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