What was better was that you couldn't argue with the line-up of talent that was drawn to make this happen. The brainchild of Edguy front man Tobias Sammet who also contributed keyboards, we have Gamma Ray's guitarist Henjo Richter, Helloween's bassist Markus Grosskopf and Rhapsody of Fire's drummer Alex Holzwarth. Along with the band, just some of the vocalists lending their support to the project to support Tobi's main character of Gabriel Laymann are Michael Kiske of Helloween fame as well as other projects, Rob Rock of Impellitteri and other bands, Andre Matos of Angra, Timo Tolkki of Stratovarius and Kai Hansen of Gamma Ray. Sharon den Adel from Within Temptation is excellent in "Farewell". A terrific line-up.
In the long run, you can take or leave the story that is being told here if you like (if you are interested, the Wikipedia page can be found here), but none of it would work unless the songs and the vocals made it so. And there is no danger of that not occurring here. "Reach Out For the Light" is a brilliant song, mixing the wonderful vocals of Sammet and Kiske along with some magnificent guitaring from Henjo. The whole song is a triumph, and sets the album off at a cracking pace. While the mood of the album meanders throughout as the story changes, it is anchored in that power metal style, with everyone's nuances combining excellently. Henjo Richter's distinctive solo's are wonderful, Markus Grosskopf's bassline's are just as powerful as they are in Helloween, Alex Holzwarth's drumming is just scintillating in places, and helps to set the stage for each song. Not only is it powerful, and the tempo just right in all respects, it has been set up perfectly by the producer and sound engineer - it doesn't become overpowering, but it is also prevalent in each song. Just wonderful.
The middle of the album rocks along, with "Serpents in Paradise", "Breaking Away" and "The Glory of Rome", with David DeFeis and Rob Rock making great contributions. "Avantasia" is the big anthemic piece of the album, the one crowds would no doubt find to be the feel good song of an operatic production.
Given Kiske's stated preference for less heavy material, it is somewhat amusing that the slower balladesque "Inside" has vocals by Kai Hansen, something he also does well, though to be honest I would loved to have heard him on something faster. Instead, Kiske powerfully brings home the closer "The Tower" to finish off the album in an uplifting speed metal way.
Tobi Sammet is prominent most of the way through the album, and his vocals are terrific throughout. Having made several albums with his band Edguy before The Metal Opera, this became a halcyon period for him, with this album and its sequel, as well as what I consider his best Edguy albums, Mandrake and Hellfire Club, all in this four year period. He is wonderfully supported by Michael Kiske who, having suffered somewhat from his post-Helloween days and statements that he was uninterested in the metal genre, shows here exactly how talented he is. His vocals on this album are the equal of anything else he has ever done. I don't think it is any coincidence that probably the five best songs on the album - "Reach Out For the Light", "Breaking Away", "Farewell", "Avantasia" and "The Tower" - are the five songs where Kiske and Sammet perform together. They are brilliant together. The music throughout is amazing and brilliantly performed by the four piece already mentioned.
In the long run this all-star production more than holds its own as an album of substance, creating and showing off the best that this genre of metal has to offer. It may not be seen as a real opera, but in heavy metal it is an album that it can be proud of in showcasing the great talent of the industry.
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