Rhapsody - Power Of The Dragonflame
| Release date: | 23 April 2002 |
| Style: | Symphonic power metal |
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Owners: |
630 have it 39 want it 1 trades it |
Disc I [CD]
01. In Tenebris
02. Knightrider Of Doom
03. Power Of The Dragonflame
04. The March Of The Swordmaster
05. When Demons Awake
06. Agony Is My Name
07. Lamento Eroico
08. Steelgods Of The Last Apocalypse
09. The Pride Of The Tyrant
10. Gargoyles, Angels Of Darkness
11. Rise From The Sea Of Flames [Limited Edition bonus]
Disc II [DVD]
01. Introduction
02. Rain Of A Thousand Flames
03. Epicus Furor - Emerald Sword
04. Wisdom Of The Kings
05. Power Of The Dragonflame
06. Holy Thunderforce
07. Credits
Top 20 albums of 2002: 15
01. In Tenebris
02. Knightrider Of Doom
03. Power Of The Dragonflame
04. The March Of The Swordmaster
05. When Demons Awake
06. Agony Is My Name
07. Lamento Eroico
08. Steelgods Of The Last Apocalypse
09. The Pride Of The Tyrant
10. Gargoyles, Angels Of Darkness
11. Rise From The Sea Of Flames [Limited Edition bonus]
Disc II [DVD]
01. Introduction
02. Rain Of A Thousand Flames
03. Epicus Furor - Emerald Sword
04. Wisdom Of The Kings
05. Power Of The Dragonflame
06. Holy Thunderforce
07. Credits
Top 20 albums of 2002: 15
Review
Lyrics
Rating:
7.0
7.0
|
Rating: 7.0 |
With this album, Rhapsody ends its first saga. The music has evolved through each chapter, and the last one is no exception. When I first read an interview of Luca, where he said there would be even more guitars than before, I feared the worst: I would have preferred he said the emphasis was placed on the composition... Anyway, let's listen to it together: The introduction, as its title "In Tenebris" clearly suggests, brings you to the end, as if fate was calling. This is the result of the "orchestra + choirs" formula. Next is Knightriders Of Doom, a speedy song as expected, but quite simple, with a repetitive chorus like those which become typical of Rhapsody. But the sound of the guitar isn't so dominant. In fact all the instruments can be heard, though the keyboards and the drums seem more important. Moreover I'm a bit disappointed about the sound, especially the guitar: it doesn't sound really neat. Definitely not the best song of the band in my opinion. Third track, Power Of The DragonFlame. I don't really like it either, especially because of that guitar sound which doesn't fit the intro riff very well. Otherwise the song is good, again with one of those typical choruses (if you didn't like Dawn Of Victory, you're unlikely to like this album), but sometimes Fabio's voice gets lower than before, or let's say like in the verses of the well-known song Holy Thunderforce on the previous album. With The March Of The Swordmaster comes the first real instrumental passage sounding like folklore. Then the guitar enters and we guess this is going to be a heavy song. And this guess is confirmed when Fabio begins to sing: this is quite dark... then the song sound like a Manowar song, I mean in the rhythm, the voice and the lyrics, etc. But then you look at the song of the next two tracks: When Demons Awake, Agony Is My Name: wow, this must be even darker! And it is. Fabio's close to black metal (well not that far, but still it's the idea) on the first one, which also contains some good and varied passages, like some keys solos. I quite like this one, but it took me some time before I enjoyed it. The second is not so dark, and has some nice guitar licks. The follower, Lamento Eorico, is a special song for the band: it's the only one entirely sung in Italian. It's a sad and slow ballad, with no guitar, but more piano and choirs elements. Ah, my favorite on this album, Steelgods Of Apocalypse! It begins with some orchestrations, not as good as those on Eternal Glory on the 2nd album, but very nice, with the drums that give some momentum to the keys parts. It sounds a bit majestic, it's heavy and soft at the same time. It ends with some good guitar/keys solos and melodies. Ninth track is the closest to Legendary Tales (first album). I like the chorus, it seems to take you higher. On the version I have, there's a bonus track: Rise From The Sea Of Flames. There's nothing really special about that song. It's not really heavy, has no real orchestration or instrumental passages. Still it's a good song, with a catchy chorus. Now, the last track, the one to end this saga. It's a really special song. First, it's a really long track, 19 minutes, divided in three parts. The sound of the acoustic guitar is surprising, as it's like a classical-Spanish sound, a very good idea. The electric guitar comes in to settle the rhythm, , and the bass keeps it during the verses. After that the song is not really different from the other songs of the album. It's good but not surprising, not amazing, at least until Turilli breaks into a great solo at the middle of the song. Then Fabio introduces the gargoyles by a narrative passage, followed by another narrative passage (but not by the singer). The band plays again and begin a short and slow instrumental, while