination. Into the future is good too.Behind the mask i have no access till now it dont touches me. To the others i havent listen so often lets see.In some way i miss a central theme. it seems the songs were randomly in this order and have no connection. first some modern rock than ballads and some symphonic pieces.

I'm the only one that hate this album????

just kidding, but i don't like it....is too slow, the last 4 songs...are just totally boring. that song "Heart of all"...for Christ's sake. I can't swallow it. Where are the keyboards, or the solos, something. Bruno Agra in Aquaria is just an inmense drummer, here is like rock n roll style.
The only thing that i like of this album is the Symphonic sound, thats it. This songs in live will be so boring. For me is like an OK album that some people will like a little bit. But not for me, i prefer other kind of gothic sounds or rock or metal

I think it would work very well as a soundtrack for a historic drama movie. I think it does as good job at what is trying to be as I think it connects the emotions of the lyrics to the music very well and that the songs will connect with targeted audiences. I think the album has some song choices that don't keep it at one theme so each audience will have tracks they don't enjoy as much. a lot of the album is really too dark and melancholic for my taste but I think if I grew to like the style I would find a lot out of the songs. Into the future is really the kind of album I would have loved with its Celtic folk melodies and themes.

I just don't like Gus's voice at all. It ruins every song that would be potentially good, in my opinion. Like Ixion's Wheel, Into the Future, Behind the Mask, etc.

He just ruins the entire album for me.

I think the "problem" of the album is that it is "too dark-melancholic", "too symphonic"... it's not power metal at all, it is not speed metal at all, it is very different from previous TT's works, completely different.

It's difficult to many people to see that album as a good TT album.

I like the album. TT is trying to make another kind of metal (at least in this album) and that's very very valiant. You can't say he is trying to copy his previous works. I like Gus voice a lot.

Anyway, I prefer power/speed/neoclassical Stratovarius metal, of course.

TT has created a new band that is amazing of course. I like this album very much, and I also love the previous one,New Era. These guys are very talented, every one of them, and it's perfectly shown in this album, although I think they can give us a lot more than what we've seen up to now.This is their first album together so time to time. It's a wonderful album but imo it's not a complete one, maybe because I am expecting something else that I'll never see because of their style. Once I've listened to the whole album I feel like ''I want more''.I miss more tracks and I don't know why Revolution has Begun it's not included there. I'd like to see how they play and sing live, I'm very curious.
By now my favourite songs are: Ghost of Fallen Grace, Sins of my beloved and The Heart of All.

I have to get my hands on this.

NeonVomit wrote:I have to get my hands on this.

That's what SHE said!

I was doing some random shopping today and bought also this album. I think it is good, definitely worth buying.

So She Wears Black, Ixion's Wheel, Into The Future were probably my favourites after first listening. I think Age of Aquarius is also very nice. I like the melancholy of the album.

NeverendingAbyss wrote:

NeonVomit wrote:I have to get my hands on this.

That's what SHE said!

Absolutely.

I like the sound of it personally, it think it's a nice bold approach and clearly sets the standard that they are a different band.

It's a bit meh. Not bad but not that good either, bunch of 3 stars out of 5 songs. I like the last one best but I think it maybe should have been a Pogues song rather than a hard rock one

Personally i really like the album,miss some speed a bit,and keys but overall i like it,i like the 'symphonic' parts of the album and the guitar sounds heavy my favorites ones are Ixion's Wheel,Heart Of All and Into The Future.

I bought mine today. Sounds great! Symphonic and melancholic. I gotta listen more to really get into it...

I think it just showcases what's wrong or has been wrong with TT over the last few years.

First, he does write/compose the songs really fast. That was the case with Stratovarius already but it is just getting out of hand. You cant just have a new album every year or every 9 say months and expect it to be good. One may say its due to a flow of "creativity" but I don't buy that. I haven't seen any real creativity since Visions. It's just re-working and re-arranging of similar rythms and patterns. Countless songs of later day strato sound alike and RR continue that trend. It does sound a lot like a bad Stratovarius.

Second problem, the singer sings like TK. I guess thats the type of vocals TT wants for his band and I do agree with this 'cos I love TK's voice but it does sound like he is trying to do every single vocal melody the way TK does it. And even though I like it obviously he's not as good.

Third, this lack of progress showcases another fundamental problem. TT wants total control over his bands. RR is Tolkki's band. As expected no one is going to have much of a saying in the musical direction, pretty much what was happening in Stratovarius. Writting 99% of the music and having an album out every year for say almost 20 years now is just too much. That kind of stuff is for solo not a for a real band.

In that sense its for the best that he left Stratovarius because with him in it I can't see how the band would progress any further. On the other hand though, I am afraid RR may have the same fate. Unless he makes it a real and democratic band there's so many times you can hear the chorus of Father Time, etc in a re-worked version.

Anyway, the album is good but this band seems to be going too fast already. Rushing things a bit too much. I hope he sits down a bit more next time to think out about the songs and allow other people to participate in the writing too.