Available for about a week or something already. I'm familiar with the "official" release date which doesn't mean I'll wait for it.

*Year: 2011
*Genre: Power Metal
*Country: Finland
*Format: mp3@CBR320kbps
*Size: 129MB

Tracklist:
1. Darkest Hours 04:11
2. Under Flaming Skies 03:52
3. Infernal Maze 05:33
4. Fairness Justified 04:21
5. The Game Never Ends 03:54
6. Lifetime in a Moment 06:39
7. Move the Mountain 05:34
8. Event Horizon 04:24
9. Elysium 18:07
******************************
Total playing time: 56:35

“From Chaos To Eternity” is the title of the new RHAPSODY OF FIRE’s full length album, that will be released in Spring 2011 through Nuclear Blast at a worldwide level.

The 10th studio album of the Italian power metal act will be a new musical masterpiece. Described by the band as the natural evolution of the monumental chartbreaker of 2010 “The Frozen Tears Of Angels”, the new album will represent an important goal in the history of RHAPSODY OF FIRE, as it will be the last one based in the fantasy saga started in 1997 with the debut album “Legendary Tales”.

[more="more info"]As usual Luca Turilli and Alex Staropoli will be the producers of the new work. But for the first time, part of such a production (vocals and guitar recordings) was and will be mostly based in Trieste, the Italian hometown of the two founders. The recordings of bass and drums already took place in Wolfsburg at “The Gate Studio” under the wise supervision of their longtime friend Sascha Paeth (AVANTASIA, ANGRA and more).

Luca says: “We are really proud to reveal to the whole world that the production of our new full length album is at a very good point already. Lyrically it has a particular meaning for all of us, as with the 5th and final chapter of the “Dark Secret saga” our band will close its fantasy cycle started 13 years ago. The dark secret will finally reveal itself and for the last time Sir Christopher Lee will give his unique and fundamental contribution to our work. Musically expect something really special out of the ten album titles. A song like “Ghosts Of Forgotten Worlds” with its rageous and hypnotic guitar riff, will make you breath the dusty atmospheres of the southern ghostlands. “Aeons Of Raging Darkness” is pure melodic chaos translated into music, “Tornado” the greatest technical challenge for each single bandmember and “Tempesta Di Fuoco”, the first speed track completely sung in Italian language. For my song “Fantasia Gotica” I wrote and finalized the cinematic orchestral arrangements inspired by the visionary genius of Tim Burton, while “The Splendour Of Angels’s Glory (A Final Revelation)” is Alex’s choral and majestic track for the perfect finale of the dark secret saga. Our bass player Patrice Guers and our drummer Alex Holzwarth did their best job so far in a RHAPSODY OF FIRE album. One more word is needed to underline the excellent performance of our singer: in this new release, Fabio Lione will present himself definitely as one of the best and most versatile singers, being able to pass with unique ability and talent from the most aggressive vocals, to clean angelic voices and powerful operatic parts. Once more you are going to be really surprised.”

Alex Staropoli adds: “As always the cinematic elements that defined our style will enrich each track, but the guitar work will be again very important too. What is sure is, that for such an album Luca and I composed our best solos ever!”

“From Chaos To Eternity” will be released in spring 2011, in a jewelcase standard edition of 24 pages, and in an exclusive limited edition of 48 pages, full of great and unique surprises – as well as two bonus tracks, for a total of 65 minutes of RHAPSODY OF FIRE’s legendary music.[/more]

Really glad to see them coming up with such a classy album after all that time. Fully in the traditional old school sound and much more reminiscent of the "Into Eternity"/"Bitterness" era, even sentimental in a way. Yet they chose to create a great balance with the melodic side of the entire record, can't help but admire the guitars in "The Moment is Gone" and "Leeching Life". That's what I call a proper comeback.

The beautiful work of Travis Smith in HQ:

"Infernal Maze" is promising, at least. Hopefully I'll like more than just 1-2 songs from the album this time.

Artwork in HQ:

Aha, I'm sick & tired of those re-releases and compilations when it comes to them. Dying to hear some new music in 2011, high time.

[more="Short summary"]The band's been pretty much dead to me for years already, not to mention that I'm the last person to be called a fan of Deris' voice despite I had my pleasure with Master of the Rings, The Time of the Oath, The Dark Ride. That being said, none of those will ever take out the legacy of the debut and the two Keepers for me, and that's far from being only from a strict vocal point of view. Simply because ever after The Dark Ride I've met with almost nothing but a sky-high wall of disappointment thanks to Rabbit Don't Come Easy (50/50), the third Keeper (not even close to being worthy of the name), Gambling with the Devil and the weird compilation Unarmed (...) The famous spread post-Helloween syndrome, nothing uncommon.