the narration continues. The music stops the narrator speaks... and the intro of the album ends the Emerald Sword Saga. Maybe I've said too much, but from all that is written above you should have understand I don't really appreciate this album. It's not a bad album, and it's still one of the best symphonic power metal album at the moment. But the production is not as good as Symphony Of Enchanted Lands or Dawn Of Victory; as a result, the songs don't really touch your feelings, and many times, I don't see the difference between the songs when I play the whole CD. The fact that this album gets really heavy in some songs may perturb some fans, but I do think it could be a good way in the evolution of their music. To conclude on the whole saga, I have to say the story in itself is a bit weak, but sufficient to create this genre. Rhapsody developed various aspects of their music throughout the chapters. Read more ›› |
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Comments
Comments: 13
Visited by: 638 users
| Damshak Posts: 63  |
---Top 10 ''Rhapsody Of Fire''--- 1-. Power Of The Dragonflame 2-. Dawn Of Victory 3-. Unholy Warcry 4-. Emerald Sword 5-.Thunder's Mighty Roar 6-.Holy Thunderforce 7-. Rage Of The Winter 8-. Triumph For My Magic Steel 9-.Rain Of A Thousand Flames 10-.Lord Of Thunder
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| musicalkaratekid Posts: 1506 |
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| Hawkk44 Posts: 13  |
My personal favorite album of all time, and Rhapsody's best. A must have for any symphonic power metal fan!
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| mikeprado30 Posts: 1284  |
Their best album as Rhapsody, and their most powerful one also. My love goes for songs like Power, WHEN DEMONS AWAKE, Agony is my Name, Knightrider of Doom, MARCH OF THE SWORDMASTER (dat guitarrrr zolo!!! ) 2015 EDIT: Still great, but nowadays IMHO their best one is From Chaos to Eternity 
---- BARDS WE ARE, BARDS WE WILL BE!
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| Stunning Cactus Posts: 324  |
As I am listening, I am noticing that this is a more thrashy, brutal sound from Rhapsody, sort of like what you hear in their cover of Manowar's "Power of Thy Sword". I LOVE this sound. *NEW FAVORITE ALBUM*
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| R Lewis Posts: 936  |
The album itself is amazing, but I HATE the production. It ruins a masterpiece imo.
---- We could be so much more than we are. Stop.
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| BloodJuNkie Of Egypt Posts: 647  |
I gave this album only 1 listen and i'm not impressed by all of the songs except "Gargoyles, Angels Of Darkness". It's a masterpiece, i wish it was released alone as an EP. The bonus track's great too and i gave this album a 9 only because of those tracks specially Gargolyes! ... I'm not big fan of power metal btw!
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| JÄY Metal slave Posts: 1567  |
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| Reaper_Redeemer Posts: 746  |
Their catchy stuff is worthy, when they try to be unique and characteristic then they ruin their music for me..
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| Doge of Venice Posts: 442  |
I love When Demons Awake. It just captures a darkness and moodiness that feels different than their usual cheesy fare. Not there is a prohlem with that - but the song feels different from the others, and I love it.
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| AndyMetalFreak A Nice Guy Contributor Posts: 5324  |
This is definitely one of Rhapsody's best imo, if not the best. I'll admit like any symphonic power metal album it does have it's fair share of cheesy moments, and some of the synth melodies, and wailing guitar solo's can get on my nerves at times, but there is also many moments of epic brilliance. The closing epic could of been cut short a wee bit in parts though, but that's just imo. The songwriting and lyrical fantasy theme is magnificent, it's clear that lots of imagination and effort has gone into these sagas. And for me I find no problem whatsoever with the production, I will even go as far to say that it's one of the best produced albums in symphonic power metal. I find it astonishing really just how they manage to make every element of the album sound so clear and precise, from the Orchestra and symphonies, to the vocals and the instruments.
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| nonZero Posts: 1334  |
For me, Rhapsody's best albums are: 1. Symphony of Enchanted Lands (8.9/10) 2. Power of the Dragonflame (8.7/10) 3. Dawn of Victory (8.5/10)
---- Top 500 Albums (ordered & rated) Top 200 Overlooked Albums (with genres) So I Heard You Like Wintersun... (Time II find new bands)
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| Ellrohir Heaven Knight Posts: 8669  |
Every single song on this one is great. This is their best release ever, period 
---- My rest seems now calm and deep Finally I got my dead man sleep 
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