1058. Symphony X / V: The New Mythology Suite. 2000. 4/5

From the very beginning Symphony X has produced albums of the highest quality, that are immediately catchy and have all the hallmarks of the best musicians going around. Building this reputation throughout the 1990’s the dawn of the new millennium brought forth their fifth album, one that drew together all the best pieces of their music that they had written to this time, and began to push them in a direction that would define the future sound of the band.

People have said that it sounds like a movie soundtrack, which isn’t a bad comparison given it is a concept album in its own right. Orchestrally (through the keys of Michael Pinella of course) it has very much that feel to it, which highlights the progressive nature of the music. The music fits the purpose, with the story of being told through the lyrics. Whether you are inclined to enjoy a concept album for the story or not is not as relevant as how much you enjoy the songs themselves, and once again the band has done a great job under the direction of the supreme Michael Romeo. Are there moments it gets a bit much? For me there are a few pieces that it goes too far in the progressive nature, where the keyboards are too much of the picture and the vocals are too high and airy, and a sense of power and momentum gets lost. This is a small thing to pick at, but it is there all the same.
How accessible Symphony X’s music is will always be a matter of debate. Every single one of the band members are magnificent on their chosen instrument. Russell Allen’s vocals are quite amazing, continuing to explore regions that many cannot with their vocal chords. Because of the nature of the songs written he often has to move to higher regions which he has little trouble in succeeding to do. Michael Pinnella’s keyboards and synths are a masterpiece, constantly able to create an atmosphere that defies and expands the songs as they are written. On these songs he has managed to make each song sound fuller and packed solid just through his own playing, and that is quite an achievement. Jason Rullo’s drumming on his return to the band is just as fantastic, driving the album along as the pace it deserves and requires. Bass guitarist Michael Lepond joins here for his first album with the band and makes his presence felt immediately with those rolling fingers up and down the fretboard giving that bottom end a perfect base. On top of all of this is the maestro Michael Romeo whose guitaring once again is a standout, able to switch between the songs where his input is more in the background of the orchestral arrangement and the songs where he takes centre stage and shows off his wares in a flurry. All of this together sometimes can scare off the average music listener, who don’t want this kind of sound throughout their songs. They want simple, straight to the point songs with a riff, maybe a solo, some lyrics and finish. That’s not what Symphony X do, they explore the ether of the progressive metal elements, pushing beyond what may feel like a simple length for a song and continue where others fear to tread. In the same way that Dream Theater has done for so many years, this album gives you everything and more.

This proved to be a bridge between the opening age of Symphony X and its future. Behind lay the progressive stage with those passages that sometimes sounded like a freeform metal song archive, driven in the first by the keys and synths. Coming up became the heavier definition of the band, where the music and vocals took that metal edge and began to explore what they could do with it. V: The New Mythology Suite is the bridge of the transformation, and the walk across is just as satisfying as the view of what is on the other side.

Rating: “Living by the law of the ages, prophets and sages forging Utopia”. 4/5

844. Symphony X / Underworld. 2015. 5/5

The past two Symphony X albums have somewhat divided the band's loyal fanbase, with many of the long term fans believing that they had moved away from their core sound of progressive metal, and had transgressed into a much heavier sound that did not suit their music. Others on the other hand believed that this transfer to a heavier sound in fact enhanced their music, and was a real step forward. Well, the fans from the first category can rejoice, as the new album Underworld makes a concerted effort to reincorporate the progressive side of Symphony X.

