Winterheart's Guild [Import]

Sonata Arctica | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 4, 2006)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Spinefarm
• ASIN: B00008WD35
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (61 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #73,134 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Abandoned, Pleased, Brainwashed, Exploited

2. Gravenimage

3. The Cage

4. Silver Tongue

5. The Misery

6. Victoria's Secret

7. Champagne Bath

8. Broken

9. The Ruins of My Life

10. Draw Me

Editorial Reviews

The time has come for Finland's greatest melodic metal band to unleash their most impressive collection yet, Winterheart's Guild. Features a guest appearance from Jens Johansson the keyboardist for Stratovarius. 10 tracks. Spinefarm.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! This is really GOOD stuff!, May 31, 2005

By 

M. B. Link "wildfirelink" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Winterheart's Guild (Audio CD)

Winterheart's Guild(2003). Sonata Arctica's third studio album.

Unlike most people on this site apparently, I DON'T hate power metal. I'm not one who slags the whole genre off upon the discovery of other music like progressive rock and other styles like a lot of people do. When I first came across the genre years ago, I was in heaven. There were a lot of really cool albums by bands like Stratovarius, Labyrinth, Dream Evil, Blind Guardian, Primal Fear, Hammerfall, and others that brought forth the nostalgic sounds of some of my favorite 80s metal bands, though with the benefit of modern production technology. Sure, the subject matter among many of these bands can come across as goofy (almost bearing a Manowar quality at times), but most people seem to miss the point that none of it is meant to be taken seriously.

Of course, my interest in Power Metal has waned since then, but only because after a while, most of the bands I came across started to sound a lot alike with very little to separate them apart from others and make me want to come back for more. It seemed like all the bands had the same machine-gun double bass drumming, Malmsteen-inspired guitar solos, harpsichord keyboard soloing, and Geoff Tate-inspired singing. In short, I needed more _variety_.

Thankfully, bands like Sonata Arctica, Kamelot, and Nightwish are around to show the rest how to make a good, memorable band.

To me, Sonata Arctica sounds like a bigger, better, more realized Stratovarius. I'd known about the band for a while, and I've always loved the song 'Power Of One' off of Silence(2001) which was my first introduction to them. I finally saw one of their albums in the store the other day, and since I'm always looking for good music, I figured "why not?". After listening to this album several times now, I can honestly say that this was one of the best purchases I've made all year. While I do like Stratovarius, the problem I had with them is that their albums would have a couple of really outstanding songs on them, followed by several by-the-numbers tracks which they've formulated to death over and over again. Sonata Arctica has no problems like this. This band takes Stratovarius's sound as a main template, and infuses their own creative songwriting melodies and lyrical topics into it, creating a very memorable and varitable collection of songs. Their singer has that familiar Finnish accent, though it's combined with a real passionate performance. The guitarist always seems to play the right riff at the right time, varying it up from soulfull crunchy riffs to great solos that bring Glen Tipton of Judas Priest to mind. Keyboards go from solo-esque battles to goosebump-inducing atmospheric passages that compliment the melodies.

Picking out favorite tracks on this album is a very difficult thing to do, but the ones that seem to stand out the most are 'APBE', 'Gravenimage', 'The Cage', 'Silver Tongue', 'Champaign Bath', and 'Broken'. 'APBE' and 'The Cage' are two of the fast speed metal tracks, while 'Gravenimage' and 'Broken' both sport unique, melodic overtones to them. 'Champaign Bath' is fast, fun metal that takes you for a hellova ride. Then there's two nice ballads to top the album off: 'The Misery' and 'Draw Me'. These ballads thankfully aren't syrup-drenched like a lot of ballads can get. There aren't any bad tracks in the bunch, and there's something to please anyone that is looking for variety.

Replayability: High. Makes for a perfect power metal fix.

