RockRoast

When I found out about the True Symphonic Rockestra project about a year ago, I was very much intrigued by it. Apparently some guy over in Germany wanted to use a rock singer and two trained opera singers to perform heavy metal versions of classic Three Tenors songs. It seemed like, if properly executed, it could turn out very well. So when the True Symphonic Rockestra’s album, Concerto in True Minor, was released, I made sure to pick it up. And I was disappointed to discover that, in a discouraging number of ways, it wasn’t properly executed.

Let’s get the negative stuff out of the way first. Here are the problems with Concerto in True Minor:

1. Vocal Performances
The three singers that project leader Dirk Ulrich recruited were Thomas Dewald, professor for vocals at the University of Mainz, Vladimir Grishko, Cultural Minister of the Ukraine, and James LaBrie, vocalist for Dream Theater. Each of these singers is clearly talented in his own right, but each seemed to be a bit out of his element. LaBrie sounded like he was trying to maximize the operatic quality of his voice by forcing vibrato in places he wouldn’t normally use it. Meanwhile, Grishko’s and Dewald’s parts sound rushed as they struggled to keep up with a more aggressive style of music than they are used to performing.

2. Too Many Songs and Not Enough Song
There are twenty-one tracks on Concerto in True Minor. Considering it plays for a bit over 46 minutes, the average track length comes to two minutes and ten or fifteen seconds. There are classic punk bands that would be proud of that figure.

Obviously, TSR is not punk. The reason so many of their songs are under two minutes is the use of medleys. There are three of them: “A Tribute to Hollywood,” “Cat Stories from West Side,” and “Around the World.” Each medley consists of three or four songs that have been trimmed and unceremoniously shoved up against each other. While this setup allows TSR to cover a larger number of songs in a relatively short amount of time, none of these songs is able to reach its full potential.

This is especially tragic with “Moon River,” a favorite of mine. The arrangements and performances are all good, if a bit rushed. But less than a minute and a half into the song, it suddenly becomes “Singing in the Rain.” The emotional impact of “Moon River” is lost because the song hasn’t been properly developed. The other medleys suffer a similar fate. It’s the sonic equivalent of eating undercooked food.

3. Strings vs. Guitars
It’s a heavy metal album, so it follows logically that there will be some loud guitars involved. But Christoph Wansleben’s strings were often pushed further back in the mix than I’d have liked. It’s unfortunate especially because the strings are consistently fantastic and the guitar work is spotty. Many of the guitar parts are boring and repetitive. For example, “Singing in the Rain” is nearly unlistenable due to the relentlessly chugging guitar that, if it weren’t for the key change halfway through, would have only played two chords. Not only does this ruin the intended mood of the song, but it makes its ninety-second duration seem much, much longer.

Now on to the good things:

1. String Arrangements
Yes, I believe I’ve already addressed this. But the string arrangements are beautiful, so it’s worth saying mentioning it again.

2. Song Choices
TSR’s website made a big deal about how they picked songs that everyone would know, and when I looked over the tracklisting a few months ago, I was a bit skeptical. But on my first listen to the disc, I was impressed to find that almost everything I heard sounded familiar, even the stuff in foreign languages. Apparently Mr. Ulrich knew what he was talking about.

Pretty much all of the songs were good to begin with, which makes them harder to mess up. TSR only managed to slaughter a handful of them, and just as many came out sounding great. The songs that were selected did a lot to lift the album up.

3. Vocals
Yes, the vocals were cited as being a problem. So am I contradicting myself? Yes and no. Even though a lot of the singing seemed a bit off, I guess this kind of talent manages to show itself every now and then regardless of the circumstances. There were some wonderful if isolated vocal moments. LaBrie’s final words on “Nessun Dorma” are masterfully delivered and the first half of the vocals on “Moon River” gives me the chills. (I think “Moon River” is sung by Grishko, but I’m not entirely sure because the liner notes don’t specify who sings lead on any of the songs. So it could have been Dewald. But it was really good, whoever it was.)

The weird thing is that, even though there were a lot of things about Concerto in True Minor that I didn’t like, I find myself desperately hoping that TSR will decide to make another album. I think the reason for that is that all these mistakes are easily remedied. With the possible exception of the guitar work, everything I disliked could just have resulted from these guys trying to do something that hadn’t been done before. Armed with the experience that this album gave them, I really think that The True Symphonic Rockestra could go back into the studio and come up with something much better the second time around.

Just so long as somebody tells Mr. Ulrich to diversify his guitar parts a bit.

Best Performance: Christoph Wansleben, string arrangements and first violin

Worst Performance: Dirk Ulrich, guitar

Buy it if: You’re an opera/show tunes fan, you’re a heavy metal fan, or you’re in the mood for something a little unconventional.

Score: 6/10

Available at Amazon.com
Top Albums of 2008 To Date

In Flames has been around for a long time. And at this point, when it’s been almost fifteen years since their debut, it’s reasonable to question whether or not they’re going downhill. But the answer to that isn’t going to be as simple as you might expect.

Fans of “classic” In Flames may be disappointed, as the band’s latest release, A Sense of Purpose, is in many ways an extension of 2006’s Come Clarity. Those who treasure The Jester Race and Whoracle will be disappointed to find little use of true death growling on A Sense of Purpose. Most of the growls have been replaced by throaty screams, which, in several cases, are even less melodic. But just like on Come Clarity, vocalist Anders Friden has included a light dusting of straightforward clean singing. Even though I’m not normally a huge fan of growls, I kind of wish they’d included a few more just to make the balance between growls, screams, and clean vocals a bit more interesting and a bit more pleasing.

