VOVIN

A sub par album ... 2 1/2 stars from me, which I round down to 2 stars. Any Rhapsody album is at least 10x better in terms of musicianship and proper implementation of classical music. There are also many metal bands which are generally considered to be less progressive, for example Blind Guardian, who do a much better job than Therion. It's hard to believe that this is even considered to be one of their better albums ...

The Rise of Sodom and Gomorrah: The intro is not all that bad. But the main theme of the song is so boring and cliche ... really NOTHING to write home about. Add to that the sloppy synchronisation between the orchestra and the drums.

Birth of Venus Illegitima: This song is based on a really plain metal riff that is reminiscent of old Accept or Scorpions. The male choir is totally uninspired and adds nothing to the music. The intro is again better than the song itself.

Wine of Aluqah: The first uptempo track, and although I think that it's uninspired and below-par compared to other bands of the genre, it is listenable - except for the uncalled-for "happy" Speed metal parts.

Clavicula Nox: Interesting track, but the female vocal lines are disappointing both lyrically and musically. The overall atomsphere is convincing, and luckily the repetetive heavy part is quite short.

The Wild Hunt: The fastest track so far, Power Metal with male choirs and a metal singer, which creates an interesting contrast. Unfortunately this is not really progressive, with really tame chord progressions.

Eye of Shiva: Oh those horrible vocals ... whoever wrote these songs either doesn't know much about polyphony, or decided not to use it. Throughout this song, the album and also various other Therion releases the vocal lines, instrumental interplay etc. are underwhelming, because classical music can be so rich and intricate - if done correctly. IMO it's sad that many people consider music like this to be a real "symbiosis" of classical music and metal. IMO it's really just metal.

Black Sun/Draconian Trilogy: Boring ... it's one of the better tracks, like Wine of Aluqah, but again lacks any creativity.

The Opening: A short interlude/segue ... centered around a ridiculously boring and derivative pedal tone guitar lick.

Morning Star: I can't listen to this, it's pathetic. All that I said before also applies here.