The Great Escape - Forum Reviews

[Shadowsoul]

I've never really been a fan of progressive metal, bands like Dream Theater and such have never grabbed my attention much. Last year i was introduced to Seventh Wonder, and the album Mercy Falls, which instantly became one of my favourite albums of all time. After listening to it hundreds of times over the past year, it never ceases to amaze me. I was quite anxious about this new album. Just how does any band follow an album like Mercy Falls, which is probably for me the best album of the last decde. How is it possible to release something that not only is worthy of following up such a masterpiece, but something which also doesn't reuse the same formulae, and be more of the same whilst still taking the band to new levels?

The answer, is The Great Escape. Right from the first listen, this album completely blew me away, i've clocked in somewhere in the region of 100 listens, and it just gets better and better every time. I seem to discover something new almost every time. An unnoticed vocal harmony, an intense guitar melody which is usually masked by all the other amazing shit going on, or an intricate piece of orchestration, which snuggles nicely into the background. Seventh Wonder truly have outdone themselves here, they've released an album that is not only worthy of following Mercy Falls, but in some ways outshines it, making it almost seem like merely a stepping stone towards The Great Escape.

The experience got even better (especially the title track) when i had the booklet in front of me, sat in a trancelike state throughout it's course, whilst playing out the superb lyrics in my head. How any band could construct lyrical poetry such as this in their second language is beyond me. It feels like everything has stepped up a gear since the last two albums, something which i didn't think possible this time two months ago.

Tommy's vocals are simply mind blowing, the power and emotion in his voice throughout is nothing short of incredible. I've really started to notice the harmonies alot more in this album, they really add something to every song, with superb contributions from Jenny aswell. Seen as i'm running out of adjectives to describe how amazing it all is, i'll keep this short, but the musicianship throughout is astonishing. Every member of the band contributes greatly, without showing a single sign of weakness for 68 minutes. Each individually masters of their instrument, displaying technical genius throughout. The production here is absolutely spot on throughout aswell, leagues above that found in previous work.

Short Track-by-Track Analysis
Wiseman - Fantastic opener, superb lyrics, the slow breakdown is unbelievable.
Alley Cat - Great mix of progressive technical genius and a catchy chorus, a song that could appeal to a much wider audience.
The Angelmaker - Nothing short of incredible, the chorus gives me shivers.
King of Whitewater - At first i felt this was the weakest track, subsequent listens proved me wrong, excellent vocal work supported by superb musicianship.
Long Way Home - An excellent ballad, Jenny's vocals help this one shine, and show that Seventh Wonder can play whatever style they want, and still sound amazing. Not quite as good as One Last Goodbye (The greatest ballad of all time imo), but a superb effort nevertheless.
Move on Through - Possibly my personal favourite. The metaphors used in the lyrics are amazing, and the ending "Move...on...(guitar/bass wizardry)...THROUGHHHHH" is one of my highlights of the album.
The Great Escape - I don't feel i can do this song any justice with words. It is quite simply, one of the greatest compositions of all time. Over 30 minutes of sheer brilliance. An epic tale, incredible from start to finish. This is like an album within a song, an album that no other band could ever dream of composing. I realised the other day, just how much of my life i have devoted to listening to this song already (somewhere in the region of 60 hours), a number which will increase for many years. The closing minutes leave me shaking, it is quite scary how incredibly powerful this song is.

How a band who live separate lives, with full time jobs, and families to raise can create something like this is beyond me. My only problem now is, where do they go from here? I thought Mercy Falls was as close to perfect as an album could ever get, then The Great Escape blew it out of the water. This album shows that anything is possible, and i can only hope that this masterpiece propels Seventh Wonder to the place in Metal that they deserve.

10/10

There's so much more i'd like to add, but i'm not a reviewer and there's only so many times i can reuse the word incredible

So what do you all think of the album?

