The Ereyn Chronicles: Part 1 - The Journey of Beginnings [ENHANCED]

Anthropia

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 12, 2006)
• Original Release Date: September 12, 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Enhanced
• Label: Magna Carta
• ASIN: B000HEV87S
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #362,850 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

thegreatnothing.com

Epic symphonic prog-metal with some serious speed metal influences...bridge the gap between Savatage, Helloween and Dream Theater

Product Description

Mention nymphs, dwarves, dragons, witches, and magic spells to rock fans and they immediately smirk and conjure an image of the satirical band Spinal Tap– or something equally or far more geeky and unhip. What if we told you that French prog metal band Anthropia has written an epic composition that is inhabited by blacksmith dwarves, mocking sprites, mercenary barbarians, a talking horse, a cunning succubus, and seaweed-intolerant dragons (among other creatures) in a cross-dimensional fictional plotline? Still chuckling? Well, stop, because the mastermind of Anthropia, Hugues Lefebvre (nickname Hugo), is reviving the rock fantasy genre and ups the ante with the explosive, multi-layered first installment of a planned trilogy -- The Ereyn Chronicles: Part I: The Journey of Beginnings, based on the writings of Quentin Borderie. "I was not a huge fan of fantasy, but I was so truly captivated by Quentin’s story that I wrote music around it," Hugo says. Hugo realized that the only way to capture the many nuances of the story was to write and record three separate records to coincide with the exciting episodes that sprang from Borderie’s fertile mind. "With an in-depth story like this, we felt the best way to present the main events of the story was to separate them into three major parts," Hugo says. "Basically, each song represents a chapter of Quentin’s novel." The CD you are listening to Part I: The Journey of Beginnings, which buzzes with flashes of Iron Maiden’s gritty conceptual metal, Dave Mustaine/Megadeth lightning-speed riffing, Dream Theater’s sweeping storytelling, Yngwie Malmsteen’s neo-classical minor-scale mining, The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway-era Genesis atmospherics, Kansas’ busy symphonic boogie-rock, classical guitar beauty and flair, and Rush’s dark ‘70s sci-fi/fantasy explorations.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Too many mythical creatures, not enough bite, September 29, 2006

By	Larry Sakin "Larry A. Sakin" (Tucson, AZ) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

When I was in junior high school, my friends goaded me into reading J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit. While I was impressed with Tolkien's descriptions and character development, I had a really hard time getting into the story. The suspension of disbelief required for such reading doesn't come naturally to me, and my mind raced through questions about some of the more fantastical aspects of the book.

In a small way, the debut album from Anthropia hits me the same way. It depicts a fantasy world filled with nymphs, dwarves, dragons, witches and magic spells. It's all a bit difficult to keep track of and frankly, I have enough trouble figuring out the world I'm a part of without having to deal with an alternate sphere.

In the real world, Anthropia is a band name for French multi-instrumentalist Hugo Lefebvre, who plays all the sounds on the album save for the drums of Damien Rainaud and a few minor guest performances. The Ereyn Chronicles is based on the stories of Quentin Borderie, who has influenced countless European metal bands and singer songwriter Aimee Mann. The Journey Begins is the first of a trilogy of releases Lefebvre is planning for his interpretations of Borderie's work. Musically, the album is an odd mix of Iron Maiden like metal, mixed with some symphonic boogie and Peter Gabriel era Genesis for atmospherics. Surprisingly, this concoction works fairly well together. Lefebvre takes full advantage of his tremendous gift at classical guitar and adds some thunderous electric and bass guitar overlays to give the production theatrical intensity. Lefebvre successfully portrays the drama and conflicts that bedevil Borderie's constructs and easily shifts moods to bring out the dimensionality of the characters and the twisting of the plot.

If you're into fantasy and metal, you'll love this album. Even though Lefebvre reaches into a grab bag of seventies and eighties music for his composition, he is true to the forms and sometimes surpasses the expectations a listener might have for a record so steeped in musical as well as mythic lore. In its own way, The Ereyn Chronicles is a bit anachronistic, but considering the material that inspired it, the incongruous aspects makes it even cooler.

But it must be noted that this really is a specialty item for fantasy fans. If you're like me and have a problem with suspending disbelief, you might like the music but the storyline will leave you behind. For those of us who aren't about to rock with The Ereyn Chronicles, I'd suggest investing in the CD/DVD of This Is Spinal Tap, and at least get a laugh out of the fantasy driven lyrics that almost made them famous.