Metal Opera Part II [Import]

Metal Opera Part II [Import]

Track Listings

1. The Seven Angels

2. No Return

3. The Looking Glass

4. In Quest For

5. The Final Sacrifice

6. Neverland

7. Anywhere

8. Chalice Of Agony

9. Memory

10. Into The Unknown

Editorial Reviews
Product Description
Long-awaited second part of the chart breaker Avantasia by mastermind Tobia Sammet from Edguy. Ten tracks. 2002.

Metal Opera Part II,Avantasia,Heavy Metal

Avantasia Part II: The Metal Opera
Average customer rating:

AVANTASIA RULES....

The Avantasia series will blow your mind

This Rocks

Avantasia Part II: The Metal Opera
Tobias Sammet
Manufacturer: Jvc Victor
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Avantasia: The Metal Opera Part 1

ASIN: B00006BH3C
Release Date: 2002-09-02

Tracks:

Seven Angels
No Returns
Looking Glass
In Quest For
Final Sacrifice
Neverland
Anywhere
Chalice Of Agony
Memory
Into The Unknown

Customer Reviews:

AVANTASIA RULES...........2006-09-21

Metal Opera 1 and 2 is all you need, best albums of all time..yep i said it best albums of all time...

The Avantasia series will blow your mind.......2005-09-30

When I heard of this album's release, I was convinced that what I considered to be the zenith of the genre would be reached, but for some reason I'm still stubborn enough to believe that there will be an album better than this one, and that's why I can't give it the 100% that I have yet to give, but this one got extremely close.

The same bunch of musicians that pulled forces to bring us the amazing Avantasia Part 1 has now returned to dish it out once more. I can't say that it's better or worse, nor can I say it's exactly the same as it's predecessor despite that I gave it the same rating. In truth, you have to treat both CDs as one album, one story, even though they were released separately.

First I will hit on the talent in this group. First rate musicians from beginning to end. I was particularly taken by the guitar work on here, the tracks laid down by Henjo Richter are mind blowing, as are the leads that he dishes out, particularly the riveting twin guitar lead on Chalice of Agony. I actually had the unique honor of teaching this solo to 2 teenagers at a summer camp who performed this song with a band of campers. I assure you it is quite challenging. But also note the efforts of Timo Tolkki and Jens Ludwig.

I have to hand it to Tobias Sammet for rounding out such top notch musical collaborators for his effort. Michael Kiske's role has diminished in this part as opposed to part 1, which is my lone complaint of this album. But this has given way to include the new character performed by Bob Catley, whose voice fills the gap and puts a new feel to the story. Andre Matos and Kai Hansen are back in good form, and naturally Tobias is ruling the roost, which is the right of the man who leads the project and composes the songs. lol

And on a side-note, the production is excellent. Too many albums in the power metal genre have a poor balance between the guitars and the synths, here they are both equally discernable and complement each other rather than fight each other. The voices are also well blended in with the music and don't drown out the background, which is amazing when you consider that at times 7 or 8 people are singing as a group.

Here is how the songs break down.

Seven Angels (10/10) - In the same vain as Edguy, Tobias brings a flair to the drawn out epic like no other. This is probably the best song on the album and clocks in at 14 minutes. There is a drawn out stream of modulations in sections, combining together to make you feel that your listening to 4 or 5 different songs in succession. High points include Timo Tolkki's guitar solo, Tobias' and Kiske's Meatloaf inspired piano and voice section which completely blew me away, and the amazing outro where Tobias, Matos and Hansen create a stream of vocal melodies that mystify the ears. An aria for the power metal ages to be sure.

No Return (9.5/10) - Fast paced cooker that works nicely, but it feels lacking merely because it had to follow the massive epic which is usually the closer for such albums. Michael Kiske and Tobias do well on this one, as does the lead work by Richter.

The Looking Glass (10/10) - This is an excellent mid-tempo track that features the new charactered called The Tree of Knowledge, sung by Bob Catley. What ensues is a riveting duet between two amazing singers, the lyrics on this one are very philosophical, yet work well in the fantasy world that Sammet has concocted. Another brilliant solo by Richter, along with some flashy beats by Alex Holzwarth.

