TWILIGHT IN OLYMPUS

When you are trying to get into Symphony X - people will always recommend The Divine Wings Of Tragedy, V or The Odyssey. They aren't wrong but from what I've seen, very few acknowledge Twlight In Olympus.

The Divine Wings Of Tragedy was the first SX album that could be considered a classic and as some of you know, following up such an album that is held in such high regard, especially when one of the band members leave, is extremely difficult and often damaging to a band's career (Falling Into Infinity by Dream Theater is an example). Thankfully, Micheal Romeo and Co. never looked back.

On Twilight's In Olympus, SX maintained all the excellent qualities that made Divine Wings a success but developed them further into a more classical metal style while maintaining that true SX sound.

The star of the show has to be Russell Allen, the vocalist. Russell Allens voice sounds better than ever, this mans range and moods he sets using just his voice is phenomenal - I swear, this guy genuinely does get better with age. This does mean that the rest of the band simply trails in Allens wake - Romeo, Miller, Pinnella and especially Walling (who had the tough task of replacing Jason Rullo) are all extremely consistent and excellent.

There is not a single song out of place on this album. There are some songs better than others, "Church Of The Machine" and "Through The Looking Glass" but despite the many high points this album delivers, there are no low points. This is just an extremely strong and solid album all in and deserves much more recognition that it gets.

All in all, Twilight In Olympus is an excellent addition to at least any progressive metal collection. It isn't a masterpiece like The Divine Wings... or V, but it's at least as great as The Odyssey and I even enjoy this album better. There are not hacked-up riffs as in The Odyssey, and the orchestral/symphonic arrangements are also more dominant. The sound of the production isn't perfect, could be a bit more powerful, but there is nothing to complain about the music itself here, so you might add this to your collection if you are interrested in this band and their excellent work. SX are the pioneers of the symphonic power prog genre and they showed it here again, after the groundbreaking The Divine Wings Of Tragedy and still let all their competitors behind them.

Album rating: 8.5/10 points = 87 % on MPV scale = 4/5 stars

point-system: 0 - 3 points = 1 star / 3.5 - 5.5 points = 2 stars / 6 - 7 points = 3 stars / 7.5 - 8.5 points = 4 stars / 9 - 10 points = 5 stars