Normally, when you've been let down that hard from what was once a favorite band of yours, you come to a point when it's not even funny anymore. Leads me to why I hoped to at least "get to the end of the album" with no trouble and to mark it as yet another nail in their coffin... That's when I caught myself in a weird progression that started as a pure interest only to bloom into a stronger desire which finally turned into a loud resonant slap through the face that changed my view at 180 degrees. Guess I'm still glued to the same sticky thread and, weird enough, I'm fine with it. It was one of the popular occasions when musicians state that the new album will be their "heaviest & fastest" piece in a long term - frankly speaking, we've all heard the same lame lines before, but 7 Sinners actually lives up to that promise. Cheers to that!

Are You Metal?, following the unnatural opener Where the Sinners Go, is the first single I like ever since The Dark Ride era. Along with the other tracks, the entire record still sounds as a modernized version of that album from ten years ago. Diversity, high sense of musicianship, opportune ideas and dazzling realization seem to be at hand here, resulting in an album that many fans would find hard to be separated from and (re)uniting them with others who lost their interest in the band as me. There are fascinating tracks that inevitably stay under your skin even after the very first spin of the CD like Who is Mr. Madman? and the potential concert neck-breaker duo World of Fantasy/If a Mountain Could Talk. Not to mention the necessary sharp shredder Long Live the King which polishes the aggressive style on which Helloween rely here, highly in contrast with the ballad The Smile of the Sun that gains the trust with calm refrains and stylish guitars kicking in on the chorus. Despite Andi doesn't even recognize it as such, it's one of the most intimate elegies the band has written in a while. The mid-tempo section occupies a well deserved prime time in Raise the Noise, You Stupid Mankind and The Sage, The Fool, The Sinner which would've sounded just as fine as they seem to be here were they included in a random top notch hard rock album. My Sacrifice keeps up the speed with Dani's staccato drum shots - come to think of it, for me that man did over 60-70 % (or even more) of the work here, finally bringing back to live some truth behind the meaning of the very same "heaviest & fastest" cliché. I would never complain about the singing of Deris too, despite I didn't like the vocal roles he chose in the previous albums. On the contrary - namely he and the work of Dani along with the melodious prog-like structure forged out the ~8 min. closing theme Far in The Future which seems to be the most successful and eligible experiment of Helloween for over a decade; dangerously good composition with a most unexpected author. But in the end, that's what forged out the amazing core of the record - there are surprises at pretty much every corner, be it a captivating melody, great sense of lyrical humor or a flute solo in the manner of Jethro Tull, let's say. As for the three bonus tracks that hint on the power metal side of the album, seems like they also add a more literal point to a message that should be crystal clear to the listeners who pay enough time and attention to 7 Sinners. To take it straight from the lyrics - "free", "stronger than ever before", "aiming high" - just a word play? Hardly.

I'm not so much of a score system supporter but even if this wasn't the case, it doesn't seem right to rate an album of this awkward league as a simple industry product. I wouldn't also claim it to be the opus of the year nor the best in its genre since I already have my champions on the run for good. The important thing is that 7 Sinners is truly the best surprise a band has presented me lately; I remember a previous post mentioning the upcoming Stratovarius - since the co-tour of the two bands will pass through here in January, I might grant myself this Birthday gift and enjoy it at its entirety. What's weird is that for the first time of their five concerts on local ground, at least this time I won't go with the sole intention to hear stuff from Strato's Visions/Episode/Destiny era and mourn over long-time legendary classics of Helloween. For once, I'll enjoy some new material from Deris & co, and it'll be incredible if their Finnish colleagues return the favor in the same refined manner.[/more]

Sometimes... just sometimes, it takes an album like this to remind that music is Art in its highest degree and not only a plain entertainment or sort of amusement to pass the time. Fully captivating from its start to the very end with every single tone soaked in unimaginable beauty, and yes, perhaps a piece of abstract nostalgia as was mentioned, with a certain feeling of frost-bitten mysteries yet unveiled... Or revealed only to the band itself, in order to deliver such a musical treasure.
Poetry aside, despite an album of this quality deserves to be immortalized. I couldn't have imagined a more proper and elegant way to close the year.

Had a great pleasure listening to many of the included tracks here. Congrats for the great assortment of bands, I've rarely heard a mixed album in which every composition fits and adds on its own to the mood of the others that well. Magnificent, beautiful, touching... The treasure I fell in love with is the new Empytium song - might be because I'm dying to hear something new from them, but I can't stop listening to "The Days Before The Fall". It's the first one they've recorded after the announced reincarnation, hundreds of thanks even only for this single jewel.

http://www.helloween.org/band/179-7-sinners.html - recording process info, presentation, etc.

