Daniel's Forum Replies
I had a listen to 1970's "Kirikyogen" album from Kuni Kawachi & Friends yesterday which is essentially a collaboration between a little-known Japanese psychedelic rock artist & two of the members from Tokyo's seminal Flower Travellin' Band. It's listed on Metal Archives so I thought I'd better explore it in the interest of being thorough/comprehensive. There's nothing that even resembles metal on this record though. There's not even any hard rock or heavy psych to be honest. It's purely a psychedelic rock release as far as I can see so there's no need for us to bother with it.
At the moment the next release we'll be investigating is Budgie's 1971 self-titled debut album. Please let me know if you think there's justification to cover Sir Lord Baltimore's self-titled sophomore album, Flower Travellin' Band's "Satori" or Thin Lizzy's self-titled debut though as I'm open to everyone's ideas. I might try to give those three a listen/revisit before we get through "Lucifer's Friend" to see if I think they're worth exploring too.
Here's my adjusted Top Ten Progressive Metal Releases of All Time list after adoring this month's The Infinite feature release with Dream Theater's "Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory" being the unlucky record to drop out:
01. Leprous - "Live at Rockefeller Music Hall" (2016)
02. Lucid Planet - "Lucid Planet II" (2020)
03. Mastodon - "Leviathan" (2004)
04. Cynic - "Focus" (1993)
05. Opeth - "The Roundhouse Tapes" (2007)
06. Epiphanic Truth - "Dark Triad: Bitter Psalms to a Sordid Species" (2021)
07. Gojira - "From Mars to Sirius" (2005)
08. Dream Theater - "Images and Words" (1992)
09. Opeth - "Deliverance" (2002)
10. Devin Townsend - "Ocean Machine - Biomech" (1997)
Now then, what have we here? This sole release from a mysterious & anonymous metal collective is the perfect example of a Metal Academy feature release in my opinion. It's a record that's been largely overlooked but nonetheless possesses enormous weight & substance. It's obviously been put together by some seriously accomplished metal musicians with an enviable understanding of the dynamics that modern metal is capable of too. Across the three lengthy tracks we see Epiphanic Truth seamlessly drawing together influences from progressive metal, post-metal & death metal, accomplishing a collective whole that easily encapsulates the best elements of each. The progressive metal component is probably the least effective with the more melodic clean vocal sections temporarily drawing me away from the captivating soundscapes but the incredible tension-building & climactic post-metal elements easily make up for it & are the highlight of the album for me personally. Imagine the savagery of Ulcerate & 1990's Napalm Death being layered over a progressive metal base & sprayed with the tribal repetition & atmospherics of Neurosis & you won't be far off the mark with the aggressive death metal vocals sitting somewhere between Napalm Death's Barney Greenway & Grave's Jørgen Sandström.
Opening track "The Truth of the Beast" is clearly the most straight-forward & brutal inclusion but lacks the cerebral elements of the other two tracks & is therefore the least impressive of the three. Neurosis-inspired post-sludge number "An Inescapable Verdict" is the clear highlight for me though & is right up there with the best material I've heard this year. The epic centrepiece "Our Vile Roots Flourish Beyond Light" is kinda a combination of the other two tracks, spending a good two thirds of its run time in similar progressive death metal territory to "The Truth of the Beast" before closing out the album with eight minutes of superlative post-metal & thoroughly crushing me into dust in the process. I genuinely loved this record & would be very surprised if all of our The Infinite members don't experience a similar response to it.
4.5/5
Rex, to be clear, it's your turn to nominate the December feature releases for The Infinite & The Pit. You need to private message me those any time between 1st November & a couple of days before the end of November.
Here's another example of Metallica pushing the plagiarism boundaries. Check out the part at 3:33 in "Seek & Destroy" from 1983 & compare it with the section at 1:48 in Saxon's classic "Princess Of The Night".
How about "Keep Going"? Metal or not? Subgenre?
This one's not straight forward either. The doom sections sound like they could have been ripped straight off a Soundgarden album & are metal as fuck. There's a psychedelic feel to the deeper clean parts though & the rest of the track is so clearly hard rock based. I think I'd have to suggest that it sits most comfortably in the heavy psych/stoner rock space.