 

[Frankgate]

Well, I've been a great fan of SW since I heard a few minutes of the WITW album. The thing I love the most about SW is the will to improve and improve. Each album that comes out is better than the preceding one. I hoped the guys could beat "Mercy Falls" though I knew it would have been a tough work. But they did it!! Each album puts the band to a higher level.

My track-by-track:

Wiseman: perfect opener, powerful uptempo with pounding bass and glittering guitars; it's a very epic track and it's maybe the closest thing to Mercy Falls (not only for the word "fire" in the chorus); it reminds me a bit of Symphony X; the first verse is magical and the song as a whole is wonderful; the guitar solo is fantastic and the slow section too

Alley Cat: position number two is perfect for a single... and here we have the well known Alley Cat; a groovy mid-tempo with a pop feeling; the refrain will be locked in your mind and never leave; in this song Tommy uses a variety of styles, sometimes close to Joey Tempest, sometimes to Glenn Hughes; the vocal harmonies remind me of good-ol' '80s hard rock (especially Europe)

The Angelmaker: my favourite song, and possibly the most beautiful song of the universe (!!!); again Symphony X/epic influences; I love the synths-intro and the song spreads itself in a perfect way; thre pre-chorus and the chorus are some of the best music I've heard in life; this song takes no prisoner, and you cannot but hang on to it; also love the groovy instrumental break; Tommy's performance is not of this world

King Of Whitewater: this is maybe the most proggy song of the list, starting with a kind of Theaterian riff; anyway this song has no weakness even; charming refrains, fine musicianship and a wonderful violin break; I find this song very romantic; after a couple of listenings it steals your heart

Long Way Home: ballad time! a perfect record must have a perfect ballad, and here we have it! when the acoustic-guitar-driven pre-chorus enters in is HEAVEN, it steals your heart and mind; this ballad might be the new "Wind Of Change", as the refrain reminds me of the Scorps' immortal hit

Move On Through: another song which reminds me of Europe, especially the chorus; I really love this song, it sounds very fresh, it makes your head bang! excellent backing vocals, wonderful bass soloing intro; the guitar and keys riffs are pure bliss

The Great Escape: the suite, the massive title-track; we've already discussed it a lot, beginning from the speculations about its timing; I didn't think it could be a giant of 30 minutes; I won't discuss the lyrics, I only say that I wouldn't miss a single minute of it; 30 minutes of prog-metal magic; tons of unbelievable harmonies, wonderful leads, a well balanced structure; I really wouldn't throw away a little fraction of this monster; maybe the best prog-metal suite along with Dream Theater's "A Change Of Seasons" and Shadow Gallery's "Ghostship"; each detail is perfect

and then...

The bottom line: a perfect record is a record with no weakness; and this album lacks of nothing; it's got all a music lover could expect; first of all a very good production, each instrument is distinguished; the extreme attention to the details; legendary musicianship with a singer who is out of this world; Tommy has become one of the best singers on earth.

Future expectations: now that the guys have managed to make the ultimate prog-metal album, they can move on trying something new; don't fear of daring too much! ;-)

 

[RuRoRul]

Well I am a fan of Progressive Metal, Dream Theater is probably my favourite band. However apart from them, there's only a few prog metal bands that achieve greatness in my view, and if Mercy Falls didn't already solidify Seventh Wonder as one of those bands, The Great Escape definitely did.

I could just go on about how amazing every moment of this album is, but I'll try to give an idea of how it compares to previous albums. Just a disclaimer though: anything critical is only compared to other Seventh Wonder songs or the best of the best progressive metal.

Track by track:

1. Wiseman - Honestly at first I couldn't help but think the opening sounded very similar to the Mercy Falls theme, which was a bit off putting since it makes it more difficult to get into the tune, but it doesn't detract from the song much at all. In just under 6 minutes it covers pretty much the entire spectrum of Seventh Wonder, and does it well too, with lyrics that sound like they could have come from Waiting In The Wings. Love the guitar parts before the chorus, and the soft bit towards the end - a very well rounded song.