*Year: 2010
*Genre: Power/Speed Metal
*Country: Germany
*Format: mp3@CBR320kbps
*Size: 149MB

Tracklist:
01. Where The Sinners Go 03:36
02. Are You Metal? 03:35
03. Who Is Mr. Madman? 05:44
04. Raise The Noise 05:07
05. World Of Fantasy 05:16
06. Long Live The King 04:13
07. The Smile Of The Sun 04:37
08. You Stupid Mankind 04:04
09. If A Mountain Could Talk 06:44
10. The Sage, The Fool, The Sinner 04:00
11. My Sacrifice 04:50
12. Not Yet Today 01:12
13. Far In The Future 07:45
14. I'm Free (Bonus Track) 04:10
******************************
Total playing time: 1:04:53



[more=Extended info]Booklet's lyrics can be found at the official site of the band: http://www.helloween.org/7sinners_lyrics_booklet.pdf[/more]

^^ Will be fixed soon. Also, I wrote to the label about the "Church/Retreat of the Sacred Heart" question here. The answer:


...And so forth and so on, the new links should include the "official" name. Still, don't be surprised if you meet the same song in three different versions in due time.

^^ Same old song, as if everyone is listening to a different album. Bad thing with Cradle is that you can't simply stay objective no matter how hard you try - even more than with music itself, it seems. If you're looking for an album as a starting point, it better not be this one though.

My first concern was Ashley’s voice and the commercial "Forgive Me, Father" single, which turned out to have nothing in common with the rest of the material. Comparing with the other tracks it's even a justified choice, along with "One Foul Step from the Abyss". As for the first case, the chants are more of a narrations then singing and they turned out to fit quite well, playing even a key role now and then. Unexpected. Moreover, those female parts help weave a kind of "feminine" web over the entire album as opposed to the nature of "Godspeed" which serves the album a great deal. Still it's done in the typical CoF trademark, meaning with lots of attention towards detail, concept, music and atmosphere. And hell, this album has plenty of those.
[more=read]Not that it's new here - that "femme fatale" feature was present before, even through the same heroine even - nice to find them finally concentrated on the character from a lyrical point of view, instead of using her as a bonus feature in "The Principle of Evil Made Flesh", "Cruelty and the Beast", "Damnation and a Day", "Nymphetamine"... The same dark twisted poetry everywhere, and it's quite an interesting read above all.

What I miss – or missed on a musical level is caused by a lack of shining memorizable moments after an hour and a half prolonged experience. On the other hand, the "hit" orientation of "Nymphetamine" and "Thornography" provoked my negative attitude towards them back then, so I prefer to delve in the more complex side of the band, if of course they're willing to go down that road. Gradually, when they do, they do it with a certain style that I adore. Here it’s presented with an intensively diverse album that might seem too demanding now and then, but it all gladly pays off in the end. Nice to hear them playing in a more aggressive manner again, even more to realize they were careful enough to not overload the entire picture with orchestrations and keyboards for once. But more on that matter later.

That being said, I’m far from willing to hear Dusk/Cruelty/Midian Part II – the fact that I can just go replay those treasures is enough for years to come, to say the least. "Darkly, Darkly…" is still far from any comparisons with them, but what matters to me is that it sounds solid and firm on its own, which is something I hoped for enough time already. Better than "Thornography", "Nymphetamine" & their nearby associates put together. The solos are mainly cut short, but at least they're present with a good reason - that's what left me with the impression of a steady atmosphere, created through all the instruments in unison instead of shifting the focus on keys/guitars/vocals "fighting" with each other as is a common case when you're in the extreme symphonic field for decades. Not to mention that Ashley is far from being a key mastermind or something, which could be the reason for their desire to merge the piano arrangements with the background as much as possible. Same deal with the songs - I'd have difficulties liking them on their own, outside the concept of the album.
What’s weird is that I fell for the atmospheric guitar style in the balladic "Persecution Song"; usually I prefer faster guitar-oriented tracks like "The Spawning of Love and War" and "Deceiving Eyes", to name but a few of those I liked a lot here. Other than that, the four bonuses won me over completely – the somber piano structure of "Mistress from the Sucking Pit" is sublime, while the bizarre use of the choir and sympho arrangement in "Beast of Extermination" somehow made me think of Hollenthon and their own perspective of incorporating such elements.