Here's my updated Top Ten Atmospheric Black Metal Releases Of All Time after deciding that I simply must include this month's feature release in there somewhere at the expense of Lurker of Chalice's self-titled album (sorry Ben):
01. Burzum – “Filosofem” (1996)
02. Akhlys – “The Dreaming I” (2015)
03. Altar of Plagues – “Mammal” (2011)
04. Burzum – “Hvis lyset tar oss” (1994)
05. Wolves In The Throne Room – “Two Hunters” (2007)
06. Paysage d’Hiver – “Im Wald” (2020)
07. Progenie Terrestre Pura - "U.M.A." (2013)
08. Paysage d’Hiver – “Winterkaelte” (2001)
09. Murmuure – “Murmuure” (2010)
10. Altar of Plagues - "Teethed Glory & Injury" (2013)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/160
My first four days at my new job have gone really well. The first 2.5 days were basically spent completing online training & inductions but the last 1.5 days were really interesting & encouraging. I'm really enjoying learning about managing a business in an entirely new industry (i.e. the construction machinery one) while the wider team seems to be embracing me & are really happy to have someone with my skill sets & experience coming into their business which has given me a much-needed ego-boost after recent events had dented my confidence a touch. The commute has been punishing though. It's been more like 95 minutes to get there in the morning & around 110-120 minutes to get home in the evening. Plenty of metal listening has been conducted during that time which is a bit of a concern for the state of my withered ear drums.
I'm afraid I struggled with "Vertumnus Caesar" which was fairly easy to predict given that its style isn't really in my wheelhouse. I'm not sure it's the best fit for a The Guardians feature release either as I don't feel it's a "heavy metal" record per se. Malokarpatan use black metal vocals & aesthetics as the basis for their sound & then layer them over the top of a whole range of different genres including symphonic prog, speed metal, heavy metal, black 'n' roll, thrash metal, avant-garde metal & progressive metal so "Vertumnus Caesar" is really hard to pigeon-hole but I feel pretty strongly that it shouldn't be in The Guardians. I'd suggest that leaving them solely under Black Metal (Conventional) might be the best approach as that element is the only common denominator across the tracklisting & I think adding the album to The Pit or The Infinite would be a stretch.
Anyway... "Vertumnus Caesar" is simply a bit too quirky & consciously unusual for my taste. I'm not the biggest fan of black 'n' roll or blackened speed metal so those sections kinda lose me. The opening intro track is an absolute abomination with a horrible out-of-key melodic component that gives me a similar response to finger-nails running down a chalk board too which doesn't help. The blackened heavy metal of the title track & the epic progressive black metal closer "I hle, tak zachádza imperiálna hviezda" are pretty enjoyable but I'd rather leave the rest of the album to those with a stronger penchant for this sort of thing.
3/5
P.S. I'd encourage anyone participating in this feature release to vote in the below Hall of Judgement poll.
I really don't think there's any doubt about Metallica stealing 1986's "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" (which was supposed written by James, Lars & Kirk) from obscure NWOBHM outfit Bleak House's 1980 "Rainbow Warrior" single now, is there? This would have to be one of the most blatant examples of plagiarism you'll find in all of metal in my opinion.
I think the horn is distracting people on this one. Hard rock.
Nah, the horn is just peripheral. "Ride The Sky" is built around a chuggy, galloping, palm-muted bottom-string metal riff that sounds like something Iron Maiden would have come up with a decade later. You can easily hear Steve Harris playing it.
Anyway... how about "Everybody's Clown" then? Metal or not? Subgenre?
The start & finish is a little ambiguous as there are one or two harder riffs that could go either way but I feel that the rest of the song & the overall feel tie "Everybody's Clown" to hard rock with a strong progressive rock influence running through that middle section.
