I think I've listened to the album long enough to give proper
first impressions... but first, let's to a
"HinatAArcticA thing":
This is better than any of the latest
Sonata Arctica records.
Alright, with that out of the way, let's check this thing.
My Eternal Dream ( 10 ):
THIS is how you start a power metal record. I keep thinking this song is this lineup's
Black Diamond or
Speed of Light. I think it's bound to become a classic. It's
old-school yet fresh and new. It has the brand of what the band has been doing since
Elysium
Shine in the Dark ( 8 ): I dubbed this track
Nemesis Pt. 2, because how similar the structure of the songs is, specially during the chorus. Compared, I prefer the older track from the previous record though. It's a good track still, but it makes me wanna go back to
Nemesis.
Rise Above It ( 7 ): This track is powerful and fresh. I really like the chorus, but it doesn't do a whole lot for me other than that.
Lost Without a Trace ( 9 ): This one has a great darker melody, an amazing chorus and though heavier and not as fast is definitely way better than the previous two. I seem to be in a lesser minority who enjoys Lauri's darker stranger compositions. I loved
Lifetime in a Moment, so I'm glad the band can still tackle this style, with a bit more energy! But Lauri's compositions have this
aura to them that I really really enjoy.
Feeding the Fire ( 7 ): I enjoy this one a tad more than
Rise. I put it in the same boat as
Shine. It's a good track, but doesn't have anything that
big for me on it.
In my Line of Work ( 9 ): Damn Jani, his stamp is
ALL OVER this song, along with Timo's lighter style of composing, but their styles combined are just so great. This is really a great track. With how
meh I always thought
Higher we Go was, I'm happy to see this progress in Timo's music. It's a great track.
Man in the Mirror ( 10 ): My second 10/10 score in the album. This song has very heavy passages. It's filled with atmosphere and power. Jens outdid himself this time. This track is amazing for me. This is up there with
Infernal Maze,
Abandon,
Deep Unknown,
Nemesis and
My Eternal Dream as some of my favorite recent
Stratovarius tracks. I'm glad Strato can have some of this darker yet fresh music.
Few Are Those ( 8 ): Another one that has Jani's stamp but Timo's style all over it. Great example of how damn amazing the duo can be. I swear they meeting and teaming up is one of the best things to happen to the Finish metal scene. They can do really great stuff.
Fire in Your Eyes ( 6 ): There's a reason I'm being really harsh on this one:
Move the Mountain.
Move happens to be one of my favorite
Strato slower tracks, at least from the more recent albums. So, in comparison it just falls short, and since they are from the same composer.
The Lost Saga ( 8 ): Musically, this is what I was expecting from
Sonata Arctica's
Larger than Life, a song that other than the
"We all shall one day become what we play. The marvelous... part, I find horribly dull and boring. I really like how this song takes time to breath. Matias is a genius when doing this for a single track that can be fast and energetic and also slow and heavy. With the track however, I have two problems that take those 2 points from the score. First: the lyrics. While not bad, are just not good enough. For a first attempt at the topic is alright, but it falls short to the rest of the album's lyrics. If they go into the topic again, I know it'd be better.
Second:
Elysium. I mean the track, not the album. I didn't mention it above as one of my favorite
current Strato songs because
THIS is my favorite of the post
Polaris Stratovarius, by far. And being that both are pretty long tracks by Matias, I can't help but compare, and
Elysium just blows this one out of the water. It's still a really good track.
BONUS TRACKS:
Giants ( 8 ): The intro reminded me of some of the older more
rock inspired tracks that
Intermission had. For a moment I hoped they maybe would do a track in that vein. For a bonus track I think it's really good, but
Castaway remains my current favorite bonus track for post
Polaris Strato.
Endless Forest ( ?? ): Oh I
LOVE this track, but I have no idea how to rate it. This one makes me think
SO MUCH of Jens'
Ten Seasons. I really enjoy this kind of thing. There's a magical feel to it. The tittle is so fitting, though I understand why this one would be a bonus track.
OVERALL SCORE: 8.2 (Not counting bonus tracks)
It's a damn great album. Some of the
sevens I gave are based on how high some of the
eights in this album can be. I keep juggling this album along with
Nemesis and
Elysium to decide which of the three I like the most. Probably
Elysium, but I can't decide from the other two.
I don't usually like to give scores, but I guess it's a bit fun. I just find super hard to give a number to all the feelings a track can inspire, but there you go
