What do you think about Iconoclast?
- Thread starter clafalc
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Phanto
Alalalalalalalala.
It's pretty good. Listened to it intensely for a couple of weeks, but now I only return for a song or two. I still think they should have added interludes and stuff like on V to add some dynamics and bind the songs together.
Hmm.. To be honest I don't like it very much... It's good metal, no doubt about that. But seems like the "sound world" is too similiar through the whole album. (same thing with Paradies Lost) That's why I like the older stuff more, when you think about The Odyssey, or TiO for example. There are so many different sounding songs but they still sound "Symphony X" there's more diversity, and I'd like to hear more of that...
There is a couple killer songs in Iconoclast, but as a whole I don't like it that much..
There is a couple killer songs in Iconoclast, but as a whole I don't like it that much..
still diggin it. great album. all the songs are at least decent and most of them are very good. dont see myself ever getting really sick of the album completely
LittleTortillaBoy
Member
Well, here are my ratings for each song...
Iconoclast: 9.5/10
End of Innocence: 7.5/10
Dehumanized: 8.5/10
Bastards of the Machine: 7/10
Heretic: 7/10
Children of a Faceless God: 8/10
When All is Lost: 10/10
Electric Messiah: 8/10
Prometheus: 8.5/10
Light Up the Night: 7.5/10
Lords of Chaose: 7.5/10
Reign in Madness: 9/10
Average score: 8,16/10
Iconoclast: 9.5/10
End of Innocence: 7.5/10
Dehumanized: 8.5/10
Bastards of the Machine: 7/10
Heretic: 7/10
Children of a Faceless God: 8/10
When All is Lost: 10/10
Electric Messiah: 8/10
Prometheus: 8.5/10
Light Up the Night: 7.5/10
Lords of Chaose: 7.5/10
Reign in Madness: 9/10
Average score: 8,16/10
Krowsnest
Guardian of the Blind
I listen to a few of the songs like Electric Messiah and Light up the Night pretty regularly, but a few like Dehumanized and Heretic I've completely ignored in the past few months. I agree with Phanto that it would have benefited from some interludes, or at least another softer song.
Lagtastic
I lag in real life
- Jun 29, 2011
- 27
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I like it. Even though V will always be my favorite, I like the new heavy direction. There is not really a song I consider bad. I didn't like Prometheus or Lords of Chaos at first, but they grew on me. Prometheus may even be my favorite now behind the title track. It's still my favorite album this year, followed closely by the Wardingham album.
RuRoRul
Member
- Mar 21, 2010
- 220
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- 16
I think it's one of their best albums. The lack of diversity hurt it a bit but individually all of the songs are good, some of them are great, and it makes a good listen overall as well. The sound on it is their best, and the fact that it has 12 full songs (with none of them being really weak) helps, while V and Paradise Lost (which don't have weak links either) only have 9 full songs (or 10 if you count On The Breath Of Poseidon).
On top of that, When All Is Lost is probably the best single Symphony X song with the exception of The Odyssey.
On top of that, When All Is Lost is probably the best single Symphony X song with the exception of The Odyssey.
MythologyMetal
New Metal Member
- Sep 6, 2011
- 3
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- 1
One of their best album, And very like "Paradise lost" album. My top 5 songs are Reign In madness, When all is lost, The end of innocence, heretic and Eletric messiah.
Detective Clarence Beauregard
Dehumanized
I like some of it and greatly dislike some of it. I think it's cool how they decided to experiment with a concept that is outside of their comfort zone, but I still think the album needed more Symphony and less X. The music fits the futuristic concept of the album very well, but I miss the piano and other natural-sounding keyboards. The overall depth of their earlier works just isn't present on this album or on PL, though. Hopefully this will prove to be just a one-off thing and the band will return to something more progressive and less direct on the next album.
As for the individual tracks, the ones I like the most are Iconoclast, End of Innocence, Dehumanized, Heretic, Prometheus, and Reign In Madness. I used to like WAIL a lot, but every time I listen to it now I just end up turning it off halfway through and putting on an older song of theirs that is similar to it (since they're so much better anyway). I think Bastards is a fun song, but there's nothing really deep about it (which contrasts most of their other tunes). I find Children and Electric Messiah to be average and very forgettable, while LUTN and Lords are downright awful (with the latter being the better of the two). Just my opinion.
