Metal Reviews

Sorry, I couldn't really come up with a name for this thread, but I was just listening to the title track on Edenbridge's "Sunrise in Eden" for the 5th time in a row. As fucking incredible as that song is, there is one part that is just amazing beyond description. At 4.23, everything suddenly stops for a 40 seconds long flute solo that simply has my jaw on the floor every time I hear it.

You have probably all heard some of them, those parts of a song where everything just comes together for a brief period of pure perfection. The kind of thing that makes you play that part over and over for a while before you can continue to listen to the rest of the song. Here are some of mine:

I'm not a big fan of X-Japan, but the part between 2.50 – 4.32 in the song "Dahlia" is absolutely fantastic. A long, instrumental part perfectly building up to one of the most jaw-dropping solos I've ever heard.

3.15 – 5.05 in Sonata Arctica's "White Pearls, Black Oceans", where the song is starting to speed up. The way Tony literally grieves out the lines "Her presence in the room we both could feel/ The father of her unborn child and me" followed by a sped up version of the chorus and the main melody is so intense I've found myseld desk-drumming like a maniac to it more than once.

2.20 – 3.25 in Dragonland – The Returning, arguably the highlight of that album. A very good instrumental break leading into a short vocal bridge followed by a fantastic keyboard solo.

The last two minutes of Freedom Call – Warriors, starting with that cheese-tastic choir section, followed by a simple but note-for-note perfect guitar solo, and then fading out with the chorus with some additional guitar runs underneath.

6.45 – 8.35 in Domine's "The Aquilonia Suite", easily the best song they've ever written. A short vocal passage leading into a long solo that starts slow and speds up until it explodes into a glorious melody that I think is taken from the Conan soundtrack. Epic with a capital E.

3.15 – 4.05 in TSO - Christmas Canon Rock. A incredibly melodic solo sandwiched between two very drawn-out vocal notes. Damn that guy can shred, and those ladies can sing! And I can't get enough of guitar renditions of Pachelbel's Canon

John Cage's 4'33'' definitely isn't ordinairy

The second half of Godspeed You! Black Emperor's "Antennas To Heaven" is the most mesmerizing piece of music I've heard yet.

And "Metatron" from TMV

"THE DEAD PLOT YOU DREAM IN
TEN GO AWAY
TEN BORN OF PRAY
TEN GOOOO AWWWAAAAAAAAY

FOOOOOOOLDING
WOOOOORMHOOLES"

Fucking fantastic.

Anything by Antonio Vivaldi... just to name one.

i am broken mirrors
and useless prayer
its unforgivable
it knows that i am physical

The "classical" section of "Neath Waters" by Thy Catafalque and the acoustic bit of "As Embers Dress the Sky" by Agalloch. Actually, I think all of both of those songs could qualify, but if we're going for sections, then I'd pick those.

Kai Hansen's solo in I'm Alive is just completely perfect.

A few off the top of my head...

Beginning of "Prequel to the Sequel"--Between the Buried and Me...just awesome
Solo in "Learning to Live"--Dream Theater...part around 7:00 mark. Holy shit.
End of "Sequoia Throne"--Protest the Hero...the sweeps over the powerful riffing is just awesome
Solo at end of "Colony of Birchmen"--Mastodon

There's some others too. I just think of them as the parts that give me the chills when I hear them.

Holy shit dude, Neath Waters is such a great pick. Probably my favorite song ever.


Anyone else, do yourself a favor and listen to it now, seriously.

Devin Townsend - Earth Day

Perfect song, but the parts after 3:48 make me feel like I'm about to die. In a good way.



It's like your birthday, it's on Earth Day,

Like a child you're born again, little child you're bored again...

It's your worst fucking day, it's on Earth Day...

Little lies to cover up...please make your mind up



(Eat your beets, Recycle...recycle...)

(...Don't eat your beets, recycle...recycle)


Another song that puts me in complete trance is The Towers of Avarice by Zero Hour.

THEY ARE ALL JUST SECONDS BOTH IN LINE AND IN TIME
MOVING FOREVER TOWARDS BOXES OF PINE

Fuckin aye

I'll list a few that have really been kicking my ass over the past couple of months or so.

Blind Guardian - Mordred's Song @ 2:08 - 2:48. "WASH AWAY THE BLOOD ON MY HANDS!!! My father's blood..." Beautiful, anyone who has trouble getting into Hansi's vocals ought to check this song out.

Fates Warning - Guardian @ 0:36 - 1:36. What a solo, just soaring with emotion.

Dream Theater - Erotomania @ 1:57 - 2:38. This, among other reasons, is why DT's old stuff just towers above their more recent stuff - Kevin Moore's keyboard parts that are plain out of this world.

Lost Horizon - Cry of a Restless Soul @ 4:05 - 4:24. The second verse - "Fly free again, through virgin lands!". One of the oh-so-many downright stunning vocal moments on that whole album.

Angra - Angels and Demons @ 2:21 - 2:43. Fantastic second half of the solo.

Disarmonia Mundi - Colors of a New Era @ 0:09 - 0:29. Subtle electronics beneath simple slow chords. Extremely thick ambience.

I'll nominate Canada from that album. Great song.

The one band that consistently gets me going is Cryptopsy, though, especially certain songs from None So Vile or Once Was Not. Graves Of The Fathers and that bit in Carrionshine when it gets all bassy =

Meshuggah - Dehumanization is like that too, once I've been listening to the rest of Catch 33

Brocas Helm-Cry of the Banshee in the very beginning
The Lord Weird Slough Feg-Derig Doom (horslips cover) the whole thing is just too good to be true.

A lot, geeze. I'll have to think about this.

Yeah, I realised soon after posting mine. I'll just add the whole of Negura Bunget - Om and Mayhem - Ordo ad Chao for now...

On Into the electric castle by ayreon, I don't remember the song title but its when they have entered the castle and the dead are after them and the knight howls "within in this armor cold and bright lies a noble heart with a will to fight." it gives me chills

Black Star and Far Beyond The Sun by Yngwie J Malmsteen.

Rhapsody (of Fire) on Soel II . Sacred Power Of Raging Winds... there is a cookie monster vocal part when the Demon speaks to his son, and then it turns into a FANTASTIC section, very classical, WITH a flute solo...simply breath-taking and beautiful..best instrumental section they ever did.

Iron Maiden's ALEXANDER THE GREAT, 4:53 to 7:09.

A little more than two minutes of pure musical perfection. Best solo ever.

Great pick!

Although the most "extraordinary" bit for me is always round about the 4 minute mark when that melody comes in, just before it cuts out. To be honest, I can do without the long orchestral section, it's great considering he did it on his own, but doesn't really compare to a proper orchestra.