{"id":30167,"date":"2013-06-13T21:10:06","date_gmt":"2013-06-14T02:10:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=30167"},"modified":"2014-02-08T08:36:18","modified_gmt":"2014-02-08T13:36:18","slug":"oliva-raise-the-curtain-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2013\/oliva-raise-the-curtain-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Oliva | Raise the Curtain<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by John Kindred<\/span>
\n– Publisher —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Oliva\"Jon Oliva\u2019s first \u201csolo\u201d album arrives with the release of Raise the Curtain<\/em>. While some will argue that Oliva went solo with his other band, Jon Oliva\u2019s Pain, others could say this is the first album on which Oliva primarily plays all instruments. The other caveat that may leave a few frowns is that Oliva didn\u2019t write this album alone. Working with Dan Fasciano, the duo\u2019s combined effort, along with revisiting some of Criss Oliva\u2019s unreleased music, also makes Raise the Curtain<\/em> look less like a solo album and more of a collaborated effort that falls under the moniker of OLIVA.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, the criticisms shouldn\u2019t detract from listening to the 11-song album; 12 songs, if you count the additional song \u201cTruth,\u201d which is only on the first-edition digipak. Oliva\u2019s work in Savatage, Doctor Butcher and Pain left us with ground-breaking music that pushed the envelope of progressive metal, rock opera and traditional metal compositions. Raise the Curtain<\/em> finds Oliva revisiting his influences from \u201870s prog and theatrical rock. Melding those ideas with the sound he created with Savatage and Jon Oliva\u2019s Pain has produced a diverse sounding album. Harder, edgier songs are tied together with softer rock opera opuses. <\/p>\n

\u201cRaise the Curtain\u201d opens the CD with a theatrical 70s prog-rock number. It\u2019s a compositional piece that fits right at a home as an opening track to an album with a storyline or theme. But as Raise the Curtain progresses, the explorative nature of the music and the lyrical themes are not particularly tied to one theme or storyline. Some will criticize the variety of musical genres: The \u201870s influences in the guise of synths and Hammond-like keyboards or the pure metallic sounds of Savatage or Pain do not occur throughout the album. Yet, this actually is what defines Raise the Curtain<\/em> as a true Jon Oliva solo album. Oliva is able to work without the Savatage, TSO or Pain\u2019s signature sounds and styles getting in the way. Oliva takes us to a world in which his influences and inspirations have helped to build his musical and vocal talent.<\/p>\n

There is an emotional element at work here, as Oliva taps into his brother\u2019s unheard music. His lyrics are poignant and heavy, and his voice carries the weight of his emotions, making listeners feel his anguish or anger. While the keyboards are an integral part to the music, as whole, there are some fairly heavy songs, such as \u201cSoul Chaser,\u201d \u201cBig Brother\u201d and \u201cArmageddon.\u201d \u201cTen Years\u201d has a groove that is driven by a horn section. \u201cSoldier\u201d and \u201cI Know,\u201d both, feature Oliva\u2019s signature piano melodies. \u201cCan\u2019t Get Away\u201d is bluesy number with a certain Beatles influence. \u201cStalker\u201d and the \u201cThe Witch\u201d feature plenty of dynamic changes. \u201cFather Time\u201d has an infectious hook. The bonus track, \u201cThe Truth,\u201d mixes classical and blues-inspired motifs, with acoustic guitar rhythms and a soft vocal melody.<\/p>\n

Throw away preconceived notions as to how a Jon Oliva album is supposed to sound, and enjoy this as the album that he set out to record. While Oliva has created a particular style of music in Savatage, Pain or Doctor Butcher on Raise the Curtain<\/em>, he allows himself to travel down musical roads listeners have yet to hear him explore, and that should be what fans want; not another rehash of music that he already has done before.<\/p>\n

Genre: Progressive Metal, Hard Rock<\/p>\n

Band:
\nJon Oliva \u2013 Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Keyboards, Drums on 3 tracks
\nChristopher Kinder \u2013 Drums
\nHoward Helm – guitar solos<\/p>\n

Track Listing:
\n01. Raise The Curtain
\n02. Soul Chaser
\n03. Ten Years
\n04. Father Time
\n05. I Know
\n06. Big Brother
\n07. Armageddon
\n08. Soldier
\n09. Stalker
\n10. The Witch
\n11. Can\u2019t Get Away
\n12. Truth (bonus track appears on the Ltd. first edition comes as Digipak)<\/p>\n

Label: AFM Records<\/p>\n

Web: www.jonoliva.net<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 10\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by John Kindred – Publisher — Jon Oliva\u2019s first \u201csolo\u201d album arrives with the release of Raise the Curtain. While some will argue that Oliva went solo with his other band, Jon Oliva\u2019s Pain, others […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":30168,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8704],"tags":[336,1103,5935,992,7634,1098,334,634],"class_list":{"0":"post-30167","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2013","8":"tag-cd","9":"tag-hard-rock","10":"tag-jon-oliva","11":"tag-jon-olivas-pain","12":"tag-pain","13":"tag-progressive-metal","14":"tag-review","15":"tag-savatage"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30167","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30167"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30167\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30167"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30167"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30167"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}