Like all good music, grows on you in a big way

Review Score: (10/10)
When I first bought this CD, my brother was in the car, and we were both exceedingly unimpressed by it. I bought the CD after hearing brief audio samples from Sonata's website, which is currently MIA, so I knew that I already liked two songs, but the rest just didn't seem anything special. Sonata relies a little more heavily on dissonance (especially in the first song) as opposed to straight melody, but even though I normally favor a good melody, this gives their sound a darker and stronger quality that really comes through during the entire album.

The lyrics, as always with Sonata, are incredible. Most of the ones on this album deal with what appears to be the death of a relationship, and come with the emotional intensity that naturally accompanies such a disaster. Especially in the album's two superior power ballads, "Gravenimage" and "The Misery," Tony Kakko's delivery is so passionate that there's really nothing to compare him to. His voice is also getting much stronger all the time, and it's not at all out of line to speculate that he may one day be as big a name in heavy metal as Timo Kotipelto.

High points: Gravenimage, The Misery (both slow), The Cage, Victoria's Secret (both fast; the latter is tragically NOT about underwear, but rather features the most poignant lyrics on the album). Low points: the opening track (can't even remember the name), which would have been much better had it relied less on dissonance and more on a powerful melody.

Overall, I like this album more every time I listen to it (which is usually several times per week, if not every day). It is a definite sign of growth in Sonata's music and lyric style, and if this is any indication of future performance, I'm very excited for them. I highly recommend this album, especially to people who are already fans of Sonata.

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