It's been far too long since I've heard it to be able to provide an informed comment on that Morpheus but I tend to think that it's not a relevant comparison as Goblin's soundtrack was a brilliantly conceived record in its own right (with or without the film) & focused more on mood & atmosphere while Deceased... seem to be trying desperately to create a similar feel to a band like Autopsy but haven't got the required level of sickness & depravity. Interestingly, I saw Goblin perform parts of the "Dawn Of The Dead" soundtrack at the Metro Theatre in Sydney a decade or so back which was a rare treat.
This is fucking fantastic Ben. Super-premium atmospheric black metal with a strong & highly original psybient component & some excellent extreme metal drumming. How could I not love that?! The mature use of melody, the knack for building tension & the inherent creativity are simply so impressive. "U.M.A." is the perfect Metal Academy feature release in my opinion as it's criminally underrated & underappreciated.
4.5/5
Lucifer's Friend's most acclaimed moment is a clear example of plagiarism with the horn part exactly emulating Robert Plant screams in "Immigrant Song" which was released just a month earlier.
Let's kick off our deep dive into the self-titled Lucifer's Friend album with their most popular track "Ride The Sky":
Metal or not? Subgenre? I've got this one down as heavy metal. It sounds exactly like Deep Purple's more metallic moments only with that obvious bit of Led Zeppelin plagiarism. Great song though regardless.
Fair enough. FYI I had two other tracks listed as potential for December but I didn't feel that they were quite as strong as the Black Sabbath & Sir Lord Baltimore songs so they didn't make the cut. Feel free to swap those out with either (or both) of these if you'd prefer to go that way:
Trouble - "A Sinner's Fame" (from "Trouble", 1990) [Stoner metal]
Darkthrone - "Forest of Darkness" (from "Frostland Tapes", 2008) [Death doom metal]
This one didn't do a lot for me to be honest. It's overly long & the zombie apocalypse theme doesn't really suit Deceased's sound as they're simply not deathly or grimy enough to pull it off in my opinion. I dunno about it being a death/thrash release either as I hear very little legitimate death metal here. It's just a thrash record with vocals that sound like Venom’s Cronos as far as I can see.
3/5
Cathedral - "In Memoriam" demo (1990)
God damn, I love me some early Cathedral & their 1990 demo tape is just about the very definition of pure doom for mine. I sought it out back in the mid-90's after purchasing their groovier 1993 sophomore record "The Ethereal Mirror" & realising that Cathedral may never be the same again. If you can't get enough of their debut album "Forest of Equilibrium" then this should be essential listening.
4.5/5
Here's my adjusted Top Ten Conventional Doom Metal Releases of All Time list:
01. Pig Destroyer - “Natasha” E.P. (2008)
02. Ufomammut & Lento - "Supernaturals - Record One" (2007)
03. Celtic Frost - "Monotheist" (2006)
04. Warning - "Watching From A Distance" (2006)
05. Cathedral - "Forest Of Equilibrium" (1991)
06. Anathema - "The Silent Enigma" (1995)
07. M.S.W. - "Obliviosus" (2020)
08. The Electric Wizard - "We Live" (2004)
09. Cathedral - "In Memoriam" demo (1990)
10. My Dying Bride - "The Angel & The Dark River" (1995)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/128
I spoke to Ben about it this afternoon & we're comfortable for you to follow whatever direction you'd like on this topic as long as you're consistent Sonny.
Candlemass - "Candlemass Live" (1990)
I hadn't heard this release before but jeez it's a solid live effort which shouldn't come as any surprise given that it came right at the end of their classic run of 1980's albums. The Mercyful Fate-ish lead guitar work & the vocals of Messiah Marcolin are simply superb. I place this one behind only the first two studio albums in terms of Candlemass' discography overall.
4/5
I actually took a similar position to yourself on this topic to begin with Sonny. It wasn't until Vinny submitted a couple of tracks from releases taken from outside the designated clans that I started to question myself. I think they might have been thrash tracks from death metal releases from memory. Upon listening to the tracks in question I found myself struggling to disagree with him that they fit nicely on the relevant playlist & I thought it a shame not to include them given that they wouldn't fit comfortably on their own clan's playlists so would essentially be ineligible for inclusion on ANY playlist. So I decided to relax my position on the topic & these days I have much more of a problem with the occasional incident where people select a track from a The Fallen album that very clearly doesn't sound like The Fallen so will essentially dilute the playlist. I think that's much more of a problem personally.
