silktempest's Full Review: Twilight Time by Stratovarius
STRATOVARIUS' great breakthrough in Japan, 1992's Twilight Time was the moment when the greatest Finn band ever consolidated their Melodic Metal chops, building on de debut (1989's Fright Night) promising European Metal approach.
Still lacking a great singer, leaders Tuomo Lassila (drums) and Timo Tolkki (guitars, vocals, producer) invested in lengthier, more ambitious compositions, with intricate instrumental passages, bearing more than a passing resemblance to RAINBOW's great achievement, 1976's Rising, as well as to HELLOWEEN's then reigning Melodic Metal approach from the epic Keeper of the 7 Keys saga.
With supporting roles played by Antti Ikonen (keyboards, decisive here) and Jari Behm (bass), STRATOVARIUS did the improbable - a semi-obscure Finn band accounting for the greatest import item in Japanese stores circa 1992. The album was a rock-solid affair, quite mature for a second release (but remember this band started back in 1982...).
Break The Ice, the opening song, is a mesmerizing Thrash-Melodic-with-some-keyboards offering, one of the nicest STRATOVARIUS album openers, one of their underrated sleeper hits. Tolkki's limited range seems a Melodic Metal counterpart to ALICE IN CHAINS (Jerry Cantrell, not Layne Staley). The tight riffing and focused vocals enhance the metaphorical icy lyrics, more entrapment than the literal METALLICA tale on Trapped Under Ice. A wondrous bridge was the most delicate offering in Melodic Metal at the time - mirroring ice before a Blackmorian solo follows, Tolkki's finest early achievement, literally breaking through.
An even greater show of synthesizers and vaguely European melodies is featured on Hands of Time - a nice choice for a Japanese anime soundtrack. But this time STRATOVARIUS' approach is more straightforward and humble. Sonic linearity and conventional vocals are unsettled by self-reinforcing lyrics telling you to forget the past and live the day instead of dreaming of the future. 3 minutes on and Tolkki unleashes another one of his multidimensional melodic solos. Clocking at 5 plus minutes, the track is far too long to rank alongside Break The Ice accolades. But the framework would stand still and be improved in each and every future STRATOVARIUS release.
Madness Strikes at Midnight - what a nice title for a Tolkki song! With a Gargantuan 7 minutes length adorning one of the madman's favorite issues, it could arguably claim its place among STRATOVARIUS' most overlooked gems. A haunting melody, built on layers of acoustics and synths, screams for havoc. But what follows is a barrage of Melodic riffs. Halfway Tolkki turns the maddening tale into a Jack the Stripper rip-off. The early expressionism is somehow diluted by the absence of a chorus (that arrives only at 4:30 minutes and is a downer). Still, thoughtful percussion, tasteful synths and the extended, Blackmorian soloing (YINGWE MALMSTEEN would have loved it) set the track apart from sinking promises.
After the initial slump, another STRATOVARIUS early classic - Metal Frenzy! 2 minutes and it's over, "one-two-three-four" on the floor. Is it a speed metal track? A cavalcading Leviathan bass-guitar composite (Behm and Tolkki finally finding their way together) shows proceedings closer to MALMSTEEN's instrumental sagas, self-important entities built around a volcanic rhythm and adorned by virtuosity and egotrips (Tolkki outbursts). Synths challenge the self-stimulating guitar licks, a post-shredding affair. It won't bring STRATOVARIUS to Japanese radios, but music schools loved it anyway.
The title track, clocking at 5-plus minutes, is not an entirely different matter. It starts with the same Gargantuan bass-guitar riffing. And it recalls Madness Strikes at Midnight's haunting synths thereafter. But the approach is not just slightly less faster and frantic, but more accessible, with Tolkki singing his lungs out to reach anthemic proportions. And reasonably affected choruses arrive every 1:30 minute. For European and Japanese audiences, a nice offering, less a radio hit than an early display of Progressive Metal rearing its retro head amidst Melodic Metal. Another cobweb of guitar licks and arpeggios from hell fill the expressive soloing, tangentially recalling MALMSTEEN's Marching Out...Then another haunting synth pattern enhances the drama. You really don't rely on vocals any longer when you have such accomplished sonic counterparts. Another lilting solo leaves its traces in the air.
The Hills Have Eyes - 6-plus minutes. The band is becoming really ambitious. A more traditional Metal approach is featured, though. Synths sound like raging bells. A doomed mood arrives. Guitars in unison, terrorizing the night - this is what we get in the first 2 minutes, like an extended intro to Mr. Crowley. Then, a SAVATAGE melody follows, with a cascading riff accompanied by rousing bass-drums and cling-clanging synths providing an unsettling counterpart. Tolkki's traditionalist ride through a menacing Cosmos skip choruses almost altogether - just walk across bridges bordered by cascading riffs and underrated drums-bass. As is STRATOVARIUS was applying for a HELLOWEEN opening slot. 4 minutes on and synths versus guitars build some tension that a convoluted soloing wouldn't solve anyway. I prefer the innovating STRATOVARIUS. Solid, but not distinctive.
Out of the Shadows is another uber-STRATOVARIUS song - an eerie, European melody maximized in a synth during the intro, followed by a cavalcading, but (comparably) lighter riffing and mysterious, ethereal lyrics. Japanese ears loved it. An anthemic chorus follows. ANGRA would release many similar songs, including their perennial anthem Carry On. Here Tolkki draws pictures of uncharted lands from his IRON MAIDENish palette. What is missing is a truly remarkable singer - something they would find in 1994, with Timo Kotipelto's melancholic, delicate strength. Still, the track is a winner, clocking at an economic 4 minutes, with an exaggerated yelling following the larger-than-life guitar detours. It could have been the ‘second single'.
A gaze of mystical rapture closes Twilight Time - Lead Us Into the Light. A wondrous display of acoustic prowess and digital melodies, this intro is my STRATOVARIUS all-time favorite. And once for all Tolkki sounds subtle and inviting, instead of just going down the throat. The song unfolds, an orchid of reflective bridges, waiting for the grand statement, for the jump into the beyond. The greatest early Progressive STRATOVARIUS effort includes a fantastic soloing, not a shredding exercise, but a nice display of emotional depth by one of the greatest underrated artisans of the instrument, making once again justice to his egocentric master Blackmore and still innovating, flipping to a more optimistic take on the unknown. The final section strikingly predates ANGRA's Progressive-Melodic world ascension. Every part sounds great, what is missing is just a little bit of grit and speed. Another classic present in Twilight's Time - a forgotten classic, but time stands still. See ya.
* * * * 1/2 Break the Ice * * * 1/2 The Hands of Time * * * 1/2 Madness Strikes at Midnight * * * * Metal Frenzy * * * * Twilight Time * * * 1/2 The Hills Have Eyes * * * * Out of the Shadows * * * * 1/2 Lead Us Into the Light
Recommended:
Yes
Great Music to Play While: Getting ready to go out
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