Musically, though, In Flames hasn’t jumped the shark just yet. The usual characteristics are all there: the harmonized guitars, the heavy riffs mixed with melodic leads and the frequent use of acoustic guitars all feature prominently in the sound of the new album. Over the past few years, some fans have mourned In Flames’ shift toward a nu metal sound. But the movement doesn’t reek of a band selling out. It’s only the logical evolution of a band that’s been around too long to still be doing exactly what they started out doing. And, since it’s led to the inclusion of more clean singing, I’m not so much against this shift. It has resulted in arguably spottier albums but it’s also produced several individual songs of superior quality. And though A Sense of Purpose has an unfortunate number of songs that run together indistinguishably, the record manages to hold its head above water with its standout tracks.

One of these songs is “The Chosen Pessimist,” an eight-minute miniature epic featuring clean lead vocals for both the verses and the choruses. Friden’s vocal performance is, as usual, a bit unconventional. His words are drenched in the emotion of the song and not so saturated with vocal prowess. But even though he’s sobbing more than singing in some places, the entire song comes off as a personal, deeply emotional piece because of it. It’s a wonderful performance and a prime example of how to deliver as a vocalist without showing off.

Beyond the singing, though, “The Chosen Pessimist” is a near masterpiece. One of its few flaws is the mellow introduction that, while musically pleasing, takes too long to build up and push the song into full swing. But once the introduction is out of the way, “The Chosen Pessimist” shines. And once the final desperately hopeful lyrics are delivered, the music swells into a lushly layered, partially orchestral climax before finishing with an abrupt and somewhat unsatisfying ending. In spite of the ending, though, the song is a work of art surpassing all my other favorites from In Flames.

But “The Chosen Pessimist,” while easily the best song, is not the only standout track. “The Mirror’s Truth,” “Disconnected” and “Alias” are also worthy of repeat listens.

Overall, A Sense of Purpose is an imperfect but worthwhile album. Some of the songs sound too similar and the last few tracks are particularly boring. But more importantly, it demonstrates to skeptics of In Flames’ future that the band still have plenty to contribute to the music world.

Buy it if: You don’t mind throaty vocals, you’re a death metal collector, or you need something good to listen to when you’re feeling depressed.

Score: 6/10

Available at Amazon.com

Top Albums of 2008 To Date

Firewind used to have a lot of problems. Their first two albums were plagued by bland, unmelodic guitar work, weak songwriting, and subpar vocalists. But with 2005’s Forged By Fire, the songwriting noticeably improved. And 2006’s Allegiance marked the band’s inclusion of Apollo Papathanosio, finally giving them a satisfactory singer. And their most recent release, The Premonition, features some of the band’s best guitar work to date as well as offering slight improvements in vocals and songwriting.

The opener, “Into the Fire,” throws the listener into heavy metal fury following a brief if adventurous acoustic introduction. Unfortunately, that introduction is the just about the last breath until the disc is finished. While the music contained in The Premonition’s forty-five-minute playing time is generally pretty good, it lacks depth and diversity. Between the ten songs there are few variations in tempo or dynamics. It is this lack of balance that makes a continuous listen somewhat difficult. Perhaps the record is best appreciated by its individual tracks.

“Mercenary Man” was wisely selected as the single in the band’s native Greece. It’s easily one of the strongest songs on the record and arguably the best of Firewind’s career. The song features a calmer verse that slowly builds to a heavier chorus. Coupled with some of Gus G.’s finest guitar work and an emotional performance from vocalist Papathanosio, “Mercenary Man” comes across as a prime example of what good power metal is supposed to sound like.

“My Loneliness,” is The Premonition’s nearest approximation of a ballad. Gus G. shines again on the atmospheric verses, but the spotlight is again on Papathanosio during the uplifting choruses. More importantly, however, the song is indicative of an entire band coming together to deliver an admirable performance as a cooperative unit.

“Maniac,” a Michael Sembello cover, has a great tune. It’s not exactly beautiful, but it’s fun and it’s irresistibly catchy. Babis Katsionis’ keyboard shines throughout as one of the driving forces behind the song. “Maniac” is unforgettable and it’s bound to get hopelessly stuck in many fans’ heads.

The closer, “Life Foreclosed,” ends the album well. The verses supply some atmospheric relief from the metal onslaught of the last forty minutes, but Firewind preferred to go out with a bang and a heavy, repetitive riff behind Papathanosio’s gruff chanting of the title lyric. Something about Papathanosio’s phrasing on those last few words seem to lend a kind of credibility to the ending, as if the way he says them forces the listener to understand that the album is over and it ended exactly where it was supposed to. I get that impression every time I listen to “Life Foreclosed,” and it’s very difficult to describe. But it’s a wonderful effect, although I can’t say I understand it.

The other five songs fall somewhere between mediocrity and noteworthiness. The tracklisting is a bit weak, causing The Premonition to peak too early (“Mercenary Man,” track 3) and letting it drag a bit in the second half. But more importantly, most of the songs are very strong. On average, the melodies are better, the guitar work is better, and the arrangements are better in comparison to the vast majority of Firewind’s catalog. It is a marked improvement from their previous efforts, and though the band occasionally slips into the same old mistakes they used to make, The Premonition is a solid album.

Best Performance: Gus G., guitar. It’s his guitar and his songs that define Firewind’s sound.

Worst Performance: Petros Christodoylidis, bass guitar. He never seemed to do anything particularly cool and he never got a solo. Plus he got pushed back in the mix a bit too often. Poor guy got stuffed.

Buy it if: You’re a power metal fan, you’re a sucker for a good tune, or if Gus G. corners you in a dark alley and puts a gun to your head.

Score: 7/10

Available at Firewind’s official website.

Top Albums of 2008 To Date