And finally, the final track from "Kingdom Come" in "Ain't Got Hung On You"? Metal or not? Subgenre?
I've got this one down as a dirty blues rock track which means that I've only found a single metal track on "Kingdom Come" in the title track so I can't justify the claims that it's a metal record. Anyone got a different result?
We'll start to look at the self-titled 1970 Lucifer's Friend album from tomorrow.
It's an interesting question Sonny. Personally, I see no problem with selecting one-off tracks that I feel fall comfortably into different clans than the album they're drawn from. In this case I feel that our The Fallen members are the most likely to enjoy them so it makes sense to me. I mean, what's the point of including them in a The Guardians playlist when they'll sound a bit out of place & are better suited to another clan? If you disagree that these tracks are traditional doom metal & stoner metal respectively then you're free to omit them. I've always left it up to the playlist owners to make the final call uncontested on these things.
For the record though, I firmly believe that the "Black Sabbath" album is better suited to The Fallen than The Guardians anyway. There's currently a Hall of Judgement poll running for it.
No nominations from me this month Andi.
No nominations from me this month Andi.
Here are my nominations for the December playlist Vinny:
Exodus - "The Last Act Of Defiance" (from "Fabulous Disaster", 1989) [Thrash metal]
Hellish - "The Ancient Entity Of The Darkest Light" (from "The Dance of the Four Elemental Serpents", 2022) [Thrash metal]
Nihilist - "Sentenced To Death" (from "Carnal Leftovers", 2005) [Death/thrash]
Scatterbrain - "Here Comes Trouble" (from "Here Comes Trouble", 1990) [Thrash metal]
Motorhead - "Locomotive" (from "No Remorse", 1984) [Speed metal]
Iced Earth - "The Funeral" (from "Iced Earth", 1990) [Thrash metal/US power metal]
Here are my nominations for December Ben:
Windir - "On The Mountain Of Goats" (from "Likferd", 2003)
Sarcofago - "Satanas (2nd Version)" (from "Die... Hard!!!", 2015)
Darkthrone - "A Blaze In The Northern Sky" (from "Frostland Tapes", 2008)
Here are my December nominations:
Xecutioner - "Find The Arise" (from "1986 Demo" demo, 1986)
Sarcofago - "Satanic Lust (Instrumental)" (from "Die... Hard!!!", 2015)
Darkthrone - "Land of Frost" (from "Land of Frost" demo, 1988)
Nihilist - "Supposed to Rot" (from "Premature Autopsy", 1988)
Napalm Death - "Rise Above" (from "Mentally Murdered" E.P., 1989)
Neuropath - "Incantations of Decrepit Nihilism" (from "Desert of Excruciation" demo, 1995)
Here's my nomination for the December playlist Xephyr:
Mercyful Fate - "Curse Of The Pharaohs" (from "The Beginning", 1987)
No member track nominations included this month Xephyr?