All in all, despite they tried to cut their favorite picturesque extremism short and didn’t lose their way amidst long solo passages or fancy melodies this time, the album will still be a burden for many listeners, and it’s fully understandable. What redeems it for me is the fact that the result is qualitative enough to suit my taste and to easily justify the blind purchase of one of my most favorite bands once again. As for the aforementioned lack of mass symphonies – I guess the people who missed complex melodious arrangements and massive orchestra/choir parts will have their chance soon since the band is recording an orchestral album based on the classics. It was supposed to precede "Darkly, Darkly, Venus Aversa", but eventually it got delayed. The info I have so far is that it will feature orchestral versions of songs from their first four albums – for now the confirmed victims of the tracklist are "A Gothic Romance (Red Roses for the Devil's Whore)" and "Funeral in Carpathia" from "Dusk...", "Summer Dying Fast" and "The Forest Whispers My Name" from "The Principle of Evil Made Flesh", "Beneath the Howling Stars" from "Cruelty and the Beast", etc. Scheduled for the middle of 2011.[/more]

^ I wouldn't have had any troubles with the clean vocals if they were just trying to show a different side of the music - anyway, not with these disharmonious drunken-sounding cleans which are totally out of place here. I'd understand if they were aiming for a more atmospheric style with new elements as some of them did with Thy Disease speaking of the electro/industrial influence plus an accent of the clean singing, but that's not the case of Crionics. Seems to me that they're trying to reach some middle balance, hopefully it's just a momentary gap within the ranks of the EP. So, drop the cleans as they are here, drop the covers and then we'll negotiate.

*Year: 2010
*Genre: Extreme Gothic Metal
*Country: United Kingdom
*Format: mp3@CBR320kbps
*Size: 143 MB / 55,4 MB

Tracklist:
CD 1
01. The Cult of Venus Aversa 07:08
02. One Foul Step From the Abyss 04:53
03. The Nun with the Astral Habit 04:54
04. Retreat of the Sacred Heart 03:54
05. The Persecution Song 05:34
06. Deceiving Eyes 06:43
07. Lilith Immaculate 06:12
08. The Spawn of Love and War 06:18
09. Harlot on a Pedestal 05:08
10. Forgive Me Father (I Have Sinned) 04:32
11. Beyond the Eleventh Hour 07:16
CD2
01. Beast of Extermination 05:32
02. Truth & Agony 05:56
03. Mistress from the Sucking Pit 07:00
04. Behind the Jagged Mountain 05:44
******************************
Total playing time: 01:02:32 / 24:12

Nothing that impressive, yet another unnecessary nail in their coffin. Though again I haven't heard anything interesting on their behalf after "The Hinderers" which is considered as the holy Bible for many. It may have been the same for me if not for the desire to cut off 1/3 or more of the blunt tracks which got the album to that diluted final state. Not that I'd ever want them to continue in the very same vein of "Futility", which wouldn't have been bad, but they decided to go through that worn out "why bother?!" philosophy. Why bother, indeed? Two albums, one great, second questionable, then some EP and 1-2-3-4 whats-their-name singles just to "keep the flame alive"? A half-hidden disgrace in the face of "The Concealers", followed by the homonymous current "jewel" in all its masquerade glory, being "decent" just half the way through, or even less? Not that their career was ever so promising to begin with, but I didn't think they'd get to being THIS close to crossing the borderline between what seemed as lurking in the music biz. (rarely anything more) and getting hilarious in the eyes of what's left of their fans after the last junk. Anyway.

Arjen himself told that he tried to do something not so multi-layered and complex for a change, as opposed to the last Ayreon and the Guilt Machine album. When it comes to his name, I'm used to these pleasant surprises, but never really expected to hear something of the sort. It may sound a lot more straightforward than many of his albums, but it's still not stripped to the bone of everything which makes his music unique - the immensly impressive "space" keyboard samples and some outstandingly clever vocal roles when it comes to Damian/Floor/Russell; congrats for bringing Dan Swano in again, for he adds that final vigorous aggressive touch to the entire picture whenever it's needed. Despite it features utterly diverse amount of music, at times even very light, I was surprised to hear that as a whole it sounds much, much heavier than the debut itself, and that's something I aways wished to hear from Arjen.

