THE ODYSSEY

I love Symphony X's masterpiece "V:The New Mythology". I also am a fan of "Paradise Lost", although it has more to do with the source material than with the actual album. However, I really have to force myself to listen to these guys. I'm not a big fan of power metal, gruff vocals, or the like. However, I do enjoy a couple albums.

I decided I would listen to "The Odyssey"; again, more because of the content than the music. I'd heard that the title track is an epic masterpiece. Well, this album is definitely...Symphony X. That's about it. "V" was amazing because of the melody, symphonic arrangements, amazing vox, fantastic guitars, and original drums. This album must be where the plunge started: where the descent to a less proggy power metal began.

This album is interesting and okay. There are lots of riffs, if that's your thing. The vocals are gruff and unchallenging. Any symphonic segments sound VERY cheap and VERY 90's--- almost like the badly composed keyboard music on Hercules or Xena: Warrior Princess. Amid all of this, the drums even fail to impress: Nothing new is really displayed here. The lyrics are kinda derivative and lame, something that "V" and even "Paradise Lost" did not have. I don't know. I just feel like my avoidance of Symphony X is quite justified by this album. Aside from a few enjoyable parts; corny, neo-epic filler is all I really hear here. Should I even bother listening to "Iconoclast" or anything earlier than "V"? If I do, it'll be a while.