Virgin Steele
The Marriage Of Heaven And Hell

This is my first review on DeBaser, I make myself comfortable, burn an incense stick, take a breath, press play and off we go

Most bands usually bring out the best of their production in the first albums, just take a look around DeBaser to confirm it. The reason is simple: Either you repeat yourself to always have the same slice of audience, or you try to change course, which in most cases ends disastrously. Rarely does a band get back on track, despite the hopes of loyal listeners. Yet sometimes it happens.

The Virgin Steele made their name with the first 3 albums, with their distinctive "Romantic Epic Metal," full of influences, but still different from any other band. Then comes "Age of Consent,” a well-crafted album, but slightly less "Epic" than the first ones. And finally, "Life Among The Ruins,” a good album but one that makes early V.S. fans lose hope... Predominantly love songs, Hit Singles, very beautiful yes, but the epic metal?
What to expect next?

The first notes of "I Will Come For You" in 1994 sent a strong and clear message: The Virgin Steele were back, and more determined than ever to remain in the history of metal, with a series of breathtaking concept albums.

The opener of the first album of a trilogy without weak points is an impactful piece. Simple but effective, it introduces in its central break the beautiful theme of the "Marriage of Heaven and Hell" and the story, which will accompany us in all three albums. I don't want to dwell too much on the concept, at first glance predictable (A battle between gods and men to summarize), but which turns out to be more complex with greater attention.

It continues with "Weeping Of The Spirit,” a piece that starts slowly accompanied by the notes of Pursino's acoustic, but that gives its best when it unleashes, in pure Virgin Steele tradition. An excellent performance, which precedes the second masterpiece of the album: "Blood And Gasoline,” fast, exciting, not at all predictable, it flows to the end, with Ed Pursino's guitar taking center stage and DeFeis's keyboard further embellishing it. The sound becomes slightly darker with "Self Crucifixion,” a piece more "calm" than the others, with piano taking the lead in the initial part. A small spoken part introduces "Last Supper,” even darker, but much more aggressive. The vocals blend perfectly with the rest of the instruments and explode in the chorus. The piece completely changes in the central part, becoming more melodic and assuming less dark tones, only to return suddenly to the initial compelling riff. The piano and the keyboard take center stage in "Warrior's Lament,” a touching instrumental piece that introduces another masterpiece: "Trail Of Tears,” immediate and simple, but not for this reason trivial, which ends with an acoustic part and DeFeis's sweet voice. After so much sweetness comes the aggression of "The Raven Song,” a "hard" and direct piece, with some Maiden-inspired influences and a simple and engaging chorus. Then comes the first ballad of the album, the magical "Forever Will I Roam,” which takes us back a couple of albums...

The moment of magic is interrupted by "I Wake Up Screaming,” another memorable piece of this album, with sharp vocals and riffs and some small prog influences, definitely contrasting with the previous and next song. Also comes the second, sweet, ballad, "House Of Dust,” which once again takes our mind back to "Noble Savage"... "Blood Of The Saints” is another excellent piece in full Virgin Steele style, where Maiden influences are still present, but it's a bit more anonymous than the others and fades compared to the next piece: "Life Among The Ruins” is definitely the masterpiece of the album. Its riff is captivating, its chorus is captivating! I have no words to describe such a piece...

In conclusion, we have the second instrumental of the album, "The Marriage Of Heaven And Hell,” which precisely takes up the theme of the central break of "I Will Come For You,” expanding and enriching it further... a melody of classical stamp... and after being carried away by its sweet notes, you will have only 2 options:

Press play again and listen to it all over;

Insert "The Marriage Of Heaven And Hell pt II” and continue the journey...