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The last song of this album begins with the words, Did I really sin? Should I suffer these bleedings within? The first song
ends with the question, What if my mortal remains are all that proved I was here. These two lyrics bookmark and lay out where
this cd is going, musically and lyrically.
As one could probably guess, these uttered words did not come out of a death metal album. Questions that probed deep into
the psyche, and proved a story line or concept can most likely be found in the form of progressive metal, as in this case
they are.
The sins that Manticora refer to are not the traditional seven deadly sins, but are most likely closer to the 'sins'
that one commits in everyday life without questioning them. This sets the scene nicely for this album, as it is about a man,
finding himself in the afterlife, reflects back on his life.
That could sound boring, but not here. Right away there is a driving rhythm from the percussion section, followed by chugging
guitars, which on a lot of occasions, break out some great solos, but not too masturbatory. The vocals over top, are not
that over the top. They have a tough grit to them, which very nicely fits the atmosphere of the disc as a whole. Plus, there
are sound clips and narration, but it does not seem to distract, it seems to build as it further connects the album to reality.
(Christopher Lee talking about dragons does not, sorry.)
My judgment is this: More bands need to tackle real life. Yes, Rhapsody does have a fast pace, but they are also singing
about running around in tights, trying to rescue the emerald weapon and slay the dragon. That is not a topic that comes up
much in real life, though the last two seem to have a nice homo-erotic subtext. Power Metal can be gritty, can have balls,
and this albums has both. And for the fans that are troubled by my account of most power metal, take a look in the mirror.
Trust me, most girls do not want to handle your emerald weapon,
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