There is no doubt that the musical progression in Paradise Lost and Iconoclast was to a heavier sound than the band had done previous to this, and while that is still prevalent here on the new album, it does sound as though the band was conscious of allowing a bit more of their progressive nature to seep back into the songs here. And that's terrific. You can't argue with the music this band has made over the years, and by ensuring they are keeping their roots as a part of their music in the current day is a terrific thing. Everything you expect from the band is still here, if slightly modified from those two previous albums.
The band has once again composed another fantastic opening instrumental piece, starting the album off with rising anticipation. This immediately crashes into "Nevermore", which races along at an impressive speed from all involved. The chorus reminds me eerily of a Fear Factory chorus, though with significant differences in vocal technique, but the similarity is there all the same. From "Nevermore" the album moves into the title track "Underworld", which mixes moments of heaviness with moments such as Russell Allen singing a bridge across Michael Pinnella's keyboards that brings goosebumps, closely followed by Michael Romeo's scintillating guitar solo. Here is where the true coming together of the two halves occurs, progressive and pure metal in the same song, co-habitating in idyllic conditions. This is offset by the almost serene start to "Without You", one of the two power ballads which find their way into the mix of the album. The keyboards in the middle remind me of the start of UFO's "Love to Love", before it falls back into the chorus, ringing through in melody. Then, just to show there can be no real rhyme or reason to track listing sometimes, the heavy guitar, bass and drums thump back into gear with "Kiss of Fire", a song at the complete other end of the spectrum from "Without You". terrific song, but somewhat out of character with the previous song.
"Charon" kicks off with that awesome Michael Romeo guitar riffing followed by Russell's brilliant vocal work rising through the atmosphere... but then does it just lose its focus a little? Probably not, and certainly once you reach the solo break it switches back into gear, but for a moment it seems to sail along with gathering any momentum at all. "To Hell and Back" is the longest song on the album and one that doesn't scrimp on the solo work, and doesn't overly compromise on the song structure. Russell's vocals shine here in a situation where he can utilise his magnificent vocal range through the different phases of the song. Truly magnificent.
"In My Darkest Hour" is perhaps the most obvious heaviest song on the song, mixing hard nosed vocals with the speed and hard-hitting drums of Jason Rullo and the rumbling undercurrent of Michael Lepond's bass guitar.
"Run With the Devil" really has elements of Foreigner or Journey thrown into the mix - not as obviously as allowing the whole song to be dictated by them, but certainly through the chorus those similarities because much more obvious. Then of course it crashes back into the verse or the solo break and those similarities sink into the mire.
"Swansong" is the Symphony X version of a power ballad, and if you have to have a power ballad in your arsenal (and let's face it, you either love them or hate them) then it may as well be one like this. Michael Pinnella's keyboards come noticeably to the forefront in this song, the pace slows down, and the vocals begin to soar in harmony rather than with power and authority. It sounds great, but my stance on the power ballad hasn't changed. This then molds its way into the album closer "Legend", which completes the album in fine style.

Underworld is yet another fantastic album from a band that has a proven track record in regards to its album releases. This should be able to satisfy both halves of the Symphony X fan base, with the mix between pure heavy and progressive metal done so well that it fits together seamlessly. Now all that needs to happen is to have the damn band tour Australia!

Rating:  I was my own worst enemy, still hellish memories remain.  5/5

781. Symphony X / Twilight in Olympus. 1998. 3.5/5

By the time that Twilight in Olympus came to be released, Symphony X had built up their reputation as a progressive metal outfit that did all of the essentials well. Musically and instrumentally everything was up to speed and performed to a T, while lyrically and vocally they were also well served. There was no reason why this would not continue on their latest album.
There is always a risk with progressive bands that the songs can become, well, predictable and monotonous, especially given that many songs can be of a longer length, filled with sometimes long winded instrumental breaks with various time changes that can appear to overdo what they are trying to achieve. In some ways I feel this a little about this album.