As for the individual tracks, the ones I like the most are Iconoclast, End of Innocence, Dehumanized, Heretic, Prometheus, and Reign In Madness. I used to like WAIL a lot, but every time I listen to it now I just end up turning it off halfway through and putting on an older song of theirs that is similar to it (since they're so much better anyway). I think Bastards is a fun song, but there's nothing really deep about it (which contrasts most of their other tunes). I find Children and Electric Messiah to be average and very forgettable, while LUTN and Lords are downright awful (with the latter being the better of the two). Just my opinion.
I agree with everything Detective wrote, even the individual song analysis is pretty much the same.
I would only add that now I think When All Is Lost is seriously overrated. I mean, the lyrics are one of the worst on the album and the vocal melody of the start - that repeats over and over throughout the song - isn't that great either.
But the major impact on the album, especially in the first listenings, is that WAIL resembles past SX songs. Being different of the majority of the album, it creates this impression, but after repeated listenings and comparing to older stuff like On the Edge of Forever, Winter's Dream, Candlelight, Accolade II or Awakenings, it doesn't feel that good anymore.
Besides that, although the keyboards were more present, I think overall PL is a better album than Iconoclast.
I would only add that now I think When All Is Lost is seriously overrated. I mean, the lyrics are one of the worst on the album and the vocal melody of the start - that repeats over and over throughout the song - isn't that great either.
But the major impact on the album, especially in the first listenings, is that WAIL resembles past SX songs. Being different of the majority of the album, it creates this impression, but after repeated listenings and comparing to older stuff like On the Edge of Forever, Winter's Dream, Candlelight, Accolade II or Awakenings, it doesn't feel that good anymore.
Besides that, although the keyboards were more present, I think overall PL is a better album than Iconoclast.
metalxmetalx
Member
- May 6, 2011
- 310
- 4
- 18
Agreed: When All is Lost is forgettable, they have better songs in their catalog. I DO like Electric Messiah. In terms of lyrics, this is the weakest album by Symphony X by far.
I love the whole album.So intense,powerfull.great melodfies as always,great singer ,great riffs.....The production is far better than paradise lost with a less artificial guitar sound ,and the synthetizer can be heard ,and it expands the atmopshere a lot.One of their best album ,beside 5 ,different in many ways ,but can't stop to listen to it,really addictive .And I don't pay attention to the lyrics as much 'cause I'm french ,but I must admit the fact that I prefer the mythological sphere than the science fiction one.But the "terminator" kind of thing is by the way intesresting too.
I love the title track "Iconoclast" and that's about it. I do enjoy some other songs, mainly Light Up The Night, Reign In Madness, and Bastards of the Machine, but everything else on the album just sounds bad to me. I hate saying that because its the first time I've ever had to say it about anything they've done. I just can't get over how bad the lyrics/vocals are sometimes and the way the guitars just overpower everything. Drums feel like they are always in the background and keyboards just don't have the variety and depth present in previous efforts.
Its weird how the scale of quality can be on such opposite sides for this album. For example, Iconoclast is awesome. Great lyrics, great pacing, great everything. But then just a couple tracks later you get Dehumanized which is just awful in every way.
Like somebody else on here said, they've given me so many albums of pure magic that they're allowed to try some new things and its okay if they fail. They'll always be my favorite band and I look forward to seeing them live again and eventually getting another release somewhere down the line. Hopefully not 5 years from now but I'll be happy to take what we get.
Its weird how the scale of quality can be on such opposite sides for this album. For example, Iconoclast is awesome. Great lyrics, great pacing, great everything. But then just a couple tracks later you get Dehumanized which is just awful in every way.
Like somebody else on here said, they've given me so many albums of pure magic that they're allowed to try some new things and its okay if they fail. They'll always be my favorite band and I look forward to seeing them live again and eventually getting another release somewhere down the line. Hopefully not 5 years from now but I'll be happy to take what we get.
Pretty inconsistent album, there are very strong moments though. I think it's a great album, in the same vein but better than PL most definitely.
Like most here, I'm not particularly happy with the new direction the band took, but it still finds easily a place in my library. It's a 7.5/10 for me.
Like most here, I'm not particularly happy with the new direction the band took, but it still finds easily a place in my library. It's a 7.5/10 for me.
Progbass
Member
Its not bad album but also not great in my book. I feel most of the songs are based too much on the driving guitar, when before every instrument/voice had their place in the songs. Its pretty even with PL for me.
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