In Quest for (10/10) - A continuation of the Catley and Tobias duet, this time with but a lone piano and some strings in the background. With voices completely exposed to the scrutiny that normally doesn't exist with loud guitars, these two guys prove that they can match abilities with any broadway singer. Kudos for originality on this one too, considering who this song came from.

Final Sacrifice (10/10) - Things get nice and rough here, Catley exits to bring in Virgin Steele screamer David Defeis, whose lion growls dwarf Tobi's banshee shreeks with thunderous fury. Jens Ludwig provides a very agitated solo which plays against the more idiomatic and structured soloing that Richter has been utilizing.

Neverland (9.5/10) - Great song, featuring Rob Rock reprising his role as Bishop Von Bicken. Great vocal performances save this song from it's almost cliche musical accompaniment, which sounded alot like Gamma Ray's "One with the World" at the beginning.

Anywhere (10/10) - Tobias goes it alone on this one, starting out with just a piano to back him up. This is definately one of the better power ballads I've heard. There is alot of emotion in the vocal performance, and Richter's solo uses all the precise notes to make the guitar sing as a voice rather than a highly embellished harpsichord line befitting of a shred fest.

Chalice of Agony (10/10) - This song, like Seven Angels, never gets old for me. I can understand why this was chosen as a single, because it's catchy themes grab the listener immediately. This track gets my pic for best guitar solo on the album. The pace is fast and the sections contrast each other nicely. Tobias does the majority of the vocal work, but both Matos and Hansen make breif appearances to add aditional color. Nothing short of amazing.

Memory (10/10) - Ralph Ziardstek reprises his role as the evil Baliff Falk Von Kronberg, the most loathsome of the characters. This song is lyrically excellent, and paints a very vivid picture of the plot, which sees justice served within it's span. Ziardstek dominates this song, but Tobias makes a brief appearance. Jens Ludwig also plays a decent solo on this one.

Into the Unknown (10/10) - The exiting chorus of the story, featuring solos by Tobias and Sharon reprising her role as the main character's sister. But the real strength to this shorter closing track is in the words of the chorus. The greatest one line that Tobias ever wrote is within that chorus, and it reads....

Dreamers come and go, but a dream's forever.

In conclusion, if you like Power Metal in general, you must get this album. If you enjoyed Avantasia Part 1, you must get this album. And if you like the other bands that the members of this project are in (Edguy, Gamma Ray, Rhapsody, Helloween, Virgin Steele, Stratovarius, ect.) you must get this album. No more excuses, start saving up those hard earned dollars or euros that you get for breaking rocks all day and invest it in a piece of artistic genius.

This Rocks.......2003-06-06

Alright since your looking at this page you obviously like good metal, this is one awesome cd, i like the first metal opera cd better though. if you don't like like this cd, go back to listening to limp wristed and other nu metal crap records

Average customer rating:

come on guys!
Great album!
I totally have heard this before.
The story goes on...
Part 1 is far better than this...

Metal Opera Part II

ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Hard Rock & Metal | Imports | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

The Metal Opera

ASIN: B00006FWY2
Release Date: 2001-12-18

Tracks:

The Seven Angels
No Return
The Looking Glass
In Quest For
The Final Sacrifice
Neverland
Anywhere
Chalice Of Agony
Memory
Into The Unknown

Album Description

Long-awaited second part of the chart breaker Avantasia by mastermind Tobia Sammet from Edguy. Ten tracks. 2002.

Customer Reviews:

come on guys!.......2002-10-25

To all the guys that gave this album a low rate because they think part 1 is better, i like to say to them " Get over it"!
part 1 is part 1, this is part 2. for me this album rules as so does part 1. now for the review, the album starts with a 14 minutes track"seven Angels" which surely become an instan classic among power metalers everywhere, a truly epic master piece with a lot of tempo changes,the second track" no return" is a up tempo song that will make u feel like u want to pull out your wooden sword. most of the song in this album are fast paced song with double pumping kickdrums that will make you bang your head up and down. o yeah there are 2 ballads here, i know some of u may think ballads are lame, but me personally like good power ballads, especially if it's emotional ballads like these. So if you like EDGUY or you are just looking for a good power metal music, i really recomend this album.