"Smoke and Mirrors" starts the album off on a good note, showcasing everything that make the band as good as it is. It has a very Yngwie Malmsteen feel about the opening, with the guitar being well supported by the keyboards, and vocals that follow that lead in the same way, before breaking back to Symphony X's typical style after the first couple of minutes of the song. Russell Allen sounds like he is having a lot of fun in this song. "Church of the Machine" uses a great heavy riff along with Russell's more passionate vocals, and helps to drive this song along.
"In the Dragon's Den" is one of my favourites on the album, starting off with an up tempo along with a slightly heavier guitar riff. It holds this throughout the whole length of the ride, somewhat unusually. "Through the Looking Glass" moves through three parts in a movement that was popular in this period. Each has their own style that still melds together to include the whole song without being overtly obvious. I think as a progressive movement it is fine, but it is dominated by the keyboards and slower rhythms, but my goodness Russell's voice just soars here. OK - it's not quite metal enough for me. That should make it clearer.
"Orion - The Hunter" has a very strange arrangement, which rather than being progressive appears to be haphazard. Moments of blazing guitar or harder vocals are then pieced together around the lower softer keys and crying vocals. Cut this song in half and I think I would find more to enjoy about it.
Having said this, the closer of the album, "Lady of the Snow", moves too far to that centre pole, incorporating the gentler aspect of the genre with clean guitar and white keyboard, moving towards a power ballad-like progression that doesn't come close to what I like of music. Don't get me wrong, it sounds great, and the band does a great job on the song, but it's a mood sapper, and does not do justice to what has come before. In my opinion.
Most of the songs here have the guitar and keyboard duels through the middle of the songs, with each playing off the other, and usually trying to up the ante on each other. Some duels work better than others, such as in "In the Dragon's Den" where it is great, and "Through the Looking Glass" where it probably does not.

Overall, while the album sounds great and has many great aspects, I find it just a bit too uneven, and not quite to my style. Perhaps it was a transitional period for the band, as there were from this point on beginning to move towards a more traditional metal sound. Whatever the reasons, This is still an enjoyable album to listen to, despite whatever faults I may find in some of the material.

Rating:  Merciless judgement in the Church of the Machine.  3.5/5

Listen to full album here

627. Symphony X / Symphony X. 1994. 3/5

Guitarist Michael Romeo had been gigging in bands such as Gemini and Phantom’s Opera in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s without managing to create much traction for the work he was doing. In 1992 he recorded a demo tape in his apartment in New Jersey to send out to as many record labels as he could in order to attract some attention and hopefully secure a record deal. This it eventually did, with a record company called Zero Corporation, based in Japan, a country that was well renown to have fans tolerant of the kind of guitar material that Romeo was producing. This led to the demo being re-recorded (with all instruments being played by Romeo himself, except for one track that had keyboards played by Michael Pinnella) and released as Michael Romeo’s first instrumental album titled “The Dark Chapter”. Zero Corporation then asked Romeo if he had a band that played music of a similar genre, and if so, they would be interested in releasing an album of their material. This isn’t the kind of offer you are going to turn down, and so Romeo went about putting together his ‘band’. Firstly, he brought in Pinnella to again be the keyboardist, before also recruiting bass guitarist Thomas Miller, drummer Jason Rullo and lead vocalist Rod Tyler. The newly formed band recorded a demo tape titled “Danse Macabre” in early 1994, and though it is not clear whether or not the demo was sent to other record companies, it was Zero Corporation who green lit a record contract for the band on the basis of its contents.
With a contract in hand, the band had to come up with a name. Romeo explained in an interview with the website theheaviestmatteroftheuniverse.com in 2008 that "the music we were coming up with had the keyboard thing and the guitar, and some classical elements, so the word 'Symphony' came up and ... then, somebody said 'Symphony X' and we were like, 'yeah, that's cool' it is that kinda thing, and the 'X' is the unknown and all the other stuff we do."
From here the band entered the studio to write and record their debut album in August and September of 1994 at The Hit Factory in New York City, which became the self-titled “Symphony X”, and was released in December 1994.

