{"id":65508,"date":"2019-02-09T00:39:34","date_gmt":"2019-02-09T05:39:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=65508"},"modified":"2019-02-09T01:07:26","modified_gmt":"2019-02-09T06:07:26","slug":"rhapsody-of-fire-the-eighth-mountain-music-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2019\/rhapsody-of-fire-the-eighth-mountain-music-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Rhapsody of Fire | The Eighth Mountain"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Franco Cerchiari<\/span>
\n\u2014 Sr. Columnist \u2014<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"\"Not to say that writing music in general is an easy task to complete, but a certain amount of true complexity comes when the decision is made to write a Symphonic Metal score. The use of classical musical structures, proper use of keyboards, strings, percussion, choral arrangements, the blend of both Symphonic and Metal and all of it must be meticulously scrutinized and heavily rehearsed. One of the best bands around to steadily release one strong Symphonic Metal album after another is Italy\u2019s Rhapsody of Fire. For fans of Thy Majesty, Dragonland, Dreamtale, Fairyland, or Twilight Force, Rhapsody of Fire\u2019s latest, The Eighth Mountain<\/em> released on the AFM Records label is a must have.<\/p>\n

Impossible to not wish one was hearing this score live, The Eighth Mountain<\/em> is Rhapsody of Fire\u2019s 12th studio release and the first to not feature long time vocal God Fabio Lione, and the first album not to have any input from Luca Turilli who left the band in 2011. Replacing Lione is Giacomo Voli (Into The Legend) who has a remarkable, operatic voice (as does Fabio Lione,) and Voli\u2019s voice is a massive part of the overall sound that is Rhapsody of Fire.<\/p>\n

The Eighth Mountain<\/em> is a new venture for this long time Italian band, and is the first chapter of what will be Nephilim\u2019s Empire Saga. Keyboard virtuoso Alex Staropoli who wrote the musical score for Rhapsody of Fire\u2019s latest, again shows that he does indeed possess a true talent for writing multifaceted, tight, intricate arrangements, as the score for this release is as strong as any fan of Symphonic Metal could want, brought to life by musicians who have aptitude, desire and the patience and drive to aptly play true Symphonic Metal.<\/p>\n

Rhapsody of Fire\u2019s music is very visual, meaning that while hearing it one can see visions of battles fought, journeys taken to far away lands, maidens and warriors and it is that which keeps the interest high throughout the albums\u2019 playing time. Each song tells of the continuation of a story, and for that reason, this is not an album to hear just one track at a time, then listen to another band\u2019s release, but rather allow the CD to play out in its entirety in one sitting for the album to do what it is that it was intended to do.<\/p>\n

Straropoli\u2019s keyboards, De Micheli\u2019s guitar, Lotter\u2019s blisteringly fast drums, Sala\u2019s bass and of course the vocals of Voli\u2019s vocals are best when heard with headphones in place, and distractions kept to a minimum. Opening with the short introduction \u201cAbyss of Pain\u201d which flows directly into track two, \u201cSeven Heroic Deeds,\u201d tells the tale of a brave warrior about to undertake a perilous voyage. Listen as well to the gentle, but yet epic \u201cWhite Wizard,\u201d with its chugging guitar riffs and a soft underscore of synthesizers.<\/p>\n

Insane drums and keyboards are what made \u201cRain of Fury\u201d a must listened to track and Track 8, \u201cMarch Against the Tyrant,\u201d with its Led Zeppelin-esque \u201cStairway To Heaven\u201d flute and acoustic guitar and \u201cWarrior Heart,\u201d were both excellent. However the CD highlight came with track 9, \u201cClash of Times\u201d a soaring, larger-than-life, colossal, cathedral filling track with everything that is so great about Symphonic Metal coming through in perfect form. It was impossible to not reach for the volume knob when \u201cClash of Times\u201d came around. For those who love the heroic sounds of Rhapsody of Fire, this is the song to latch on to, for this one was just superb. \u201cThe Legend Goes On,\u201d with its huge, full choral arrangement was excellent, and closing this CD was \u201cTales Of A Hero,\u201d with each musical bar filled to its capacity with every type and sound that each musical instrument has to offer. A certain amount of evil came through as well with guttural vocals and growls.<\/p>\n

Rhapsody of Fire has been around for damn near 25 years since their initial formation as Thundercross, and fantasy and storytelling has been their trademark. Radio is utterly useless when it comes around to helping the unknowing become fans of great music like this, but the hell with radio as time and again they have proven they have little regard or desire to change. Despite legal issues with their band name, a revolving door of personnel, and label changes, Rhapsody of Fire has rightfully claimed their place as one of the premiere Symphonic Metal bands around, and with no signs of slowing down, we can know for a virtual certainty that the massive, Symphonic Metal sounds that Rhapsody of Fire is so excellent at composing will be around for hopefully years to come.<\/p>\n

Genre: Symphonic Metal<\/p>\n

Band Members:<\/p>\n

Alex Staropoli \u2013 keyboards
\nRoby De Micheli \u2013 guitar
\nAlessandra Sala \u2013 bass
\nGiacomo Voli \u2013 vocals
\nManu Lotter \u2013 drums<\/p>\n

Track Listing:<\/p>\n

Abyss of Pain
\nSeven Heroic Deeds
\nMaster of Peace
\nRain of Fury
\nWhite Wizard
\nWarrior Heart
\nThe Courage To Forgive
\nClash of Times
\nThe Legend Goes On
\nThe Wind, The Rain and the Moon
\nTales of a Hero\u2019s Fate<\/p>\n

Label: AFM Records<\/p>\n

Website: www.rhapsodyoffire.com<\/a><\/p>\n

HRH Rating: [usr 9 size=20]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Franco Cerchiari \u2014 Sr. Columnist \u2014 Not to say that writing music in general is an easy task to complete, but a certain amount of true complexity comes when the decision is made to […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":65507,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[8645,13427,8699,14876],"class_list":{"0":"post-65508","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-music-reviews","8":"tag-afm-records","9":"tag-alex-staropoli","10":"tag-rhapsody-of-fire","11":"tag-the-eighth-mountain"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65508","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\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=65508"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65508\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/65507"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=65508"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=65508"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=65508"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}