Symphony X

The Profile

Symphony X are an American progressive metal band from New Jersey, known for blending prog-metal complexity with power metal drive and neoclassical/symphonic influences, featuring guitarist Michael Romeo and vocalist Russell Allen.

Publicly known and consistent with the reviews: Symphony X are a New Jersey (U.S.) progressive metal band formed in the mid-1990s. Core members widely associated with the band include guitarist Michael Romeo, vocalist Russell Allen, keyboardist Michael Pinnella, bassist Michael LePond, and drummer Jason Rullo. Their catalog includes landmark prog-metal albums such as The Divine Wings of Tragedy (1997), V: The New Mythology Suite (2000), and The Odyssey (2002), and later a heavier direction on releases like Paradise Lost (2007) and beyond.

Across these reviews, Symphony X are framed as a technical yet melodic progressive metal band from New Jersey, often compared to (and frequently preferred over) Dream Theater. Fans praise Michael Romeo’s riffing/soloing and Russell Allen’s power and versatility, with Pinnella/Rullo/LePond (and earlier Miller/Walling) highlighted for precision and chemistry. Classic-era releases like The Divine Wings of Tragedy and V are treated as genre benchmarks, while The Odyssey and Paradise Lost split opinions. Later albums (Paradise Lost → Iconoclast → Underworld) are described as a deliberate move toward a heavier, more modern, sometimes thrash-leaning approach.