Symphony X - First Half or Second Half?

[PrgrsveMetalnChains]

There is no filler on V and to say such is treason. Shit even the very ending of A Fool's Paradise is better than half of their catalogue.
"Is this the final setting sun? OOooooooaaaaaahhhooooooo!!!! (enter awesome Diablo-ish acoustic guitar exit) Fuck me that album is gold.

@ :56 into Rediscovery (Segue), tell me you don't feel magic in that instrumental piece. No matter what Symphony X does in the future, they will always have those songs in their catalogue that makes them stand far above and beyond any other band in just about the last decade. The filler tracks of their albums stand out over any other hard rock or metal band I have heard in years. For me, I will enjoy and love the music Symphony X puts out from now till they split or die simply because I know what they can do and what they have accomplished musically and for me, that speaks volumes. An amazing band...far too unappreciated.

 

[Xtopher]

Fool's Paradise.

Fool´s Paradise a filler?!?!
for many of us its at least in the top 3 of V.
i guess its just a matter of opin....no, not in this case. shame on you!

 

[EyeballKid]

Agreed. I love Fool's Paradise and Absence of Light. They are two of my favorites on the album.

 

[d0mino_rox]

Very difficult, seeing as DWOT is on the first half... but I think, as a whole, I'd rather go with the second half. V is spectacular, The Odyssey is amazing, and Paradise Lost/Iconoclast are just as good.

 

[Sep3]

Er, so now even Witching Hour is a filler? On top of Incantations?? Guys your taste is baaaaad! Even worse than fool's paradise as a song... Seriously, you just haven't been able to grasp Witching Hour and its unforgettably strange vocals and epic, extreme neoclassical madness - One of the best songs on dwot!

 

[Marwen]

I like The Witching Hour, and A Fool's Paradise is amazing.

Guys your taste is baaaaad! Even worse than fool's paradise as a song...

fail, in case you're actually serious.

 

[EyeballKid]

Er, so now even Witching Hour is a filler? On top of Incantations?? Guys your taste is baaaaad! Even worse than fool's paradise as a song... Seriously, you just haven't been able to grasp Witching Hour and its unforgettably strange vocals and epic, extreme neoclassical madness - One of the best songs on dwot!

Double fail.

The entire mid-section of DWoT is skipable and/or forgetable.

 

[Pamonha]

Witching hour has this odd guitar theme in the beggining that reminds us that witchcrafting is mean but also have a more comedy/pranking side, like when the witch laughs after she turned the little kid into a frog.

It's a very peculiar sonority, but right after that the song goes like, wait, that can be fun but don't mess with this shit, it's evil and it's going to fckin kill you!

And "the killing" part in the song for me is Romeo's solo, the first bending with the heavy base it reminds me of death's bite the pain solo at 2:40, man that's a damn powerful combination and it never gets old

 

[Marwen]

it reminds me of death's bite the pain solo at 2:40, man that's a damn powerful combination and it never gets old

Fucking +1

Death is timeless.

 

[Sep3]

Bad taste is bad, end of discussion. Now, more stories about The Witching Hour! Not many songs can make you go "wtf", "ooh" and "eek" at the same time

 

[Detective Clarence Beauregard]

Haha yes! I've incited a riot; all is going according to plan! :Spin:

The songs I mentioned from V are decent on their own, but they just don't have the quality of the rest of the album. Bird-Serpent War is really just an extended segue to me, while Absence and Fool's Paradise just feel out of place (particularly Absence). Don't get me wrong - I think that song has a killer groove, but its tonality just doesn't fit with the rest of the album to my ears. Had Absence been on The Odyssey or something, I think it would have made more sense. I repeat - these songs are not filler in the same vein as The Witching Hour!

Gotta love how I segue into my next topic! The Witching Hour has awesome music. In fact, I think the music in this song is close to excellent. Great riffs, solos, and the like. However, the vocal melodies kill the song. They sound uninspired, as if they were written as a guitar line first or something. From a band that generally has excellent vocal melodies, this song is filler (to me)!

As for Incantations, I used to think it was filler. It didn't click with me for years, but a few years ago it really started growing on me. It's a simple song, and it definitely can't stand up to any other songs on the album (save for the disaster that is The Turning), but it isn't bad by any means. Thus, in the context of The Odyssey as an album, Incantations is definitely filler to me. If this song were on Iconoclast or even PL, it would not be filler.

However, The Turning almost reaches Witching Hour-level filler. It, unlike Incantations, is a bad song. The band themselves even think it's filler. Need proof? It's the only song from The Odyssey (excluding Frontiers, obviously) that they have never played live. And don't tell me that they can't physically play it...

The entire mid-section of DWoT is skipable and/or forgetable.

I'm assuming your talking about the large instrumental chunk right after The Prophet's Cry, correct?

If so, it definitely isn't filler to me. It's neoclassical awesomeness at its finest!

 

[EyeballKid]

As for Incantations, I used to think it was filler. It didn't click with me for years, but a few years ago it really started growing on me. It's a simple song, and it definitely can't stand up to any other songs on the album (save for the disaster that is The Turning), but it isn't bad by any means. Thus, in the context of The Odyssey as an album, Incantations is definitely filler to me. If this song were on Iconoclast or even PL, it would not be filler.

It all makes sense now: Iconoclast sounds like a few really good songs sandwiched between a whole bunch of Incantations' and Turnings!

I'm assuming your talking about the large instrumental chunk right after The Prophet's Cry, correct?

If so, it definitely isn't filler to me. It's neoclassical awesomeness at its finest!

Ah, you misunderstand me. I mean DWoT (the album) and I am referring to tracks 5 through 7.

 

[Detective Clarence Beauregard]

Ah, you misunderstand me. I mean DWoT (the album) and I am referring to tracks 5 through 7.

I see. Well those are definitely the three weakest tracks on the album, agreed.

 

[azal]

Middle Half

this.

probably the best streak of four metal albums ever. TDWOT/TIO/V/TO

 

[The Invisible Guest]

TDWOT is still my favroite, but I voted for the 2nd half without much hesitation. V and The Odyssey are probably my #2 and #3, and I think I am getting close to inserting Iconoclast at #4.


Britt

 

[PurpleDink]

all V songs besides Communion, Egypt, Rediscovery, and Evolution, are filler unless you listen to the album the whole way through, which is the way its supposed to be listened to. Sadly i dont always have time to get all i can out of extremely focused concept albums so i usually ignore the rest.

 

[Marwen]

all V songs besides Communion, Egypt, Rediscovery, and Evolution, are filler unless you listen to the album the whole way through, which is the way its supposed to be listened to.

For you maybe. I have no problem listening to something like The Death of Balance alone and enjoying it.

 

[Prismatic Sphere]

The first half easily. Jeez.

Only The Odyssey made me think twice.

V, I've always found a bit thin but it's amazing how you would hunger for that sound now.

 

[Xtopher]

No song in V is filler, not even Rediscovery Pt.1
Even the "link" songs like Trascendence are stand alone awesome and worthy of apreciation.

Symphony X = V: The New Mythology Suite

 

[AsoTamaki]

I've gotta say the first half wins. It's a close one though.

Divine Wings and Twilight vs The Odyssey and V cancel each other out with their greatness. The debut and Iconoclast cancel each other out with...well, you know. It comes down to The Damnation Game vs Paradise Lost. Hard to choose between the two, but I still never tire of the songs on Damnation and after just 4 years, I rarely listen to PL anymore.