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│ METAL CLASSICS ARCHIVE │
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│ P R E S E N T S │
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│ + Manilla Road - Mysterium + │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Information ║ │
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│║ ║ │
│║ Release Date.Jan-24-2016 Encoder......L3.97 -V2 --vbr-new ║ │
│║ Genre........Heavy Metal Graber.......EAC ║ │
│║ Year.........2013 Khz/Bitrate..44,1/ Br ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Ripper.......anthem Songs........10 ║ │
│║ Covers.......Yes Url... www.manillaroad.net ║ │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Notes ║ │
│╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Artist : Manilla Road Rating : You Decide! ║ │
│║ Album : Mysterium Label : Shadow Kingdom ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Description : ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Mark Shelton returns with Mysterium after ║ │
│║ recording the excellent Beyond the Boundaries of ║ │
│║ Sin with Hellwell, which featured a lot of harsh ║ │
│║ vocals from his part and a really heavy keyboard ║ │
│║ presence, both of which are absent from his ║ │
│║ latest opus as this album is a different beast, ║ │
│║ pretty good and diverse, but different ║ │
│║ nonetheless. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Starting from the production aspects so often ║ │
│║ criticized of this band, this record possesses a ║ │
│║ decent recording sometimes bordering on being ║ │
│║ really good as tracks like ôOnly the Braveö or ║ │
│║ ôThe Hermitageö showcase having a strong bass up ║ │
│║ front and heavy-sounding guitars while still ║ │
│║ being able to notice details in the drum ║ │
│║ department, although sometimes there are moments ║ │
│║ where itÆs still a little hard to make sense of ║ │
│║ what is going on, as in the last sung part of ║ │
│║ ôThe Battle of Bonchester Bridgeö, but overall ║ │
│║ this album has a nice raw sound to it. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ As for the songwriting department, you can ║ │
│║ expect some great heavy metal songs delivered in ║ │
│║ a mid-range voice with some interesting bass and ║ │
│║ a tremendous guitar work. Starting things with ║ │
│║ the right foot with ôThe Grey God Passesö, ║ │
│║ Manilla Road puts its strong elements up front, ║ │
│║ which are some pretty solid and dark sounding ║ │
│║ verses along with interesting melodies for ║ │
│║ choruses and great use of the guitar that keeps ║ │
│║ you enthralled and often captivated. These ║ │
│║ elements are all present in what I like to call ║ │
│║ the ôheavyö songs on this album, such as ôThe ║ │
│║ Hermitageö, ôOnly The Braveö, and ôStand Your ║ │
│║ Groundö, along with the opener. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ A different subject within this album are the ║ │
│║ ballads present here, being ôThe Battle of ║ │
│║ Bonchester Bridgeö the easiest to digest of them ║ │
│║ both, featuring a great sounding verse sung over ║ │
│║ beautiful arpeggios for the first part and ║ │
│║ ending with heavy guitar wankery and one of the ║ │
│║ greatest vocal melodies of the album . ôThe ║ │
│║ Fountainö is an all acoustic number in which all ║ │
│║ I can say is that MarkÆs songwriting skills are ║ │
│║ enough to make this song feel at place with the ║ │
│║ album and his vocals give this warm feeling that ║ │
│║ helps the song feel authentic. To bind this ║ │
│║ acoustic piece with the album's longest track, ║ │
│║ there is a weird, yet not boring instrumental ║ │
│║ called ôThe Callingö, which makes a good prelude ║ │
│║ for the last track. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ The start of the epic closer, ôMysteriumö, is a ║ │
│║ mixture of the soft guitar sounds and verses ║ │
│║ featured in the ballads with an eerie touch, ║ │
│║ making it interesting enough to keep with until ║ │
│║ the middle part rocks it out with the influences ║ │
│║ of the ôheavyö songs cauterized by dark sounding ║ │
│║ vocals and riffs along with guitar solos that ║ │
│║ bind together the last part of the song, ║ │
│║ sounding like the last part of ôThe Battle of ║ │
│║ Bonchester Bridgeö in the way that is slow, ║ │
│║ heavy, and melodic, thereby creating a ║ │
│║ consistent piece thatÆs coherent with the other ║ │
│║ material featured on the record. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Sadly, this album does indeed feature songs that ║ │
│║ don't seem to stack up to the level of the great ║ │
│║ compositions present. ôDo What Thou Willö and ║ │
│║ ôHallowed Be Thy Graveö feel as if these guys ║ │
│║ played it safe with these tunes, the result ║ │
│║ being somewhat catchy numbers with some good ║ │
│║ moments, but not as remarkable as the rest of ║ │
│║ the material. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ To conclude this, Mysterium at its peak is an ║ │
│║ album where great guitar dynamics, good drum ║ │
│║ work, and clever bass lines mix along tasteful ║ │
│║ vocals and cool lyrics, and at its low (which is ║ │
│║ really hard to find since there are only two ║ │
│║ lackluster pieces here, IMO) itÆs kind of flat ║ │
│║ and safe sounding with some good, yet ║ │
│║ forgettable melodies. ║ │
│║ ║ │
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│║ ║ │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Tracklist ║ │
│╚═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════ │
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│ 01 - the grey god passes [04:06] │
│ 02 - stand your ground [02:58] │
│ 03 - the battle of bonchester bridge [04:29] │
│ 04 - hermitage [06:02] │
│ 05 - do what thou will [04:09] │
│ 06 - only the brave [03:37] │
│ 07 - hallowed be thy grave [04:38] │
│ 08 - the fountain [04:29] │
│ 09 - the calling [04:01] │
│ 10 - mysterium [11:21] │
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│ Total Length : [49:50 minn │
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│ ╔═════════════════════╗ │
│ ║ Greetings To: ║ │
│ ╚═════════════════════╝ │
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│ Too all people who contributes to make this │
│ archive of good music in a exceptional conditions │
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│ │
│ │
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