2. Alley Cat - Definitely the weird proggy one. At first I was a bit ambivalent about this song - it was great and catchy but something about it didn't feel like classic Seventh Wonder, and the lyrics were a bit strange. In the context of the album any concerns about that faded away though, since it was obviously supposed to be different. In the context of the whole album it's easier to appreciate this weird and wonderful song. I love how the strange lyrics and perhaps the most poppy chorus Seventh Wonder have done are mixed with the most technical, proggy and often very heavy instrumentals on the album.

3. The Angelmaker - I was looking forward to this epic, and in the end it didn't disappoint at all. I immediately thought it sounded pretty good, but it quickly grew on me even more. It's one of the very best Seventh Wonder songs, and that's no small achievement. It feels a bit like something from Waiting In The Wings, but a much improved version, as it's probably better than every song on there in my opinion.

4. King of Whitewater - Even more than Angelmaker, this song stood out on first listen. The flowing melodies, the piano and orchestra, and the most climactic moment of the song - the music fading away to almost nothing but a violin. All those make this song one of their most unique, and the main body of the song is pretty amazing as well, being a pretty heavy one. If the previous epic had a Waiting In The Wings (song) vibe, this one has more of a The Black Parade feel. Honestly though, at this point in the allbum the chorus has been one of the weakest parts of every song, and this one is no exception. Of course every part of the music is great, but I'd proably say the chorus was my least favourite part of this song.

5. Long Way Home - Here for the first time the album loses some of it's momentum. It's the ballad of the album, and easily the weakest song on it for me. While the eerie, piano driven Pieces and the highly emotional, accoustic One Last Goodbye were standouts on the last two albums, this one doesn't reach such levels of greatness. This one's sound is more like a standard pop ballad, and the lyrics only add to that effect. It is a good song, especially at the end - it is Seventh Wonder after all. And they are doing something different, which is good. But it just doesn't compete with its contemporary album piers or with its previous album counterparts.

6. Move On Through - Wiseman, The Angelmaker and King Of Whitewater are Seventh Wonder showing their epic, power metal side, Alley Cat, Long Way Home and this are Seventh Wonder showing their more poppy influences. Like Alley Cat, this one mixes poppy singing and lyrics with hard rocking instrumentals, and follows a pop song like strucuture. This is done really well, the lyrics giving the song a different feel to a lot of Seventh Wonder, which Tommy does very well with. The chorus is probably the best on the album, and the bridge is insanely catchy. Some people criticise progressive metal for having fast, technical instrumentals that "don't fit the song" - well almost no where in prog music has a bit of instrumental wizardry fit so well as in the last chorus of this song: "MOVE - ON - [Guitar and Bass solo] - THROUGH!" Amazingly done

7. The Great Escape - I've said a bit about this song already, and I've already rambled a lot, so I'll keep this short; this is the best Seventh Wonder song to date, and is up there among the greatest 20+ minute progressive metal songs. Soft intro, catchy vocal and guitar melodies, anthemic choruses, instrumentals ranging from heavy and technical to restrained and tasteful, epic orchestral intro, and Seventh Wonder playing in a variety of different styles, ranging from their heaviest and darkest work to their softest and most delicate.

Overall, this album is the perfect step forward for Seventh Wonder. It incorporates the best of their past albums - the first 6 tracks feel a bit like a miniature Waiting In The Wings with the title track being a miniature concept album like Mercy Falls. They combine the sound they'd built up through those two albums with some new aspects, include both the individual story type lyrics of Waiting In The Wings with larger conceptual lyrics in the title track, with some different types of songs thrown in alongside them. Quite possibly even better than Mercy Falls, and one of, if not the best album this year.

 

[Progjose]

Hi

I've been a SW fan since WITW. Both WITW and Mercy Falls are FANTASTIC albums, and musically VERY important for me. I have managed my self to buy both original CD's despite the fact that I live in South America.

