TWILIGHT IN OLYMPUS

For my first Symphony X review, i have chosen to do my favorite Symphony X album, Twilight In Olympus. This album is directly after Symphony X's "breakthrough" The Divine Wings of Tragedy, and because of the previous album's sucess and this albums expectations, I don't believe this album gets the credit it deserves.

This album is Symphony X at their best, i consider it to be the last great Symphony X album. The most noticeable difference about this album from previous and future Symphony X albums is that Jason Rullo is not the drummer, short stay Tom Walling is. The drums on this album are distinctly different obviously because of the different drummer. This is also in my opinion the fastest Symphony X album, but not the heaviest. The albums opening track "Smoke and Mirrors" will give a novice listener a good idea of Symphony X's sound is built on. The sweeping guitars, orchestrated keyboards, fast drums, and intricate bass lines are all showcased here. (Speaking of intricate bass lines, this was Thomas Miller's final album with Symphony X. Miller's abscence is easily seen on V and The Odyssey, a tragic loss for the band.) The album has other songs that will forever be Symphony X classics. Church of the Machine has some of the most amazing lyrics from Symphony X featuring a creative song structure. Lady of the Snow is brilliant creativity from Symphony X. I would not picture Symphony X evolving a song from an Asian folk theme. Through the Looking Glass is another tune to remember, it is the over 10 minute epic for this album. Somewhat of an inferior song to the Divine Wings of Tragedy, but don't be fooled this is an amazing song with an ellegant structure. The Beethoven sonata in G minor is also noteworthy as it shows of the classical style and control of Symphony X. The album is great, but it lacks one major quality, an atmosphere. This album has no particular mood. If you are a fan of virtuoso skill, you may be quite pleased with this album, but if you're looking for an album of emotion and atmosphere, this is not an album for you.

The production on this album is bad, not terrible but bad. The volume is poorly balanced with Russell Allen's vocals dominating and Mike Romeo's guitar somewhat overdistorted with out prescence. Thomas Miller's bass makes some showcase lines but lacks tone. Mike Pinnella's synths have amazing sounds but the volume is once again a problem.