Great album!.......2002-09-22

First of all, anyone that says that this album sucks because they like Part 1 more they are not reviewing the album as it is supposed to be reviewed. This is a separate CD that should not be compared with Part 1. Also, I begin to really like a CD after listening to it various times, not at the first or second time I've heard it. So, maybe you low-raters just haven't listened to it enough. Listen to it carefully and relaxed, it will get to you ;)

Having said that, I want to say that this album is very different from the first. First, Michael Kiske appears only in the first 2 tracks, Hartmann just in the first track... But that's just how the story goes...

My favorite track is the first one: The Seven Angels. It is a real work of art, a masterpiece. The rest of the CD is great also, especially tracks like The Looking Glass (magnificent), the slow track In Quest For, and the amazing ballad Anywhere.

Well, I think that's all. I really recommend this CD if you enjoy well-performed metal music.

Go Tobias!

I totally have heard this before........2002-09-12

Avantasia part one was a great album. This is not. It lacks the intensity and power of part one, and does not have any catchy melodies. Like Edguy's last album Mandrake, it just gets boring! Perhaps Sammet has written too much music lately, he clearly uses and reuses the same elements time after time.

The story goes on..........2002-09-12

Tobias Sammet had a dream. A dream of Avantasia. Avantasia : The Metal Opera, is a 2 part epic about druids, religion, magic, wonder and of course Avantasia.

This CD is the second installment of the Avantasia series, and unfortunately, came off rather disappointing. After listening to Edguy's 2001 Mandrake album, I almost couldn't wait for this CD to be released. Avantasia 1 was released prior to Mandrake, and with a rather less mature Tobias Sammet at that. However, Mandrake seemed to set a mark for Edguy in the Power Metal world, and I as much as figured Avantasia would follow suit.

Don't get me wrong. For those who enjoy the Avantasia story, this is probably a MUST have to finally complete it. I won't leave any spoilers here. But for those who want to experience the true feeling of Avantasia, the first part comes off more powerful, more exciting and grabs your attention heavily. The second part tends to drone in the background. Besides the opening track Seven Angels, the rest do not exactly follow suit. Leaving you wondering whether there was a time lapse between the recording of Seven Angels and the rest of the album.

There were two musical additions to the crew this time round, Bob Catley on vocals and Eric Singer on drums. There were strong rumours before this that Hansi Kursch could possibly be on this album, unfortunately, no such thing. This album, however, showcases more of Tobias rather than the other vocalists (e.g. Oliver Hartmann only sings ONE VERSE in the entire album).

A mature effort, but lacks innovativeness and strength, leaving this a very mediocre effort by Tobias Sammet, after the classic Avantasia I. The focus seemed more on the lyrical aspect of the album, than the music. However, for those who want to complete their set, get it, for those who want to sit back, read the inlay with the music, get it, for those die-hard Edguy and Sammet fans, get it, for those looking for something new, exciting and powerful, try Avantasia I first.

Part 1 is far better than this..........2002-09-08

Too much comercialism and mediocrity in songwriting in this release. I'd rather say that this is some sort of leftover of Part I. Yes, the production is great, the musicianship is first-class and every vocalist still honour his/her respective name in this album. But there is no song here like those "Farewell", "Breaking Away", "Reach Out For The Light" or even "Avantasia" -all of them from Part I. Even the best themes from this second part look pale and poor when compared to those from Part I. Maybe "Memory", "The Final Sacrifice" and "Seven Angels" deserve to be mentioned, but they lack of the enchant and power that captivated listeners of the fisrt part. I won't get rid of this album because I want to own the complete "collection" of two CDs. But if you're not so obsesive, don't bother in getting this album and go for something better. The brilliant performance of DeFeis is not worth the price for the whole thing. Three stars for this music. I am dissappointed, but anyway three stars I think it's fair: this is a pretty average release, although far below my expectatives.

Music Info:

Music Info

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