STREETS - A ROCK OPERA

This is a somewhat strange album for me to rate since I have somewhat mixed feelings on many of the tracks themselves, as well as the album as a whole. There are some truly fantastic moments and some somewhat average moments, but overall the album is quite satisfactory, and is probably the band's most cohesive efforts in terms of having consistency in the album as a whole. I actually slightly prefer this so most worshiped rock operas such as The Wall and Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. I've never been a fan of rock operas overall because I find most of them have enough filler to drive me insane, and I usually can't sit through them and don't want to. There's a bit of filler here too, but only a couple tracks here and there, and the tracks that are the best really soar. As well, this is the result of the transition of sound from the previous album, Gutter Ballet, having much more piano usage and a more theatrical and melodic approach. There is more clean guitar work that reminds me of Fates Warning a bit. Jon Oliva's clean vocals are a tad better than on the previous album, but they've always been a bit pitchy, which really irritates me sometimes. The production has improved a bit since the last effort as well.

The album really starts with a bang; Streets and Jesus Saves are among the best tracks on the album, near masterpiece material as far as I'm concerned. The next three tracks are very enjoyable and highly polished work as well, reminding me much of Tran-Siberian Orchestra's sound, for obvious reasons. The middle of the album slumps slightly with the average but decent Sammy and Tex as well as St. Patrick's. The following two tracks are quite decent, leading into Ghost in the Ruins, another very powerful track on the album, one of my favorite tracks by the band. If I Go Away is great, followed by my least favorite track on the album Agony and Ecstasy, somewhat obnoxious but good in a strictly metal sense. Heal my Soul is a delightful song, leading into the last two songs, Somewhere in Time and the fan favorite Believe, bringing a fantastic close to the album. Believe has some of the vocal part to When the Crowds are Gone on the previous album, probably one of the best melodies to come out of the eighties as far as I'm concerned.

A very satisfactory album, though a bit spotty and not the most progressive thing out there. These factors almost pushed it down to a three, but what partially pushed it up was the great story of the album, as well as those amazing first two ans last two tracks and Ghost in the Ruins. Very melodic, sometimes very metal, sometimes a tad poppy, this is a diverse album that still maintains consistency in sound, while at the same time each track has much uniqueness, a combination something seldom found in even many great works of prog. While I do prefer other Savatage works to this, especially the two previous albums, this is still an album any prog metal fan should have in his collection at some point.

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