My Thoughts on The Odyssey

[Papa_McPhat]

Personally I didn't like the Odyssey as much as V or their live album.

In my opinion, every album was better than the one before it up until Odyssey. I think I would place it slightly less than Divine, but much higher than Damnation Game.

I personally feel that Twilight would have been their best album had they been able to finish it, but ohhh well.

I got this feeling that with Odyssey the first half of the album they were trying to be something they are not (like I said, just my opinion). The Keyboards were almost absent with the exception of the solo's. It had kind of a 2-D feel to it. There was empty space when the guitar wasn't playing. I also missed their chorus-like vocals they had on previous albums.

One other thing... I got really pissed at not being able to see them Live in the US. Both times they came even within a 6-hour drive of West Lafayette Indiana I was unable to attend. Once I had to proctor a test, the other time I had a test of my own to take. Any other day of the week and I would have skipped.

Not to mention... BOTH happened half a week before a break.

Ohhh well...

 

[RabidWarfare]

I agree with you...Althought I have never heard Mt. Olympus I like V the best. The Odyssey is still very much worth owning jsut for that song IMO.

 

[ProgMetalFan]

V is my favorite... though I can't express any disappointment in Odyssey... yet another Symphony X masterpiece.

 

[RabidWarfare]

How is that Mt. Olympus album?

 

[Yngvai X]

*Twilight* in Olypmus is a great album. Some of their best songs are on that one (Smoke and Mirrors, Church of the Machine, Through the Looking Glass).

Odyssey trying to be something they arent? Oh well, personally I like the heavier aspect of it, thats what I like about Divine Wings. SyX are a METAL band, and I think they were trying to proove that a little more with songs like Inferno, Wicked, King of Terrors, etc.

 

[jimbobhickville]

Odyssey is good, but what's up with the crappy mix on the cymbals? They sound muted.

 

[BastrdDrmr]

I agree about the drum sound. Although I read that the band is happy with it, I think they sound sort of lifeless.

 

[ProgMetalFan]

I too agree... the drum sound on V was spectacular... but it's really quite subpar on Odyssey.


"Twilight in Olympus" is a great and underrated album.

 

[Demonspell]

The drum sound is one of the few negatives on the Odyssey, but Jason does manage to overpower the production on more than a few occasions...

 

[shonimus]

In my opinion, I think V was their greatest album. THe Odyssey comes pretty close though. It's really all about the more metalish edge. I believe they were trying to appeal to a larger audience. I could be wrong though.

 

[Dream Symphony]

I disagree with all you people. I think the Odyssey is just as good if not better than V. Personally with the exceptions of Evolution and Rediscovery I&II, the rest of the songs on V don't match up to any of the songs on the Odyssey. The Orchestrations on the Overture and Scylla and Charybdis sound alot better than the prelude and the rest of the orchestrations on V.

 

[DoktorShred]

At first i placed this just behind V, but after hearing them live on monday, I played it through again and now its my favourite. The vocal performance has so much bloody energy, and Accolade II and awakenings are two of the best symphony X slower songs ever. Also songs which i saw as "filler material" at first, after a closer listen, actually have a lot of effort put into them and sound fantasitc (eg king of terrors, the turning).

 

[scanner313]

I know I'm going to catch hell for saying this, but I'm still not crazy about the song "The Odyssey". I like it more now than I did when I first heard it, but I still think it's not nearly as good as TDWOT. I love the orchestration parts, but to me, all of the heavier verses are kind of plain. They lack the intensity of the other SyX heavy songs. I find them to be somewhat dry and uninteresting. Not terrible by any means, but I think the other songs on the album are superior to the heavy parts on "The Odyssey". Overall, it's still a good song, but I wouldn't consider it one of SyX's greatest achievements. just because it's long doesn't make it great. It touches on greatness, but overall it doesn't maintain that level throughout.

Of course, that's just my opinion. And SyX is my favorite band.

 

[Kyra]

Tell, to each their own...no need for you to catch any crap for not liking the Odyssey that much. We all react to music in our own way. I think it's an incredible song, possibly my favorite "epic" length song.

V however remains my favorite Symphony X album, and close to my favorite album by anyone. I wouldn't The Odyssey though, I think it's absolutely wonderful, I just think V is that much better.

 

[The Metal Chick]

With the exception of Through the Looking Glass and a few others, TIO is not the best album, I think. And even though V was the album that sprouted my current obsession with SX, it too is not their best. Maybe it's the whole concept thing, I don't know. The Odyssey seems to have so much more power, with the heavy riffs and unbelievable vocals. And though I too was disapointed that the keyboards seemed a little absent at the beginning, there's a lot more piano melodies, and I'm a sucker for piano stuff.

In my world, The Odyssey rules all.