Seventh Wonder - Mercy Falls review

Reviewer:
9.7

288 users:
8.62

Band:	Seventh Wonder
Album:	Mercy Falls
Style:	Progressive metal
Release date:	September 12, 2008
Guest review by:	Milena

01. A New Beginning
02. There And Back (Overture)
03. Welcome To Mercy Falls
04. Unbreakable
05. Tears For A Father
06. A Day Away
07. Tears For A Son
08. Paradise
09. Fall In Line
10. Break The Silence
11. Hide And Seek
12. Destiny Calls
13. One Last Goodbye
14. Back In Time
15. The Black Parade

This album hasn't got a review yet? Seriously, what are prog fans doing on this forum, are they asleep or something? The only thing that separates this album from a cult classic status is its release date.

The concept follows a short period of life of a man who's in a coma. He's dreaming of a town called Mercy Falls, which serves as a metaphor for his subconscious mind. Meanwhile, the actions of his family and the people taking care of him have an impact of what he sees in his sleep - a terrible storm hits Mercy Falls just as the doctors are working on a new procedure which involves the blood of his son... Fifteen songs may seem a bit long, but the story is worth it - it passed in the blink of an eye while I was waiting to discover what caused the dreadful storm and what got him in a coma in the first place.

And that's just the lyrics! The melodies are simply blissful, there sure are many of them, and the band will just keep 'em coming, executing them with near-impossible perfection. Tommy Karevik can put many prog singers to shame, but I'm only mentioning him since people tend to pick their bands based on how they like the vocalist. Everyone threw in a top-notch performance here. And don't get me wrong - it's been maybe a year and a half since I got into the progressive scene, but I'll still go ahead and claim that the mid-section of the album (starting with "Paradise" and ending with "Destiny Calls") contains some of the best moments the genre has ever offered us.

And then comes the ungrateful part for the band - they're now expected to write albums of similar strength, which is near impossible. Every album after this one will lack the epic quality they achieved on Mercy Falls. But then, you could also say that Awake lacks the epic quality of Images And Words, or that Mob Rules lacks the epic quality of Heaven And Hell. I'll be happy as long as the guys keep on writing neat and inspiring stuff, knowing that this is the crown jewel of their career, and that's something a lot of bands lack.

Rating breakdown

Performance:	10
Songwriting:	10
Originality:	9
Production:	10

Written by Milena | 06.03.2011

Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.

