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Savatage: Hall of the mountain king

04/06/10 || sly

“Verily I say unto thee, if thou art in doubt of the sheer metal that is “Hall of the Mountain King”, ye need only to listen 7 seconds into the premier track, and ye shall hear the error of thine ways.” -Tage 4:1

Forget the past, they’re burning tread! By the first song, “24 hrs. ago”, I already wish I were flying down a dusty Arizona road in my ’69 Camaro Z28 and screaming along at the top of my voice. (And, I assure you, one day this will be the case).

No one can contend with these guys. They’re actually depicted as being summoned with bolts of lightning from a chalice, for fuck’s sake. (On the back cover).
Jon Oliva’s howling vocals traverse deep “Beyond the doors of the dark” into the mysterious world that is late 80’s heavy/power metal with a macabre theme. And oh, what a world it is!

From what I can tell, this is supposedly a concept album. I can kind of see it- no, I can see it- but it reads like he is speeding down the road one night, cracked out of his mind, and ennui has set in. He mentally journeys into a menacing realm of dæmons, deadly witches, mysterious chicks on strange flying horses, and the formidable Mountain King. The instrumental “Last Dawn” is the very harbinger of utter global “Devastation”. The latter narrating none other than the end of the human race. In this phantasmagoria that Paul O’Neill and the ‘Tage have conjured, mankind is doomed to be slain in the year 2000 by the Four Horsemen. Personally, I am pleased as punch that they actually set a year for this destruction. It is a trifle odd that they say, “We should have listened to what Christ had to say”, but I don’t think they are selling Christianity so much as merely capitalizing on the horrors of Biblical Revelations. Whatever, it still kicks ass. And though I doubt it to be the case, I’d like to think that maybe this is what you get when a metal band listens to Edvard Grieg and Gustav Holst whilst reading far too many Gothic novels?

On the topic of these classical composers, of course we know that “Prelude to Madness” is, indeed, Holst’s “Mars, the Bringer of War”; the glories of which are belauded with the vociferous guitar playing of Criss Oliva. The track morphs into a remarkably well done version of Grieg’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King”.

Unfortunately, there are a few minor aberrations that keep this album from being a totally energetic fucking fusillade of metal madness. The fourth track, “Strange Wings”, deviates from the path of power to one reminiscent of their former watery glammy attempts. It’s not the worst song on the planet, and fuck me, it’s been stuck in my head all day, but it’s really out of sync with the rest of the record.

Whilst drums and bass do have their sporadic shining moments, this album is clearly the chief triumph of O’Neill and the Olivas. Let’s face it, these guys were kicking metal ass when your mother was still sniffin’ coke and smokin’ cock. (And maybe she still is, but that’s none of my business).

On the whole, “Hall of the Mountain King” is pretty damn wonderful, not to mention just plain fun to listen to. It exudes the sort of greatness of which you wish you had a fraction.

8,5

Information
Released: 1987
Label: Atlantic Records
Website: www.savatage.com
Band
Jon Oliva: the grit (vocals)
Criss Oliva: the crunch (guitar)
Steve “Doc” Wacholz: the cannons (drums)
Johnny Lee Middleton: the thunder (bass)
Ray Gillian: background vocals on “Strange wings”

Tracklist
01. 24 Hrs. Ago
02. Beyond the Doors of the Dark
03. Legions
04. Strange Wings
05. Prelude to Madness
06. Hall of the Mountain King
07. The Price You Pay
08. White Witch
09. Last Dawn
10. Devastation

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