I have to say that The Great Escape has not reached my expectations. I love the album, but it has not given me something new from Seventh Wonder. Still, it's a 80-90/100

A short track review:

Wisemen: Good start, sounded a bit power metal/rock but then came the SW style. The word FIRE couldn't be missing in a SW CD I find vocal melodies pretty similar to a lot of songs from SW, as well as the backing vocals. Nothing new in this song, and that's something that worry me. The slow part is very good as always, but I'm a bit tired of piano-voice parts on your songs....

Alley Cat: Not much to say in this one, good chorus as always, but again comes the piano-voice part... Not innovative enough, but it was a very good choice for the video, it ilustrates the SW style in a good way.

The Angelmaker: I like this one A LOT, I think this is the SW perfect length....8 minutes....(just as break the silence, hide and seek, Devil's inc). This is a trully progressive metal song, with new parts and melodies from the band, but without losing your own style. Again the piano-voice part that I honesty found unnecessary.... the keyboard melody at the beggining and at the end is pretty cool though...

King of whitewater: Another 8 minutes song , good chorus, LOVED the violin part, very good melody and atmosphere created. Not as good as Angelmaker but good enough for me. The end of the song is pretty new in SW and that's something that I like in this one.

Long Way Home: Very good song, it's an excellent piece of SW POP haha. The chorus is great as well. The pre-chorus is the best part of it, love the 4/4 that seems 7/8 in some moments On the other side, I really didn't like the heavy riff, it takes me out of the atmosphere created before.... unnecessary to my eyes. The women voice fits in very good though...

Move on through: EXCELLENT VOCAL MELODIES. This song is shows the best part of SW to my eyes....very good bass lines, fresh melodies and new guitar riffs. I really love Tommy's voice when he sings fast in SW songs (Devils inc, Fall in line)...that's something that none Progressive metal band shows, and that's why I like it so much.

The great escape: Shows a lot of new parts from the guys, but I really think it is like a lot of songs mixed together to create one big track.... That's something that happens frecuently in Progressive metal, but I think this one has parts that are surplas. Anyway, it has VERY COOL parts as the obscure metal melodies, the Shine your light chorus, the women vocals (very innovative), the orchestral piece. The acoustic guitar-voice part is pretty cool although it's almost the same style of melodies as Tears for a Father.

Overall, it's a pretty cool album but it's not the perfect step forward TO MY EYES. It has LOTS of excellent parts as we all knew it would have, but I missed the new sound and experimental tracks I think it could have had. I hope the next one can show some new Seventh Wonder.... Anyway, you have only 3 albums with this sound and you have enough merits done to take your time to do new revolutionary things. I'm not worried because I know you will do it sometime, and meanwhile, this kind of albums give me enough material for the next two years

Hope you have got my point of view.

Cheers, José.

 

[tommidt]

There's not much I can add to previous reviews & praises above, but I'll mention my 3 absolute favourite things in this amazing album:
1) King Of Whitewater: This particular song is maybe my all-time favourite SW tune. Simply amazing, especially that instrumental part in the middle including that AMAZINGLY beautiful violin solo.
2) Long Way Home: Jenny & Tommy during in the end of the song... WOW! Too bad that duet didn't last a verse or two longer...
3) The Great Escape: The melody in 6:10-6:38. i don't know what is so special in that melody, but it just makes me smile everytime I hear it. Anyway, that whole song is one of the best long epics any progband has done so far, imo. And believe me, I have heard quite a few of those...

All in all, awesome album you guys did. Especially after the amazing MF, this kind of album was what I was waiting from you. Thanks again and hopefully we'll see next spring...

 

[AngraRULES]

Though I love to hear how much you guys are enjoying the album (it's definitely in my top 5 of the year), I think a thread with forum reviews done by the members of the Seventh Wonder forum shows a *little* bit of bias. Don't get me wrong, I am a big Seventh Wonder fan too. But don't you think the best way to go would simply be posting reviews on the forum that are published in different media outlets? It just seems that over here, all we're going to hear in the reviews is about how much this is the best album of the decade and how there's no flaws, which is okay, but you can'tt expect these reviews to be used as a serious way to gauge The Great Escape.