WG proved to be a great starting point for me, and I highly suggest anyone else who sees this album in the stores to give it a shot. They also have a new album out, Reckoning Night(2005) as well as two earlier albums, Ecliptica(1999) and Silence, which many consider their best work. If WG is any indication, then I can't wait any longer to hit up on the other albums. One of the lyrics in the song 'Gravenimage' asks "Can I still recognize a beautiful melody?". Yes, you certainly can, and you're certainly one of the best bands in the business at it.

Other recommendations:
-Any other Sonata Arctica album. ALL are outstanding. (judging by the soundclips)
-'Visions' by Stratovarius
-'Epica' and 'The Black Halo' by Kamelot
-'Oceanborne', 'Wishmaster', and 'Century Child' by Nightwish

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 9/10 - Sonata returns with a darker, more aggressive sound, June 21, 2003

By 

Mark R. Guglielmo "markgugs" (Wood Ridge, NJ United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Winterheart's Guild (Audio CD)

As originally written (by me) for RoyalCarnage.com:

Finnish melodic metallers return with Winterheart's Guild, their third effort, and perhaps their strongest to date. All their hooks are in place, their ducks in a row, SONATA ARCTICA seems more determined than ever before this go `round, as if they truly have something to prove, something to impress upon the casual listener.

Songs like "The Cage," "Silver Tongue," or album opener "Abandoned..." demonstrate that SONATA ARCTICA haven't lost even the slightest edge, and are all deliciously strong rockers in the true power metal fashion. "The Misery" harkens back to 1989, when the power ballad ruled. It's not going too far out on a limb to draw a comparison to THE SCORPIONS at this point; I hear so much in SONATA ARCTICA that allows them to transcend just being a "metal" band, much like the SCORPIONS were able to broaden their appeal to encompass a greatly varied audience. SONATA ARCTICA has that same ability. Then take a song like "Gravenimage," which seduces you with a delicate intro, the listener hanging on every syllable to weep forth from lead singer Tony Kakko's mouth, before exploding in your face like a thoroughbred bursting from the starting gate. In fact, now would probably be a decent time to mention Kakko's impeccable vocal performance. Longtime fans of SONATA ARCTICA already realize that very few are in Kakko's league when it comes to pipes. It might be hard to believe, but they're even stronger on this album, soaring powerfully over the incendiary guitars, rapid-fire drumming and majestic keyboards. But unlike the 1st two albums, Kakko's range on this new one is tremendous; he has truly matured into one of the great vocalists of our time. Perhaps even more impressive is that while the band was searching the music world for a new keyboardist (to replace the departed Mikko Harkin), Kakko himself went back to tickle the ivories as he did on their debut album, and once again, the result is astonishing! STRATOVARIUS keyboardist Jens Johansson guest solos on a few tracks, but Kakko's keyboards are absolutely enchanting, occasionally jumping to the forefront and combining with the guitars to create full, rich melodies, and occasionally remaining in the background to enhance the already deep soundscape.

SONATA'S debut album, Ecliptica, was marked by blistering rockers and sentimental, emotional balladry. Their follow-up, Silence, continued along this vein, but didn't quite match up to the sonic fury of the original. Winterheart's Guild takes a darker route, but the end result is spectacular, mixing and matching the best elements of their previous two albums into a single gratifying listening experience. While not a perfect album, the seeds are in place for SONATA ARCTICA to join the power metal "A-list." If you haven't yet checked this band out, and are looking for a stellar addition to your melodic metal collection, look no further than this.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More Great Sonata Arctica, September 7, 2006

By 

Mike Smith - See all my reviews

This review is from: Winterheart's Guild (Audio CD)

This band brings depth, quality, and skill to the table for our enjoyment. They can go fast, like Dragonforce, but they also know how to make a ballad. I prefer their harder stuff though, but don't have to skip tracks because it is all very good. Sometimes you can hear Tony Kakko's Finnish accent, but it does not detract from the music in my opinion. I have Reckoning Night and Ecliptica (in addition to Winterheart's Guild) and they are also worth getting. If you like Sonata Arctica's style, make sure you pick up all 3 titles that I mentioned. They are very satisfying.