A huge hit at this year's Power Mad festival, Rhapsody is one of the many new
bands who seem destined to breathe a glorious new life into power metal.
Legendary Tales is a wonderful album, a love letter written to an artform that
is so dear to many of our hearts.
One of the things that makes Tales such an incredible work is the fact that
there are absolutely no samples or synthesizers - the substantial atmosphere on
the disc is accomplished by real flutes, harpsichords, cellos and a choir. Just
the attitude that a band must possess in order to take on such a task is worthy
of admiration - it's a tip of the hat to the glory days, when albums bore the
"no synthesizers!" indicia with pride.
While the songwriting on Legendary Tales doesn't break much new ground, it is
a solid set of entries in a genre that simply doesn't have enough bulk. In a
musical climate filled with cookie-cutter black metal bands, we simply cannot
have enough power metal, and it simply doesn't have to be new and
earth-shattering all the time; it is good, very good, and that's enough.
That said, there is one song on Tales that pinned my ears to the wall, and
that is "Rage of the Winter." The track starts out innocently enough, but when
the sudden and shocking chorus pummels it's way to the front, I literally
dropped a box I was holding the first time I heard it. This is songwriting at
it's very best, and will almost certainly be remembered as one of the best songs
of the year.
Fans of Helloween, Iron Maiden and other power metal staples need to order
this album immediately. We might just be witnessing the birth of a new giant in
the field.
Printer Friendly Page
Send to a Friend