Just a thought... and I don't mean to offend anyone.

 

[Kazar]

...... But don't you think the best way to go would simply be posting reviews on the forum that are published in different media outlets? It just seems that over here, all we're going to hear in the reviews is about how much this is the best album of the decade and how there's no flaws, which is okay, but you can'tt expect these reviews to be used as a serious way to gauge The Great Escape.

Just a thought... and I don't mean to offend anyone.

Just a thought... and I don't mean to offend you , look a bit further on the forum:

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/seventh-wonder/644941-tge-review-thread.html

 

[Shadowsoul]

we're just discussing our thoughts on the album with like minded fans, and showing our appreciation for Seventh Wonder's amazing work

 

[AngraRULES]

Just a thought... and I don't mean to offend you , look a bit further on the forum:

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/seventh-wonder/644941-tge-review-thread.html

Haha, funny thing is that I had seen that a few days ago but never checked the thread! My comment is still valid, though

And no offense taken, bud. I am a big SW fan like everyone else here. =)

 

[Kazar]

I know you are, buddy !

.....3) The Great Escape: The melody in 6:10-6:38. i don't know what is so special in that melody, but it just makes me smile everytime I hear it.....

I know how you feel. Amazing melody, makes me happy everytime!

 

[MartinW]

My comment is still valid, though

Not really, no.

Anyway, I haven't listened nearly enough to the new album, but I love it already and expect to love it more and more. I always thought "A Day Away" was really really underappreciated, so it makes me so happy to have a similar (and even better!) song in "Move on Through" on this album. And the title track... I can't get over how cool it is to make a 30 minute epic based on a classic piece of Swedish literature. I love you, Seventh Wonder!

 

[Frankgate]

Being fans don't mean being stupid.

All of us has ears to listen and judge. I'm not glorifying a record which is not worth it.

No offense.

 

[AngraRULES]

Being fans don't mean being stupid.

All of us has ears to listen and judge. I'm not glorifying a record which is not worth it.

No offense.

None taken. I never said being fans equals being stupid. I guess I forgot about the other thread with the reviews that are being published.

I like your statement though, regarding not glorifying a record which is not worth it. A lot of people (and I don't mean only SW fans) are the exact opposite.

 

[AngraRULES]

Not really, no.

Anyway, I haven't listened nearly enough to the new album, but I love it already and expect to love it more and more. I always thought "A Day Away" was really really underappreciated, so it makes me so happy to have a similar (and even better!) song in "Move on Through" on this album. And the title track... I can't get over how cool it is to make a 30 minute epic based on a classic piece of Swedish literature. I love you, Seventh Wonder!

Whatever dude. I am glad you're enjoying the album. You should really listen to it more. It's gonna be in my top 5 of the year.

 

[Kazar]

.......regarding not glorifying a record which is not worth it. A lot of people (and I don't mean only SW fans) are the exact opposite.

So, now not only SW fans but a lot of other people as well.....

Serious dude, I'm really not following you at all!

 

[Progjose]

Being fans don't mean being stupid.

All of us has ears to listen and judge. I'm not glorifying a record which is not worth it.

No offense.

I agree It seems that nobody read my review before saying all this things
Have a look at it and tell me what you think...

 

[AngraRULES]

So, now not only SW fans but a lot of other people as well.....

Serious dude, I'm really not following you at all!

No dude, the only reason why I said that is because otherwise people may have thought that I was implying that only SW fans do that. And I know that's not the case.

 

[korruption]

Dude?! DUDE!!!!!!!

 

[Kazar]

Sweet!

 

[fire_angel]

I've waited to post a review about the album for a while now, carefully considering how to assign numbered scores to each of the songs, but instead decided to post a quick overview of my feelings about the album (and the band) as a whole. While i am indeed posting on the bands forum as a fan, i do feel that i can offer some unbiased constructive criticism.

