Rhapsody’s latest offering is – by no mean feat – their biggest. Recorded in six different studios throughout Europe (including the UK), featuring a full orchestra, a 50 strong choir, a number of guest musicians/narrators, including the one and only Christopher Lee; this has to be Rhapsody’s most expansive album yet.
I originally began a detailed analysis of the work, taking you through the narrative and putting into words the many aspects of the world the whole album describes. I was going to touch on the simply beauty of the Magic Of The Wizard’s Dream, the power of the Last Angels Call that reflects on Rhapsody’s previous accomplishments and the epic drama unfurled in Sacred Power Of Raging Winds. But putting these tracks into words is as tricky as the tracks are complex, and would take a large number of pages to do so.
For those of you who aren’t up to speed on your Rhapsody history, their six-album-strong discography has been a progression over time from a basic power metal band with synthesised orchestral elements, to this – a fully fledged symphonic metal band. Whilst still full of technical wizardry and anthemic melodies, Rhapsody’s previous albums have oft been tainted by not having the forces available to realise the full dynamic that their music needs. Until this album, that is.
Each track is a detailed artistic portrait of a number of themes. And, with so many mediums available, it may have been quite easy for the artists to mess it up. But – thankfully – they haven’t. The orchestral and amplified elements of the album work extremely well together, and the power driven elements are perfectly counter-balanced by delicate, slower melodies. Perhaps something a little unusual in this genre is that where most power metal albums have one or two at most ‘typical ballads’, this album is gently punctuated by three or four graceful tracks that certainly don’t sound like typical metal ballads.
If there is one thing lacking in this album, it is the ‘cheese’ element oft mis-associated with Rhapsody’s music. Since the very beginning, the compositional style of Luca Turulli and Alex Staropoli has been adventurous and bold, yet has perhaps been hindered by the forces available to fully realise their vision. I agree that the subject matter isn’t the sort to be taken seriously by everyone. I’ll admit that I don’t place my heart and soul in believing the story told through the album, but I have always held the story as secondary to the music.
Film music is all about setting an atmosphere through tone and balance. And this is the key element that the album gets right. Even without the actual content of the lyrics, you can hear the tones and emotions expressed in every word, which just adds to the magnificent sound as another beautifully crafted line of music.
In short, this album is magnificent. It finally achieves what Rhapsody have been dreaming of through all of their years. For the first time – thanks to the careful management of all the forces available, and the magnificent performances of everyone involved – Rhapsody has created an album that established a firm and strong idea of what Film Score Metal is – music that creates a vision in your mind, without having to show you the images to go with it. This is more than the next chapter in Rhapsody’s story – it’s a brand new script too.
Standout Tracks: Magic of the Wizard's Dream, Last Angel's Call.
Overall Score: 8 /10