Here's my nomination for the December playlist Saxy:
Living Colour - "Type" (from "Time's Up", 1990)
Here are my submissions for the December playlist Sonny:
Black Sabbath - "Black Sabbath" (from "Black Sabbath", 1970)
Plateau Sigma - "Maira & the Archangel" (from "White Wings of Nightmares", 2013)
Sir Lord Baltimore - "Kingdom Come" (from "Kingdom Come", 1970)
November 2023
01. Sadist – “Perversion Lust Orgasm” (from “Crust”, 1997)
02. Amorphis – “On Rich & Poor” (from “Elegy”, 1996)
03. Adramalech – “The Book Of The Worm” (from “Psychostasia”, 1996) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]
04. Edge of Sanity – “Crimson, Pt. 1” (from “Crimson”, 1996) [Submitted by Daniel]
05. Godgory – “In Silence Forever” (from “Sea of Dreams”, 1995)
06. VoidCeremony – “Forlorn Portrait: Ruins of an Ageless Slumber” (from “Threads of Unknowing”, 2023) [Submitted by Daniel]
07. Hypocrisy – “Roswell 47” (from “Abducted”, 1996)
08. Baring Teeth – “An Illusion of Multiple Voices” (from “Ghost Chorus Among Old Ruins”, 2014)
09. Pestilence – “Malleus Maleficarum/Anthropomorphia” (from “Malleus Maleficarum”, 1988) [Submitted by Daniel]
10. Blind Equation – “Fade Away” (from “Death Awaits”, 2023)
11. Immolation – “Burn With Jesus” (from “Here In After”, 1996) [Submitted by Sonny]
12. Vader – “Blood Of Kingu” (from “De Profundis”, 1995) [Submitted by Sonny]
13. Deicide – “They Are The Children Of The Underworld” (from “Once Upon The Cross”, 1995) [Submitted by Sonny]
14. Leng Tch’e – “Derisive Conscience” (from “The Process of Elimination”, 2005)
15. Torture Rack – “Forced From The Pit” (from “Primeval Onslaught”, 2023) [Submitted by Sonny]
16. Nile – “I Whisper In The Ear Of The Dead” (from “In Their Darkened Shrines”, 2002) [Submitted by Daniel]
17. Oni – “Creature of Chaos” (from “Incantation Superstition”, 2023) [Submitted by Sonny]
18. Necrophobic – “Nailing The Holy One” (from “Darkside”, 1997) [Submitted by Sonny]
19. Gorerotted – “Dead Drunk” (from “A New Dawn For The Dead”, 2005)
20. Cryptopsy – “Pathological Frolic” (from “Blasphemy Made Flesh”, 1994) [Submitted by Sonny]
21. Birdflesh – “Coffinfucker” (from “Night of the Ultimate Mosh”, 2002)
22. Exumed – “Clawing” (from “Horror”, 2019) [Submitted by Sonny]
23. Abyssal – “I Am The Alpha & The Omega” (from “Antikatastaseis”, 2015)
24. Altarage – “Cataract” (from “Worst Case Scenario”, 2023) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]
25. First Days of Humanity – “Chainsaw Dripping With Cum” (from “Atrocities” E.P., 2020)
26. Circle of Dead Children – “Destiny Of The Slug” (from “Human Harvest”, 2003)
27. Last Days Of Humanity – “Garbagebag With Human Waste” (from “Last Days of Humanity/Lymphatic Phlegm” split, 2004)
28. Phyllomedusa – “Covered With Slime As Decoration II” (from “Desiccation in Progress (Version II)”, 2011) [Submitted by Daniel]
29. Napalm Death – “Morbid Deceiver” (from “The Curse” E.P., 1988) [Submitted by Daniel]
30. Ozigiri – “Girl At The Grave” (from “おじぎりなら死にましたけど?” E.P., 2020)
31. XavlegbmaofffassssitimiwoamndutroabcwapwaeiippohfffX – “Gore” (from “Gore” E.P., 2016) [Submitted by Daniel]
32. Disgorge – “Womb Full Of Scabs” (from “She Lay Gutted”, 1999)
33. Regurgitation – “Acid Enema” (from “Tales of Necrophilia”, 1999)
34. Coprocephalic – “Concrete Exhumation” (from “Gluttonous Chunks”, 2013)
35. Vulvectomy – “Abdominal Ectopic Pregnancy” (from “Abusing Dismembered Beauties”, 2013)
How about "Helium Head (I Got A Love)"? Metal or not? Subgenre?
I've got blues rock/heavy psych on this one.
Which word? “Hard” or “rock”?
I had to start at 9 AM today so they could prepare for me. It took a full two hours to get here. I’m hoping to do a 7 AM start in future.
Iced Earth - "Iced Earth" (1990)
I picked up the self-titled debut album from Florida US power metallers Iced Earth through tape trading back in the early 1990's & quite enjoyed it but this revisit has seen me bumping my score up a touch. I simply adore the rhythm guitar work of Jon Schaffer who may be the best exponent of his craft to ever pick up a plectrum. It's a total thrash riffathon which easily makes up for the fact that Gene Adam's vocals are a little bit dodgy in compariosn to later singers, sounding much more similar to Teutonic thrash front men like Schmier (Destruction) or Thorsten Bergmann (Living Death). This release is just as much of a thrash metal release as it is a US power metal one with the influences having been drawn equally from "Master of Puppets"-era Metallica & from classic Iron Maiden which works beautifully. "Iced Earth" is an underrated release that should really be essential listening for fans of both genres.
