Customer Reviews

Symphony X

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

 

 

I think some of the other reviewers were unfair in how they reviewed this album - especially those that approached it after hearing some of the later Symphony X offerings first. Now, I'm not coming on here as the die-hard down-from-the-start toolbar fan, because this wasn't my first Symphony X album, either. However, I think that it is an incredible debut. Although it lacks some of the sophistication and quality of later releases, it is still a thoroughly complex and masterful Symphony X album.

The first thing that has to be said is that the sound quality is extremely lacking on this album. The other thing is that, yes, Russell Allen isn't the vocalist on this album. However, I don't think the vocalist is as bad as what other poeple were saying. He's got a pretty solid voice - not quite as powerful as Allen's, but still works well with the music.

It may be a little difficult to try get into this album after hearing the more refined and better produced albums by Symphony X, but I think it's still a great album and one that I definitely put on a lot.

Being that this is Symphony X's first album, and looking at what they've become, it's really hard to get upset about the quality of this album. The production quality is not the best and the singing doesn't sound all that great, but I think it's just because they didn't balance everything right. My favourite thing about the album is the old version of Masquerade (you can find a newer & heavier version on the Odyssey album). You can really see how far the band has come by comparing the two.

Symphony X is an amazing band. However, you wouldn't really know that if you listened to this album.

First off, vocals are weak. Very weak. But hey, there just aren't many vocalists who can stand up to the power and passion of Russell Allen. Not many at all. Musically there are hints of the great melodies we ended up getting from Symphony X, but it is quite obvious they are still in embryonic stage here. For casual fans, this is a skipper, but for those who really want to know Symphony X, this is a necessary page in the story of their evolution.

Symphony X may be one of the biggest (and one of the best) bands in the progressive metal genre right now, but you wouldn't have known it listening to their 1994 self-titled debut. It's barely recognizable as a Symphony X album, largely due to the absence of one Russell Allen, whose titanic vocals have come to represent the Symphony X sound as much as Michael Romeo's guitar pyrotechnics and Michael Pinella's dazzling keyboard work.

Symphony X was just getting their footing in 1994, and everything about the debut shows that inexperience. It's essentially a poorly-produced, not terribly well-written knockoff of an Yngwie Malmsteen album. There's plenty of shredding, some ambitious yet workmanlike vocals (Rod Tyler was the singer) and that's about it. Yes, the seeds of the future Symphony X sound is there, and there are a couple of real gems (like "Masquerade," which was reworked to great effect by the current lineup on The Odyssey), but overall the album is pretty forgettable.

This one is for Symphony X completists only. If you're a fan of the band, it's at least worth hearing, but only after you've heard everything else this great band has to offer. It's not bad, but it's barely the Symphony X we all know and love.

Edition Notes: InsideOut reissued Symphony X in 2004, adding some multimedia content and different packaging.

I'll agree with one thing the reviewers said: dont make this your first Symphony X listening experience. I don't agree that Rod Tyler is a horrific vocalist...I just think that Russell Allen is so powerful and talented that he leaves everyone else in the dust. Absinthe and Rue is a really cool track, and you can see that Symphony X really rose from tracks like that. Shades of Grey is a nice tune too. Overall, a good album but definitely the least impressive from the band (makes sense...its a debut!). So if you like the other stuff, give it a look, overwise I'd say go with Divine Wings of Tragedy of the phenomenal Odyssey.

Although the sound of the recordings is not the best (this first record was produced by themselves) the song are strong and in the same line of Symphony X following works.

I recommend it.

In contrast to some of the other reviewers here, I feel that this is a stellar album. I have been a fan of SX for several years and listened to all their other albums before I bought this one last week. With that said, I became accustomed to their later works, complete with fully developed and well-produced sound and admittedly better vocal performance. When I listened to this, I instantly fell in love with the raw underdeveloped sound. It truly makes it a treat for fans to hear SX in their first release, and somehow it adds a bit of awe to the music because the listener realizes that all their prowess is a result of great performance and not superb studio effects.

