Eternity X

Once again, here's a band that I was inspired to spend money on after hearing an mp3 of "The Edge Part 3" -- although I got it from mp3.com, so it was legit. :-) And the best news is, unlike most other 90s prog-metal bands, they DO NOT sound like a Dream Theater clone!!!

"Zodiac"

  1. "Zodiac Prologue" (1:52)
  2. "Aries" (2:55)
  3. "Taurus" (3:04)
  4. "Gemini" (3:24)
  5. "Cancer" (3:54)
  6. "Leo" (2:34)
  7. "Virgo" (3:18)
  8. "Libra" (4:11)
  9. "Scorpio" (3:03)
  10. "Sagittarius" (3:07)
  11. "Capricorn" (3:23)
  12. "Aquarius" (2:59)
  13. "Pisces" (3:22)
  14. "Zodiac Epilogue" (1:21)
  15. "Fast Forward"--instrumental (6:03)

The band's full-length debut isn't as progressive as their later works, but it does display their talent for writing great melodies, especially on the memorable songs "Taurus", "Libra", and "Aquarius". This CD is also useful for helping me remember the order of sun signs, as I never can keep them straight. :) "Fast Forward", a pointless drums & bass-only jam, is a bonus track on the reissue CD.

"Mind Games"

  1. "Firestorm" (5:16)
  2. "Mind Games" (5:42)
  3. "The Chase"--instrumental (2:04)
  4. "The Savior and the Disease" (4:26)
  5. "Despair" (3:52)
  6. "Crawl Before You Walk" (7:55)
  7. "Viper II" (4:56)
  8. "Faith" (3:03)
  9. "Endless Journey" (5:32)
  10. "Eulogy" (5:14)
  11. "Eternity" (4:56)
  12. "Switchblade" (3:40)

This is where the band started developing their unique brand of epic progressive metal, not quite as varied as The Edge, but still very similar in style. My favorites here are the powerful "Crawl Before You Walk" and the upbeat, acoustically-driven "Faith" (which sounds very similar to "Childhood's End?" by Marillion.)

"The Edge"

  1. "The Edge...(Introduction)" (6:12)
  2. "Fly Away" (8:03)
  3. "The Confession" (6:50)
  4. "The Edge Part 2...(The Looking Glass)" (6:13)
  5. "A Day in Verse" (8:04)
  6. "Imaginarium" (10:15)
  7. "The Edge Part 3...(Existence Chapter 1,000,009)" (5:04)
  8. "The Edge of Madness" (7:15)
  9. "Rejection" (3:27)
  10. "Baptized in Fire" (7:31)
  11. "The Edge...Legacy/Reprise" (5:02)

A beautiful album, containing multitudinous musical styles, including Angra-like power ballads ("Fly Away", "A Day in Verse"), lush orchestral overtures, tricky time-signature changes (during the first song I had to check my player several times to make sure the disc wasn't skipping), and even a bit of techno-pop in "The Edge Part 3". Sure, there's a bit of Dream Theater influence, but there's a ton of other influences as well, all mixed together & homogenized so thoroughly that the sound they create comes out pure & original. Another surprising thing is that vocalist Keith Sudano does ALL the vocals, including the female-sounding operatic vox! (Which are actually a bit annoying...) This is amazing, because I could have sworn there were at least three different singers in "The Edge Part 3" -- it's no wonder, then, that Sudano is credited with "Lead Vocals and Multiple Personalities". :))

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