4/5
Here's my updated Top Ten US Power Metal Releases of All Time with Griffin's "Flight of the Griffin" now dropping out of the list:
01. Crimson Glory - "Crimson Glory" (1986)
02. Iced Earth - "Alive in Athens" (1999)
03. Manowar - "Into Glory Ride" (1983)
04. Medieval Steel - "Medieval Steel" E.P. (1984)
05. Crimson Glory - "Transcendence" (1988)
06. Iced Earth - "Iced Earth" (1990)
07. Metal Church - "Blessing In Disguise" (1989)
08. Queenryche - "The Warning" (1984)
09. Riot - "ThunderSteel" (1988)
10. Fates Warning - "The Spectre Within" (1985)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/127
On the other side of the coin, is Blondie's 1980 hit single "Call Me" (which was written by Italian Giorgio Moroder) not built on a suspiciously similar riff to the main one in Black Sabbath's "Children Of The Grave"?
How about "Hell Hound"? Metal or not? Subgenre?
This one is Led Zeppelin-inspired hard rock for mine.
Not at this stage Sonny but I'm sure the label could be convinced if the demand was there.
I start my new job tomorrow which of course means that I’ll be driving for at least three hours of every business day. That’s gonna give me plenty of time for listening to metal but very little for writing reviews so don’t be surprised if there’s a significant decrease in my usual quota guys.
In other news, I’ve negotiated for the Neuropath CD to go up on Spotify which is pretty fucking awesome.
Sanctuary - "Into The Mirror Black" (1990)
I’ve certainly heard bits & pieces of Seattle US power metal outfit Sanctuary over the years but strangely haven’t ever felt like committing to a full release up until now. Perhaps that’s an indication that nothing I’d heard from them previously had impressed me enough to warrant it? That could be the case but I tend to believe it’s just been a mixture of laziness & coincidence. Anyway, I thought I’d start with Sanctuary’s most widely celebrated record in their 1990 sophomore album “Into The Mirror Black” given that Ben gave it a rave review many years ago.
“Into The Mirror Black” is certainly a consistent record as Sanctuary don’t appear to be capable of delivering anything particularly subpar. Theirs is quite a simple version of heavy metal though with the riffs not being terribly complex & the song-writing relying heavily on theatrical front man Warrel Dane to bring it all home for them. His style has always left me in two minds though if I’m being honest. I do really dig those Rob Halford-esque shrieks but then I’m not entirely onboard at other times, particularly when he heads a little too close to King Diamond territory as only the King seems to get away with that stuff in my house.
Sanctuary are certainly well suited to the US power metal tag as they seem to fit the subgenre description to a tee given that their sound is essentially a chunkier, thrashier take on heavy metal with theatrical higher-register vocals, never actually touching on full-blown thrash metal though. I’m just not sure that “Into the Mirror Black” is the best example of the movement if I’m being honest. Despite there not being any weak tracks included, I struggle to identify any songs that nail their hooks well enough to see them reaching transcendent levels of jubilation. Instead, the better material seems to hover in that “very solid” space with the remainder of the album consistently achieving a frustrating “quite good” mark, despite the clear potential Sanctuary offer. I even gave the album a full four listens to give it the chance to dig its teeth in but it couldn’t quite manage to breach my defences. The thrashier & more exciting tracks in the back end of the tracklisting were where I was most successful with “Seasons of Destruction” & “Communion” being my clear picks of the bunch.
At the end of the day, I don’t think “Into The Mirror Black” will disappoint too many people. It’s an admirable US power metal record with high quality production & performances after all. It just doesn’t really compete with Dane & bassist Jim Sheppard’s later band Nevermore in my opinion so I can’t say that I find it to be as essential as many claim it to be. If you go absolutely nuts for bands like Helstar or Metal Church then you’ll no doubt disagree with me but I’m sure you’re all aware by now that I call ‘em like I see ‘em.