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Enissa Posts: 816	Permalink 06.03.2011 - 19:19 Rating: 10 Enissa Posts: 816 Totally agree, this album and this band both great.... Loading...
Valaskjalf Account deleted	Permalink 10.03.2011 - 19:20 Valaskjalf Account deleted Your score is way too high in my opinion...this album lacks in every single department when you consider how good their previous two albums were - same-paced, little variety between songs (they dont change things up at all). Sure they are very skillful musicians but theres no epicness, no soul. Its all a little too emotional for my taste and too soft. Look back a couple of years to "Waiting in the WIngs" - now I struggle to compare this album to the masterpiece that was WITW. Loading...
Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603	Permalink 11.03.2011 - 08:32 Rating: 10 Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603 Written by [user id=1909] on 10.03.2011 at 19:20 Your score is way too high in my opinion...this album lacks in every single department when you consider how good their previous two albums were - same-paced, little variety between songs (they dont change things up at all). Sure they are very skillful musicians but theres no epicness, no soul. Its all a little too emotional for my taste and too soft. Look back a couple of years to "Waiting in the WIngs" - now I struggle to compare this album to the masterpiece that was WITW. Waiting In The Wings, in my opinion, isn't 'tuned' enough (damn, I pro'lly shouldn't have used that word). It's like, I play it, hear all the SW trademark elements, but there is always that little part missing, a little bit of awesomeness, the thing that makes you remember the song the next time you play it. Not that it's bad, it's very enjoyable, but it doesn't feel right somehow. And this one pretty much hit the jackpot for me. Proof that tastes differ ridiculously much ---- 7.0 means the album is good Loading...
Fredd Account deleted	Permalink 06.11.2011 - 13:13 Fredd Account deleted I am a morbid fan of this band and i am therefore commenting on this artful review that you have written Loading...
Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603	Permalink 06.11.2011 - 15:34 Rating: 10 Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603 Written by [user id=114127] on 06.11.2011 at 13:13 I am a morbid fan of this band and i am therefore commenting on this artful review that you have written What can I say, I'm a shoutbox advertiser extraordinaire. ---- 7.0 means the album is good Loading...
Fredd Account deleted	Permalink 06.09.2012 - 14:19 Fredd Account deleted Written by Milena on 06.11.2011 at 15:34 Written by [user id=114127] on 06.11.2011 at 13:13 I am a morbid fan of this band and i am therefore commenting on this artful review that you have written What can I say, I'm a shoutbox advertiser extraordinaire. And a year later, I'm now downloading it. Loading...
Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603	Permalink 06.09.2012 - 16:10 Rating: 10 Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603 Written by [user id=114127] on 06.09.2012 at 14:19 And a year later, I'm now downloading it. For shame ---- 7.0 means the album is good Loading...
Fredd Account deleted	Permalink 06.09.2012 - 16:16 Fredd Account deleted Written by Milena on 06.09.2012 at 16:10 Written by [user id=114127] on 06.09.2012 at 14:19 And a year later, I'm now downloading it. For shame I've listened to it. But I only paid attention to the lyrics of the first 3 or 4 songs, and my mind was blown. And due to my superhuman attention span I couldn't keep up with most of the lyrics of the later songs. But I'll be playing this again for sure. Loading...
Nemo Atkins Posts: 257	Permalink 21.09.2012 - 01:25 Nemo Atkins Posts: 257 Well, you got me interested. Just one question: would you say this is something non-Prog fans are likely to enjoy? Loading...
Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603	Permalink 21.09.2012 - 12:59 Rating: 10 Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603 Written by Nemo Atkins on 21.09.2012 at 01:25 Well, you got me interested. Just one question: would you say this is something non-Prog fans are likely to enjoy? If you're a fan of melodic metal, then yes, there might be a chance you'll like this. ---- 7.0 means the album is good Loading...
Nemo Atkins Posts: 257	Permalink 21.09.2012 - 13:45 Nemo Atkins Posts: 257 Written by Milena on 21.09.2012 at 12:59 Written by Nemo Atkins on 21.09.2012 at 01:25 Well, you got me interested. Just one question: would you say this is something non-Prog fans are likely to enjoy? If you're a fan of melodic metal, then yes, there might be a chance you'll like this. Listening now. Mind isn't blown, but I'm very impressed so far. EDIT: Holy hell, "Tear for a Father" is beautiful! I might get this album just for that one song! Loading...