Symphony X's debut came at a time when grunge was beginning its fade and morphing into several other music genres, and complex guitar and keyboard composing bands were again rising in estimation of the music listening world populi. It was certainly the case in Europe where power metal and speed metal were mixing with progressive rock and metal, and Symphony X’s appearance in the US came on the back of fellow Americans Dream Theater’s rise to prominence. What does become apparent is that as soon as you put on the album there are the unmistakable influences of bands such as Yngwie Malmsteen, Dream Theater and the Michael Schenker Group, not only musically but even vocally. Rod Tyler's vocals are very similar in pitch to the half a dozen vocalists that Malmsteen has used through his career. Michael Romeo's guitaring and Michael Pinnella's keyboards are also heavily influenced by these bands, so the comparison is a reasonable one.
The opening intro of the musical instrumental "Into the Dementia" leads into "The Raging Season", mixing together all of the elements of progressive metal as it was known at the time, synth and keyboards, a faster guitar riff overlaid with very Brian May-eque solo chords, and power metal vocal effects. This song isn't sure if it is going to be a fast riff-fest or a more power metal trade-off between the main instruments, and so it combines both. Jason Rullo’s drumming has an immediately noticeable impact, along with the trading of solos from Pinnella and Romeo on keys and guitar. "Premonition" is led by Pinnella's keys and synths, with Tyler’s vocals lending solid support. It is a solid track that mirrors the elements of the power metal and prog metal gernes, sounds great without providing anything that stands out to capture the imagination. "Masquerade" almost falls into a 1980's pop rock direction, and apart from the solo (which really doesn't fit the rest of the pattern of the song) the guitar is buried by the keyboards. This song was later re-recorded on the “Prelude to the Millennium” album and sounds much better in that mix. Closing out side one of the album is "Absinthe and Rue", kicking off with a very progressive nature of heavy guitar riff and prominent atmospheric keyboards, along with the double kick driving the song along. Then Michael comes in with a great heavy riff that seems to be heading to taking this song into a true heavy metal direction, but instead it climbs back to the atypical progressive metal route of keyboards on top of the song. It’s a good song, but I feel as though they may have missed a trick here.
There is no pretence on the opening track of side two however. "Shades of Gray" is a power ballad without a shadow of a doubt. For bands of this genre this is almost a given on every album, and when they are done well, they can add to the enjoyment of the album. Down the track, Symphony X are extremely adept at this. And while I can see why some fans would enjoy this particular song, to me it just bogs the album down at an inopportune time. "Taunting the Notorious" tries to restore the balance to the album, coming back in faster and heavier, while Tyler certainly tries to put some oomph in the vocals, which in this case come across really well. The lead out of the song, combining the fast paced double kick from Rullo, the trading solos from Pinnella and Romeo and soaring vocals from Tyler make this a terrific track. It is also extremely short for a band of this genre, at only 3 minutes and 20 seconds. "Rapture or Pain" has a good feel to it as well, but again sounds as though it is missing an element that would make it a memorable song rather than just the next song on the album to be played. "Thorns of Sorrow" could have almost been pulled off an Yngwie Malmsteen album. The opening salvo of drums and synth, and then the introduction of Tyler’s vocals, has a very Malmsteen feel about the track, only missing any true guitar until the back half of the song. It is definitely the keyboards here that dominate rather than the blazing guitar riff.
The album is then concluded with the lengthy epic "A Lesson Before Dying", which combines every essence of progressive metal. We have the dominating keys, we have the ninety seven changes in tempo and song parts, we have the bass given its chance to harmonise, we have the soaring vocals, and eventually the flailing of guitar. In the end, it feels as though five different songs have been morphed together to form one twelve minute monster, and ends in a way that leaves you in two minds of how you feel about it.