3.5/5
I think it's too accurate to be classed as inspiration personally. I'd suggest that (intentionally or subconsciously) it's likely an example of plagiarism.
Here's another one that I find hard to believe can be coincidental:
Both albums were released in 1973 but I'm led to believe that the Vanusa one came first.
How about "I Got A Woman"? Metal or not? Subgenre?
I've got it down as a blues rock/heavy psych hybrid.
Blind Guardian - "Tales From The Twilight World" (1990)
Most of our regulars will likely be aware that German legends Blind Guardian are one of the rare European power metal exponents that I can generally tolerate. In fact, I can confidently say that I've enjoyed everything I've heard from them to date which includes 1992's "Somewhere Far Beyond", 1994's "Imaginations From the Other Side", 1998's "Nightfall in Middle-Earth" & 2003's "Live". It only makes sense that I complete the full set of their essential releases though so I recently decided to add their 1990 "Tales From The Twilight World" third album to the list in the hope of similarly positive experiences. Unfortunately, that hasn't really eventuated though.
"Tales From The Twilight World" is known as Blind Guardian's first true power metal record after their first two studio efforts were directed more towards speed metal. Don't kid yourself though, there's still plenty of speed metal on offer here as the European brand of power metal is pretty much built on the stuff but there's comfortably enough anthemic epicness to warrant the album's power metal claim. And that goes a long way to explaining my struggles with this record too to tell you the truth. Blind Guardian's later material offered significantly more maturity than this album can muster. Instead, their third full-length reminds me a lot of their less appealing German peers in that the performances & musicianship are high class but the hooks are often lacklustre & cheesy, particularly the backing vocals which regularly see me wincing. It's really only short instrumental "Weird Dreams" & album highlight "Goodbye My Friend" that offer me much in the way of enjoyment here which is disappointing after having experienced a record of the quality of "Imaginations From the Other Side".
"Tales From The Twilight World' is comfortably the weakest Blind Guardian record I've heard to date but I don't even try to deny that I'm not its target audience either. There's no doubt that it'll offer a lot more appeal to people that bow down & worship at the feet of Eurpean bands like Helloween & Gamma Ray but I'm not gonna kid anyone that that's me.
3/5
I didn’t reject any argument for Lucifer’s Friend Morpheus. You said it wasn’t a metal release & I took your word for it as I haven’t heard it. I was also conscious that RYM has a largely negative vote tally for "Lucifer's Friend" which isn't the case for "Budgie" so was looking for some sort of justification. I’m perfectly happy to include it if you think it’s justified.
I was kind of throwing it over to everyone else's judgment as considerable debate amount it and it might be interesting to discuss.
Morpheus, I thought it'd be worth me giving "Lucifer's Friend" a few listens this week in order to see what we're dealing with & would subsequently suggest that it's much more of a hard rock/heavy psych record than a metal one. It's only got about one & a half songs worth of metal in my opinion but it's probably worth noting that I said exactly the same thing about "Deep Purple in Rock" which seems pretty similar in terms of metal content to be honest. In fact, Lucifer's Friend sound a lot like Deep Purple on this album which is a fucking great record too just quietly.
The Half-Life track was released around six months earlier than "Paranoid". You be the judge.
The very roots of our beloved metal genre have an air of plagiarism hanging over them actually with the undeniable classic of a doom riff from the original metal song "Black Sabbath" having been derived as a variation on a section of this classical piece that was written between 1914 & 1917. Check out the part at 4:30 in "Mars, The Bringer Of War" that Geezer Butler played to Tony Iommi back in the day & compare it to Sabbath's title track.
Personally I feel that it's much more appropriate to call that inspiration than anything like plagiarism as the two have such different timbres. Thoughts?
How about the title track from "Kingdom Come"? Metal or not? Subgenre?
An easy one. Pure Sabbath-inspired stoner metal. Sounds very different to the rest of the album.