THE ODYSSEY

'The Odyssey' is possibly the greatest Symphony X album ever released. I've been following the band ever since I heard "Out of the Ashes" from the 'Divine Wings' album, and I've gotten every album since then. I appreciated the experimental side to 'V', but I felt it focused too much on symphonic overtones. Was this the new direction that Symphony X was going for? I had thought so, and while I was perfectly capable of accepting a symphonic edge to the band, I was a guitar freak at heart. Then came 'The Odyssey'; featuring a perfect blend of wall-to-wall guitar and keyboards, this release showcased the melodic and technical capabilities of the band while not completely doing away with the symphonic overtones featured on 'V'. I had the pleasure of talking to Michael Lepond (bassist) after it was released, and although he was a bit disappointed with the level of his bass in the mix - and I'll admit, it's a little low, but not as bad as Metallica's '...And Justice For All' - he was proud of the product. I took his opinion seriously, but I wanted to hear for myself. When it came out in stores, I (regretfully) went for the non-limited edition. Looking back, I should have waited for the special edition to be stocked, because it includes one extra song, but I wanted to hear the material right away.

So I bought the album and fed it into the CD player. Out blasted a frenetic sequence of guitar notes, the intro of "Inferno", to set the stage of the album. While I would hardly call "Inferno" my favorite song on the disk, it did leave an impact. Then I hit "Wicked", an awesome, slow-driving song which remains at the top of my Symphony X song list ever since hearing it; Russell Allen's vocal work shines on that song. Whoever calls "Awakenings" a weak ballad must be ignorant (in my opinion). The song starts off with a syncopated introduction between the bass, drums, and keyboards, and goes through a transformation as distorted guitars are added in; very symphonic and pleasant sounding.

Then I reached the title track, a 24-minute long epic called "The Odyssey". Split into seven parts, the song begins with an orchestrated session (accentuated with some heavy guitars and drums) that sounds like it came right out of a movie. Around the four minute mark, Michael Romeo sets his guitar on clean and brings the song into a peaceful-sounding interlude with Russell Allen. Later in the song, you'll hear an answer to that same part, but not before encountering heavy guitars at the 6-minute mark, vocal-layering and pulsating keyboards at the 13-minute mark, a bumbling guitar stampede at the 15-minute mark, and another orchestrated session at the 17. Despite the diversity mentioned here, the song flows very well for the most part, and it could very well make the album deserving of five stars in itself if it were offered as a single.

Overall, I believe this is Symphony X's most solid attempt. Offering a great blend of symphony and guitar, I gave this album the highest rating available. Great album; truly a must-have.