CobiWan1993 Secundum Filium Posts: 1365	Permalink 01.10.2012 - 05:35 Rating: 9 CobiWan1993 Secundum Filium Posts: 1365 Written by Milena on 11.03.2011 at 08:32 Written by [user id=1909] on 10.03.2011 at 19:20 Your score is way too high in my opinion...this album lacks in every single department when you consider how good their previous two albums were - same-paced, little variety between songs (they dont change things up at all). Sure they are very skillful musicians but theres no epicness, no soul. Its all a little too emotional for my taste and too soft. Look back a couple of years to "Waiting in the WIngs" - now I struggle to compare this album to the masterpiece that was WITW. Waiting In The Wings, in my opinion, isn't 'tuned' enough (damn, I pro'lly shouldn't have used that word). It's like, I play it, hear all the SW trademark elements, but there is always that little part missing, a little bit of awesomeness, the thing that makes you remember the song the next time you play it. Not that it's bad, it's very enjoyable, but it doesn't feel right somehow. And this one pretty much hit the jackpot for me. Proof that tastes differ ridiculously much Yes, I agree. I loved Waiting in the Wings when I first played it, and I didn't think Mercy Falls was going to top it. However after a few more listens, Mercy Falls blows Waiting in the Wings out of the water with ease. I still enjoy Waiting in the Wings, but Mercy Falls and their next album The Great Escape are just plain masterpieces. ---- Ordinary men hate solitude. But the Master makes use of it, embracing his aloneness, realizing he is one with the whole universe (Lao Tzu). Loading...
ChampionOfPower Posts: 28	Permalink 05.11.2012 - 20:14 Rating: 10 ChampionOfPower Posts: 28 Finally received the copy of this album I purchased a month ago. It's near perfect in my opinion as well. The melodies get stuck in my head for days, the execution of all the musicians is beyond impressive and Karevik's voice brings everything together perfectly. This album is a must have for me and I'm glad to have gotten around to this band. Loading...
Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603	Permalink 05.11.2012 - 20:38 Rating: 10 Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603 Written by ChampionOfPower on 05.11.2012 at 20:14 Finally received the copy of this album I purchased a month ago. It's near perfect in my opinion as well. The melodies get stuck in my head for days, the execution of all the musicians is beyond impressive and Karevik's voice brings everything together perfectly. This album is a must have for me and I'm glad to have gotten around to this band. Nice! fist bump have you gotten around to the new Kamelot album as well? ---- 7.0 means the album is good Loading...
ChampionOfPower Posts: 28	Permalink 05.11.2012 - 21:25 Rating: 10 ChampionOfPower Posts: 28 Written by Milena on 05.11.2012 at 20:38 Written by ChampionOfPower on 05.11.2012 at 20:14 Finally received the copy of this album I purchased a month ago. It's near perfect in my opinion as well. The melodies get stuck in my head for days, the execution of all the musicians is beyond impressive and Karevik's voice brings everything together perfectly. This album is a must have for me and I'm glad to have gotten around to this band. Nice! fist bump have you gotten around to the new Kamelot album as well? Return fist bump I just got the new Kamelot album last Thursday. I've only listened to it once so far. Initial reaction was very good, but I need to give it a few more spins. I did get to see Kamelot live with Tommy back in September and that was awesome. Loading...
Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603	Permalink 05.11.2012 - 21:41 Rating: 10 Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603 Written by ChampionOfPower on 05.11.2012 at 21:25 Return fist bump I just got the new Kamelot album last Thursday. I've only listened to it once so far. Initial reaction was very good, but I need to give it a few more spins. I did get to see Kamelot live with Tommy back in September and that was awesome. is very jealous ---- 7.0 means the album is good Loading...
ChampionOfPower Posts: 28	Permalink 05.11.2012 - 21:57 Rating: 10 ChampionOfPower Posts: 28 Written by Milena on 05.11.2012 at 21:41 Written by ChampionOfPower on 05.11.2012 at 21:25 Return fist bump I just got the new Kamelot album last Thursday. I've only listened to it once so far. Initial reaction was very good, but I need to give it a few more spins. I did get to see Kamelot live with Tommy back in September and that was awesome. is very jealous I won't mention then, that I got to meet the band before hand along with Nightwish... Loading...
Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603	Permalink 05.11.2012 - 22:59 Rating: 10 Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603 Written by ChampionOfPower on 05.11.2012 at 21:57 I won't mention then, that I got to meet the band before hand along with Nightwish... Okay, I'll try to redirect this from me, and be happy for you Now I feel better. ---- 7.0 means the album is good Loading...
bodomdragon Posts: 49	Permalink 04.03.2015 - 18:38 Rating: 10 bodomdragon Posts: 49 This album is pure art, and anyone not rating it with a 10/10 should go to hell immediately. Loading...
R-Boxma Account deleted	Permalink 29.06.2019 - 16:10 R-Boxma Account deleted They should have filtered all the cheesy, emotional drag out of this album (as well as all Tommy's heartfelt junk in all his other albums) and then I would give it a 10/10. It's just too sickening sometimes. At least Andi Kravljaca kept it cool throughout Become. Loading...