Customer Reviews

Decoding The Soul

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an excellent CD for those who enjoy great rock musicians and singers performing full-bore, melodic songs. As you would expect the guitar playing is supreme, the band is over the top and tight, the singer is a REAL singer and the production is excellent (make sure you EQ this CD flat, otherwise you will lose the excellent lead vocals). This CD is much more listenable then a lot of progressive rock, such as Symphony X and Dream Theater. If you want great musicians playing songs that you can enjoy than this is an excellent choice. As great as the band is, the singer ensures that you get your moneys worth as he is up to the task and has what sounds like a well trained voice.

This is another amazing release from Magnitude 9. As far as the style, it is very similar to their last album, Reality in Focus. Rather than a new direction, it is more of an extension from that album. Rather than try to explain their sound to you, you should listen to the samples of Reality in Focus. This one does have a slightly heavier feel to it, due to more low end and slightly more distorted guitars. It includes some amazing guitar work, and plenty of subtle yet effective keyboard sounds. Now the question that you probably are asking; The production has been completely reworked with this one. After listening to the entire album at a loud volume, I noticed that their was not once that it hurt my ears, and the sound is crystal clear. The only downfall to this album is that it is rather short. The songs all tend to be in the 4-5 minute range, with ten tracks clocking at 45 minutes. Don't let this turn you away though, it is an album that is well worth the price. I will be listening to it for a long time.

Magnitude 9 is one of my favorite discoveries, next to Jorn Lande that is! I'm not going to give you the same ol' review we read time and time again on Amazon! With that in mind, I'll just say that Decoding the Soul is well produced, the songs are solid with no filler, and that it's completly different from their previous effort, Reality In Focus....which is a good thing! Some bands get into the pattern of releasing the same record over and over, and that's not the case with Magnitude 9, so far anyway! I also recommend Masterplan, Balance of Power's Heathen Machine, Tad Morose, and anything from Nightwish and Symphony X!

I'm very impressed with this disc. For those unfamiliar with the band, they play song-oriented prog metal. The best description would be a blend of early Labyrinth w/ 'parallels'-era Fates Warning. While the musicianship is very strong, they don't feel the need to drag the songs out while endlessly showing off; Kudos. This album seems a lil' heavier than earlier material I've heard, perhaps the new bassist helped out in this regard (?). Only complaint would be that many of the songs are similarly paced and thus sorta 'same-sounding', but it's still a great album. Stand-out tracks IMO are 'New Dimmension', 'Torn', and the speedier 'Dead in Their Tracks'.
Definitely worth checking out for fans of Labyrinth or 90's Fates Warning.

One of my favorite Cd finds so far this year. If you like metal - hardrock , fused with prog & power metal elements , Get this CD . It is not a total progmetal type of cd like Dream Theater , But more like TNT , FATES WARNING , LYNCH MOB , DOKKEN , QUEENSRYCHE , Etc. Good songs , that are not too long like most of the " prog " genre of bands. MAGNITUDE NINE is simply a great melodic metal group , not prog , but more metal I guess . But this is what I liked about them ... They are not trying to be just another DREAM THEATER rip off ... And I like that . Good stuff !

I heard some samples of Magnitude 9's music on a website somewhere and was very enthusiastic to buy Decoding the Soul. But after a few listens to the entire CD I was just disappointed. The whole album sort of drags and just left me flat. Not a bad album, just ho-hum.

This is some really great metal here. This album is one of those rare albums that is consistent all the way through. It delivers good tunes from start to finish. Rob Johnson definitely shreds on the 7 string as he usually does. The songwriting on this album is definitely better than their last album Reality in Focus (which is still damn good too). I havent enjoyed an album this much since The Odyssey from Symphony X.

What's good about it?

Double-kick drums spearhead "New Dimension." You'll notice that the guitars are solid, but not overbearing. The track emphasizes pleasant keyboard tones and symmetrical vocals. A simple, yet effective lick guides us into the straight up rocker, "Lies Within the Truth". Rob Johnson unleashes a fury of hammer-ons and pull-offs during his solo break. Some futuristic sound effects are incorporated into "To Find a Reason." The rhythm boarders on an industrial tinge, but the fuzzy chords and lightening quick solos say different. You'll hear that Johnson displays some neo-classical guitar work on "Dead in Their Tracks" and "Turn." Tempo wise, these tracks are complete opposites. The first is fast paced, while the latter is an emotional love ballad. "Changes" alternates between clean guitar tones and heavily distorted power chords. The strong, multi-rhythmic song "Sands of Time" concludes the album. It's a tale about growing older that is quite compelling.

Anything bad?

Almost four years since their last album and all you get is ten tracks.

Bottom Line

Some progressive CDs really confuse me; is it a concept album or a regular album? My guess is that Decoding the Soul is a futuristic tale similar to the V mini-series; aliens come in peace, but turn out to be evil. I'm usually wrong about these things, but concepts are open for interpretation. Either way, Magnitude Nine's latest is a great combination of European and U.S. inspired metal.

MAGNITUDE NINE have a melodic metal sound that should appeal to fans of groups such as Dream Theater, Yngwie Malmsteen , TNT , Queensryche, Fates Warning, etc. A solid CD . If you like Singers such as Ray Alder, James Labrie & Geoff Tate, you will like the Vocals of Corey Brown . For Guitar Fans, Magnitude Nine Guitarist Rob Johnson is a melodic shredder who infuses melodic lines with complex arpeggios , sweep picking , and string skipping . The best songs are " New Dimension " " Dead in Their Tracks " & " Lies Within The Truth " .

A melodic listen. Well crafted hardrock/progmetal , with hooks, melodic vocals, great guitar work. Not an over complex band. Fans of TNT, Icon, Dokken Queensryche, Fates Warning will like Magnitude Nine.