Genuine mix of progressive with hell of a lot different elements in addition - tuned down hard rock, maybe some power references here and there, sharp contrast melodies and, again, unbelievably performed keyboard passages. At least to me, the intro alone is praiseworthy enough, along with almost every key solo that sounds as if written from a mastermind of the atmospheric music such as Jeff Wayne in his "War of the Worlds" contribution or something alike. Ever since "Digital Rain" I was left with the impression of some unleashed energy which eventually creeped its way and started to sound even more clear and determined with every next track - the riffs and chorus stress on "Victim of the Modern Age" and the speeder "Human See, Human Do" for example. Each song has a lot (and beyond) to offer, but if I have to go for just one champion, that'll be the mindblowing duet between Russell and Damian in "24 Hours", which hits the right cue as for the best vocal performance of the year. Along with the album itself, actually, which in its entirety would fit my final TOP 5 pretty well.

Huh, there's some "going down the slope" ever since the debut. Though there were some really shining moments on the previous one, there's hardly anything here that striked me as being half as good. As if they strive to subdue the guitars with all the keyboard arrangements and several classic moments, but despite I'm all in for keys, the guitar absence here and there is almost painful. The good tracks are gathered right at the beginning of the tracklist, which is something negative in addition for me.

Same here, it was just some random chaotic sound mix at first spin, then it started to fit properly. Maybe it's because I didn't hold any expectations towards this album, but after some careful listening, certain songs turned out to sound quite nice... So it wasn't in vain, I might even like the rest after a while. So far I'd go for "In The Abyss Of Desperation", "Carrion Eaters" and "A Lake That Drained", especially the last one. "Safe" is an interesting experiment, too. Overall typical Manticora, full of those oppressing dark prog/power elements we all know them for, only a step more reinforced and heavier than before.

Right on, if you're looking for a "cinematic EP", that's it. Three actual songs, one trully epic with a solo almost worthy enough to rival the madness in "Gargoyles...", though in general "The Ancient Fires of Har-Kuun" along with the EP in its entirety reminds me of the "The Mystic Prophecy of the Demonknight" (still we have something way more progressive here). "Neve Rosso Sangue" might be the logical continuation of "Danza Di Fuoco E Ghiaccio" but again it has nothing in common with the medieval spirit of the latter. A "little bit" of Manowar worship in "Erian's Lost Secrets" serves me well, too - from the starting scream of Fabio to the riff basis. Nothing to it, caught me right that very instant since it features the beautiful melodic passage of "The Ancient Fires of Har-Kuun" and "The Angels' Dark Revelation". The fact that the melody is present in all those tracks is what got me into the EP in the first place - it sounds more finalized that way, so I wouldn't be the one complaining.

25 min. of real music + 10 min. speeches = an EP worthy for the fanatics of the band until the continuation of "The Frozen Tears of Angels" gets released next year. But yes, those who don't like such ideas in music should really stay away by all means.

*Year: 2010
*Genre: Epic/Symphonic/Progressive Power Metal
*Country: Italy
*Format: mp3@CBR320kbps
*Size: 82MB

Tracklist:
1. ACT I - The Pass of Nair-Kaan 02:01
2. ACT II - Dark Mystic Vision 01:41
3. ACT III - The Ancient Fires of Har-Kuun 14:56
4. ACT IV - The Betrayal 03:58
5. ACT V - Neve Rosso Sangue 04:41
6. ACT VI - Erian's Lost Secrets 04:28
7. ACT VII - The Angels' Dark Revelation 03:59
******************************
Total playing time: 35:44

Off the record, the release date set by the label (at least for now) is 28th January. Still not officially confirmed, but that's what I see on their list here. The recordings must be finished by the third week of November if I'm not mistaken, then it'll be fully announced with info on the different editions. The title is yet to be revealed.

As it is by default with their songs, at first I was disgusted with this one. I rarely go through some gradation until I hear it in the concept of the album, because it's always been hard for me to listen to sole songs outside of the general idea - "Her Ghost..." aside, let's say. With this, however, I passed from the usual "total crap" through "just crap" to finally something "interesting". Mr. Allender saves it for me with the kind of a heavy metal general melody ("Foetus..." wannabe riff, even?) and the solo in the end, so maybe it'll be interesting to check this as a sole instrumental version, just a thought. Despite Dani is far from his best, those cleans he tends to use sound more oldschool in a way - not in terms of his own his style, but as if he's striving for some old goth-inspired vocals. Nice song for a change - so far all three of them sound really weird and it's clear that the album will be something different again. I only hope for it to be good while uncommon, then I'll manage with the rest.

P.S. They put up a sample from "The Nun With The Astral Spirit" here, way more familiar and aggressive.

Now that's the way to do it - smooth work, totally promising. They nailed it pretty tight this time, that over one-minute rasping after the middle of the track alone is enough for me to forgive Dave all kinds of blabbers and bullshit, hah. Thanks for the killer song!