Symphony X
The Divine Wings of Tragedy

THE REVIEW

Logic would dictate that you should listen to the older works first and then move on to the subsequent ones, but I do the opposite and after the marvelous "V: The New Mythology Suite" I plunge into the now dated "The Divine Wings of Tragedy" that so many Symphony X fans love to madness.

It was way back in 1997 when the American quintet released this album, well, what can I say, very well done: harder sounds compared to the later "V" where one was enchanted by the dreamy melodies... in the first part we can find a more metal atmosphere and a Michael Pinnella almost in the background in my opinion. An album full of good tracks but, while remaining at very high levels, lacking from a melodic point of view.

Perfect start: the first 3 tracks are really well done, they have a high rhythm, excellent solos and an engaging sound that makes us soar for the first 12 minutes. "Of Sins and Shadows" is my favorite song on the whole cd, excellent opening! Unfortunately, then "The Accolade" drops the rhythm to the ground, once again too calm as a song, there's too much distance with the previous ones. Then it moves on to "Pharaoh" which perhaps has a too confused instrumental part but overall it proves to be pleasant. "The Eyes of Medusa" (note Russell Allen's vocal power here!) is a hard, metal track, let's say out of the ordinary, especially the beginning and the chorus... no one would expect what we hear about halfway through: a melodic, calm, and delicate part but at the same time also melancholy and deep, it's a relief to hear these sweet notes. It's short but it personally struck me a lot; at the end of this little "masterpiece" we return to the initial notes of the track with a bit of a fright for the overwhelming entry of Michael Romeo and Rullo. Follows "The Witching Hour": good sound, it is a typical prog metal track that accompanies us to the ""grand"" finale...
"The Divine Wings of Tragedy" is a suite of 20 minutes and 41 endless seconds. Having read other reviews where it was talked about as a masterpiece, I sadly have to go against the grain: no, this doesn't work, a suite MUST have a main melody that accompanies us gently (and not...) to then explode in a majestic finale that stays with you for such a long time... here there are many good things but they are not enough to make it a good song. The beginning is excellent though... the choir of the first 2 minutes is beautiful, gives shivers, continues with a good rhythmic section but then the music becomes chaotic, concentration drops and the last 10 mins (aside from some successful melodies...) never pass. What a pity.
It ends with "Candlelight Fantasia": melancholic and pleasant.

Inferior to "V" but it remains at a high musical level. You can appreciate all the singer's power on this cd. The rating I can give is 3.5... maybe I criticized it a bit too much having compared it with their subsequent work, but on second thought it's still an excellent album from one of the best prog metal bands around.