Now, this album is definitely more of a normal 80s metal album, say Malmsteen-style with the standard galloping double-bass drumming beat, than a prog album, but it's clearly metal with the SX neo-classical twist. And you can definitely hear the SX originality here. The characteristic complex layering, guitar solos straying from pure major scales, keyboard solos in all various instruments, and unexpected vocal twists and choruses are all there. Furthermore, this in my opinion is a very tight and very melodic album. Despite the innovative playing and creative bridges, there's not a lot of excess shredding and techno-solo-mumbo-jumbo that you find on later albums (or with other bands, notably the ever-excellent but technical Dream Theater). It's mostly just creative melodies with lots of sudden key changes and time changes that sound great. Also of interest, you can clearly hear some influences... I hear a lot of Rush, early Dream Theater (specifically When Dream and Day Unite), some early Queensryche. The only negative is the vocal strength of the singer. He's good, but not that great. The strength here is definitely the instrumental quality, not singing quality.

All in all, this album sounds a bit different than later works but is excellent in its own right. If you are not a stickler for production quality and appreciate it when bands put out slightly different styles in each album, pick this up.

Symphony X's debut album. They produced it all for themselves, and according to them in the interview included in this Digipak, it sounded like a good idea at the time, but turned out pretty much a failure. I guess I can't blame them too much for just trying to get a head start and having bad quality, and there is admittedly some good songwriting in particular tracks. Some are pretty good, some I avoid.

1. "Into the Dementia" In my opinion, a pointless intro. Just a guitar-solo excersize that lasts a minute. A miss.

2. "The Raging Season" A decent song, but I end up skipping to the next track here. It's the middle of the song which is really annoying vocally. Rod Tyler sings like I do, and I sing rather terribly. I don't hate his performance throughout the album, but just here I felt that his attempt at sounding aggressive backfired.

3. "Premonition" Now here's a good song. I like the chorus a lot. Nice and mellow too, although not exactly a ballad. Good work.

4. "Masquerade" Remember the ninth track on the Odyssey Limited Edition? That one may be better in arrangements (and singing), but I occasionally find myself listening to this original version, as the choir arrangements make me chuckle a bit. Good song.

5. "Absinthe and Rue" Songwriting abilities start to show here. I heard that Russ wanted to redo this particular song. It's not that bad, actually, with its many instrumental segments. Nice intro, Mike Pinnella. I like the rather psychedelic solo section in the middle.

6. "Shades of Gray" A ballad, one of the first songs Romeo and Pinnella wrote together (maybe, correct me if I'm wrong). I like the bass passages after the intro chorus, kudos to Thomas Miller. Nice chorus, you wouldn't think it is SX at first, but still a nice listen.

7. "Taunting the Notorious" A speed metal track. I sometimes scorn at this track for neglecting the keyboards almost too much. There are some guitar/bass duels, but being the music-cynic I am, I must say that they don't contribute enough to the musical feeling, and sounds like just a sweep excersize. (Miller's bass sounds like a clanking piece of metal or something...)

8. "Rapture or Pain" A good song with a nice chorus. Nice keyboard work here. I like this song.

9. "Thorns of Sorrow" Rather typifies the sound of the album and nothin much new, sorry to say. OK chorus though.

10. "A Lesson Before Dying" Great job considering they were first starting out at this point. This is where I can't find much bad with the whole 12 minutes of this track...well, except perhaps a dragging solo section, not that its untalented or bad. I actually feel a little more goodness in Tyler's voice. Great job!

I don't hate Rod Tyler like many others do, I just accept his voice for this album, for that's what it was. Fortunatley, their songwriting capabilities will get better on preceding albums. You can give this one a try, but it won't sound like the SX you may know as of now. Still, you can forget about that and find some decent songs from this CD on its own. I mean, I sure enjoyed its many aspects. =D

Reason why this can't get a full 5: Rod Tyler. Christ have I never ever heard a worse vocalist imo. Should have had Russell Allen here that would have made a slight improvement.

If you have never heard a Symphony X cd before, DO NOT LISTEN TO THIS ONE (Symphony X) 1ST!!!

This is their debut album, and if I remember right from interviews, it was supposed to be a demo. The recording isnt very good, songs are very cheesy, singer is horrible, lyrics bad, etc.

Only get this if you are a fan and have to have all their cd's. Otherwise, start by going backward chronologically, "The Odyssey" (5 stars), V-New Mythology Suite (5 stars), Twilight In Olympus (4 stars), Divine Wings Of Tragedy (4 stars), Damnation Game (2 stars).

Symphony X is an Yngwie Malmsteen-type/dungeons & dragons metal group with prog-rock/metal leanings, great musicianship, Michael Romeo is fast becomming a guitar-god. It would be a shame to base an opinion of them from this horrible cd.