┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│■ ■│
│ .-/ .-. │
│ _.-~ / ___ | ~-._ │
│ \:/ -~| / __/| .\:/ │
│ / || (:/:| \ │
│ / /\/| |:\___\| |\ \ │
│ / /:::|.::/:::/:.|:\ \ │
│ / /:::/ \\/:::/::/:::\ \ │
│ / .::\ \-~~~~-/\/:.. \ │
│ /..:::::\ /:::::..\ │
│ /::::::::- -::::::::\ │
│ \:::::-~ ~-:::::/ │
│ \:-~ ~-:/ │
│ METAL CLASSICS ARCHIVE │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│ P R E S E N T S │
│ │
│ │
│ + Crystal Viper - Tales Of Fire And Ice + │
│ │
│ │
│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Information ║ │
│╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Rls Date..2020-01-25 Encoder......LAME 3.100 ║ │
│║ Genre.....Heavy Metal Graber.......EAC ║ │
│║ Year......2019 Khz/Bitrate..44.1 / VBR kbps ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Ripper....Anthem Songs........11 ║ │
│║ Source....CD Covers.......Yes ║ │
│║ Url..http://www.crystalviper.com ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Notes ║ │
│╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Artist : Crystal Viper ║ │
│║ Album : Tales Of Fire And Ice ║ │
│║ Label : AFM ║ │
│║ Cat.No : AFM 690-2 ║ │
│╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Description : ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ While I will forever love the NWOBHM vibe of Crystal ║ │
│║ ViperÆs debut album æThe Curse Of Crystal ViperÆ, I also ║ │
│║ think the band sorely needed a change of pace, as they got ║ │
│║ stuck in a rut somewhat lately. æTales Of Fire And IceÆ is ║ │
│║ the change the Polish band needed. Whether or not it is a ║ │
│║ change for the better depends on your taste, but for what ║ │
│║ itÆs worth, I think itÆs the finest Crystal Viper album ║ │
│║ since the debut. This time, the band dares to take their ║ │
│║ heavy/power metal roots in a slightly different direction. ║ │
│║ The results are quite refreshing. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ One thing that stands out about æTales Of Fire And IceÆ is ║ │
│║ its production, which is notably more polished than on the ║ │
│║ last few Crystal Viper albums. This increases the ║ │
│║ accessibilty of the material. And while that could be an ║ │
│║ issue for the old schoolers among Crystal ViperÆs audience, ║ │
│║ they needed this step forward. æTales Of Fire And IceÆ has ║ │
│║ a somewhat darker, more contemporary vibe than other recent ║ │
│║ Crystal Viper albums and the songs appear to be built ║ │
│║ around Marta GabrielÆs vocals more than ever. The change is ║ │
│║ notable, but not so much that Crystal Viper feels like a ║ │
│║ completely different band. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Every song on æTales Of Fire And IceÆ has its own identity ║ │
│║ and that might just be the albumÆs biggest asset. In the ║ │
│║ past, the uptempo tracks in particular followed a similar ║ │
│║ formula, but they are all distinguishable here. From the ║ │
│║ Nocturnal Rites-isms of æBright LightsÆ to the borderline ║ │
│║ speed metal of æOne QuestionÆ and the epic grandeur of ║ │
│║ æTomorrow Never Comes (Dyatlov Pass)Æ, you will not have ║ │
│║ any trouble telling them apart. Opening track æStill AliveÆ ║ │
│║ even reminded me of Onmyo-zaÆs brilliant æSamayoiÆ, both in ║ │
│║ its main riff and in the hopeful melancholy of its ║ │
│║ atmosphere. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ The song that convinced me the direction on æTales Of Fire ║ │
│║ And IceÆ is the right one was æCrystal SphereÆ. Though ║ │
│║ unmistakably a power metal song, the song breaks with some ║ │
│║ of the songwriting tropes of the genre. A very climactic ║ │
│║ track with some delightfully dramatic guitar arrangements. ║ │
│║ As a whole, the guitar arrangements seem to be more ║ │
│║ thought-out this time around anyway. æUnder IceÆ an ║ │
│║ æNeverending FireÆ are fine mid-tempo tracks, but if you ║ │
│║ want to hear the best mid-tempo track of the album, get the ║ │
│║ CD version. That is my preferred format anyway, but the ║ │
│║ Accept meets eighties Heart sound of æDream WarriorsÆ is ║ │
│║ nothing short of excellent. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ In the metal scene, maturing musically is often feared or ║ │
│║ frowned upon. æTales Of Fire And IceÆ is not an album for ║ │
│║ people who look at music that way, but the songwriting on ║ │
│║ the album is better than on any Crystal Viper record since ║ │
│║ the debut and Marta Gabriel sounds more varied than she ║ │
│║ ever has. The sophistication and subtlety of the ║ │
│║ songwriting will likely contribute to the longevity of the ║ │
│║ record, though it is too early to say for sure. Whether ║ │
│║ æTales Of Fire And IceÆ is the start of a new chapter for ║ │
│║ Crystal Viper or a one-off experiment also remains to be ║ │
│║ seen, but itÆs good. And in the end, thatÆs what counts. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Recommended tracks: æCrystal SphereÆ, æStill AliveÆ, ║ │
│║ æTomorrow Never Comes (Dyatlov Pass)Æ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Originally written for my Kevy Metal weblog ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Tracklist ║ │
│╚═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════ │
│ │
│ 1. Prelude 1:31 │
│ 2. Still Alive 3:42 │
│ 3. Crystal Sphere 5:02 │
│ 4. Bright Lights 3:43 │
│ 5. Neverending Fire 4:58 │
│ 6. Interlude 0:55 │
│ 7. Under Ice 4:30 │
│ 8. One Question 4:18 │
│ 9. Tomorrow Never Comes (Dyatlov Pass) 3:50 │
│ 10. Tears Of Arizona 4:39 │
│ 11. Dream Warriors (Bonus Track) 4:54 │
│ │
│ │
│ Total Length : 00:42:02 │
│ │
│ │
│ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│ ╔═════════════════════╗ │
│ ║ Greetings To: ║ │
│ ╚═════════════════════╝ │
│ │
│ Too all people who contributes to make this │
│ archive of good music in a exceptional conditions │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│■ ■│
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