- TGE is a particularly complex mixture of songs. Some appear simple at first, yet develop over time. Others appear to lack cohesion, but work well as single tracks. After innumerous listens, there isn't any single song that i dislike (just songs i like more than others).

- The album must have been very difficult to write. Riding on the success of MF was not easy, and it feels like attempting to do something new yet familiar may have gotten a little confused along the way, at times sounding like the band wrote these songs at different points in their careers and lives.

- The overall production values on the album are magnificent. Utilising an in-house studio (technical issues aside) has really paid off for the band, and i hope that any future album is of this same calibre.

- The video for Alley Cat is surprisingly tasteful for a rock / metal video; the song is an excellent example of not just TGE, but the band in general and was an excellent choice of single.

- One of the general complaints i hear about SW (if any) is that the lyrics are too corny, or just don't make a whole lot of sense to native educated english speakers; i am aware SW are a swedish band. While i think this may not be entirely untrue, it can also be said that the use of unconventional wording encourages new ways to consider themes and context. Overall, i don't have any particular qualms with TGE's lyrics.

- Every musician in the band (including Johnny) is unquestionably talented; too much focus is put on Andreas B and Tommy by the fans because the vocals and bass are such a large part of what defines SW's music style. Under the same note however, i feel that those two have perfected their 'presence' in the band, and it's time for the other three to better express themselves in the spotlight; something i honestly felt was a little lacking this time around.

- Complementing my first point, there is quite a bit of experimentation on the album; new tones, new melodies, TGE as a whole showcase a new side to SW. While i feel that a few points on some tracks are a little weak and not entirely coherent (Parts of Angelmaker especially; in contrast, it also features some of the strongest!), the band have done an excellent job of taking the progressive nature of their music to heart; it's not about song progression, it's about band progression.

- The album feels like its two different entities; a 6 track EP, and the title track. While the 6 tracks are enjoyable in their own right, it's hard to compare them to the monster that is TGE. The title track has grown with every listen, and i have (in all honesty) listened to it at least once every single day since i first received the album. While i was not entirely convinced after the first handful of listens, i have come to truly appreciated what the band have accomplished with this track. Having listened to the song in several different environments, whether waiting in an overcrowded airport or laying on a tranquil beach, there is always something new to appreciate in the song. I hope to continue listening to this track for many days, weeks, or even years to come; a genuine masterpiece.

- TGE is not my favourite SW album, but what it did prove once and for all is that SW are a band that continue to develop, unafraid of experimentation, and dedicated to writing and playing the music that they love. While i did not like Become (irrelevant of the 'Tommy' absence), it is quite remarkable how far the band have come in terms of song-writing, production, and the friends they have met along the way. Every band they have played with, every fan they have talked to have helped shape them into the band they are today; i cannot wait to see what the future holds.

- It is no secret that the band have very real lives, managing personal and professional commitments that deserve to come before SW; the greatest shame of all would be for TGE to be the band's last foray into the music world. I can only imagine how losing Johnny felt, knowing that doing what they love is always subject to the lives they lead and the harsh realities of the world around them. If nothing else, TGE represents dedication and true passion for something you love; there is often beauty in imperfection.

- While SW lack the genre-defining influence of bands like X-Japan or the Beatles, and have a discography that pales that of Iron Maiden and Metallica, i can honestly say that no other band means as much to me as SW. The raw energy of SW's melodies is unmatched in the music world, past and present. SW have never had the best songs or the best albums, in metal or otherwise, but one thing they have always featured is heart; something that you simply cannot force, no matter how hard you try. Therein lies the magic of The Great Escape, and Seventh Wonder as a whole. Of the hundreds of bands that i genuinely enjoy listening to, there is none that bring me the same joy as SW. My opinion may not stand for much, but i don't think i could bestow any greater respect towards another band, whether they have sold millions of cds, or are pioneers of their time.

- End verdict: Great album, incredible title track.
- Favourite tracks: Alley Cat, King of Whitewater, The Great Escape.
- Score: Somewhere in between MF and WitW.

Apologies if i was inarticulate or overly assumptious