My first taste of Symphony X didn’t come until 2004, at a time when I was slowly working my way through every band I could come across to discover. I had recently bought Dream Theater’s new album “Train of Thought” and was a little obsessed with it at the time, and I wanted to find other bands of a similar nature to discover and listen to. Some research into the project gave me a few names, some of which I had already garnered and others I had not, and one of those names was Symphony X. So I found their latest album, which was 2002’s “The Odyssey”, and I was hooked. An amazing album with many amazing songs, but it was the heavier and faster elements of the progressive metal music that I enjoyed most. So having digested this album, it was time to go back and discover the albums of their discography.
As it turns out, my thoughts on first listening to this album some twenty years ago and listening to it again today haven’t changed much. This album is fine, but it is not a patch on what the band achieved after this. Rod Tyler’s vocals are good, and in some instances remind you of the man who took his job after this album Russell Allen, but nowhere near as powerful as Russell is. And the songs are all okay – I mean, you can hear the bones on this album being created, sourcing out the right way to go about fleshing them out – but that doesn’t come here. Take a listen to this album, and then take a listen to just about any song from any of the following albums, and you will definitely hear the difference in the quality and genius of the songs. The progression that the band makes following this debut album is pronounced, and it does leave this album sounding like an early demo rather than a first fully fleshed out debut album. And having first heard the band on the album “The Odyssey” and then gone back to listen to this AFTER that quite amazing album, it does leave this in the shade quite a bit. In the shade of a planet about to collide with Earth. Yes, it’s a damn big shadow.
As good as the other musicians are here, the star was always going to be Michael Romeo, and there just isn’t enough of him on this album. It is surprising how much his guitar is not as prominent as the keys and drums that seem to dominate most of the songs here. And these songs also need the presence of a big voice, one that can drive and carry the heavy lines and the softer lines, and while Rod Tyler is a good singer, he is not a frontman in the way these songs need. Listening to the album again today, those points are all quite noticeable to any fan of the band.
As I mentioned, Tyler moved on after this album and was replaced by the person who he actually introduced the band to, Russell Allen. At this stage of their career the band wasn’t even touring or playing gigs, an interesting situation that came to a head sometime down the track.
This album is ‘fine’. In ranking all of Symphony X’s nine studio albums, I would certainly rank this as 9. Every album after this soars above it and showcases the best of the wonderful musicians that make up this band. Not all debut albums can be the unforgettable ground breakers, can they? The best was most definitely yet to come.

342. Symphony X / The Damnation Game. 1995. 4/5.

Like a cross between Yngwie Malmsteen and Dream Theater, Symphony X’s second album The Damnation Game is the epitomy of what progressive metal was all about in the 1990’s.
This album was the portent of what was to come. It combines all of those elements that make the genre what it is.

It’s interesting to note that having already heard the full catalogue of Symphony X albums, how their style changes as they move along. Here they combine great songs and riffs with the technical intertwining of guitars and keyboards and drums that sometimes gets in the way of the passage of the song. The influence of both Yngwie and Dream Thaeter is obvious, especially in the early phases of the album.

In its entirety, this is a terrific album. Taken piece by piece, it does have moments where you lose interest. As much as I love “The Edge Of Forever”, it really does go on about two minutes too long. A little bit of verbal diarrhea to be sure, but still good.

Faves for me include “The Damnation Game”, “The Edge Of Forever” and “A Winters Dream”.

Rating: Well worth a listen, but better was to come. 4/5.

241. Symphony X / The Divine Wings Of Tragedy. 1997. 4/5.

I didn't discover Symphony X until their Odyssey album, and then backtracked to pick up their back catalogue.

This album reminds me a lot of Yngwie Malmsteen's best stuff – great vocals, great guitaring, prominent keyboards and terrific drumming. Though from this popint of their careers they go more in the Dream Theater vein musically, this is very much in the 80's Malmsteen tradition. This is especially so on the first three tracks of the album – Of Sins And Shadows, Sea Of Lies and Out Of The Ashes.

The song The Divine Wings Of Tragedy is certainly a marathon, and doesn't quite hold itself all the way through. Unlike those songs listed above, and Pharoah and The Eyes Of Medusa, it just doesn't maintain the album for me. I think they could have done it better. That of course is just my opinion.

Rating : A great album with a great sound. 4/5.