Stratovarius - Eternal (2015)

If you are a fan of Finnish power metal, then 2015 has certainly been a mouth watering year for you. Not only has both Nightwish and Cain's Offering released great albums in "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" and "Stormcrow" , Amberian Dawn is about to release new material as well. But one of the most legendary of them all have also shown some new tunes this year. "Eternal" marks as the 15th studio effort from Stratovarius, a huge mile stone that many bands dreams of reaching, but only few does.

I was surely excited for this album since the band has done splendidly since Timo Tolkki left, doing better and better for each passing album. Even with my excitement, I still had concerns if the band could really match their 2013 release "Nemesis", or even the before mentioned "Stormcrow", in which Timo Kotipelto and Jens Johansson helped out on. And sure enough, "Eternal" is not an improvement over any of those two albums.

Do not get me wrong, "Eternal" is a excellent album that fits well amongst the other post-Tolkki albums, but I find it to be more of a normal power metal album with all of what you would expect. If you know the band and its discography, then you will not be surprised at all by "Eternal". It is definitely boring that it is the same old thing that is coming out through those speakers, but I can live with it as long as there is quality to it, and you know that Stratovarius has plenty of it.

The band certainly start out strong in "Eternal" with two classic Stratovarius pieces that will please the fans and be much appreciated when played live. Both "My Eternal Dream" and "Shine In The Dark" sets the bar for the rest of the album with their predictive, but effective structures and catchy melodies. "Few Are Those" stands out as well thanks to its grand chorus and really catchy riff, and "Man In The Mirror" has a hard edge to it that I enjoy. The band ends "Eternal" with the massive 10+ minute epic "The Lost Saga", a nice long song that ends the album in epic fashion. Stratovarius is not known for their long songs (especially since the humongous 18 minute long "Elysium" was not so successful), but this is a valid effort.

I generally like Stratovarius' last album "Nemesis" more than "Eternal" because it has more originality to it. "Eternal" just feels like "Stratovarius for dummies" because it has everything you would expect from the band. Still, the quality of the craft itself does make the album a pleasant experience, which just shows the experience the band has. Stratovarius does strengthen their position as Finland's premier export of excellent power metal, a position they have held in about 20 years. A good, solid effort, but if I would recommend a Finnish power metal album from 2015, I would still chose the Cain's Offering album "Stormcrow" over this one.

Songs worthy of recognition: My Eternal Dream, Shine In The Dark, Man In The Mirror

Rating: 7/10 Lost sagas

Stratovarius - Nemesis (2013)

Ever since the guitarist and the main song writer Timo Tolkki left the band in 2008 has Stratovarius gotten some what of a revival. "Polaris" showed a new side of the band that was new and exciting and even thoug the follow up album, "Elysium", was some what of a dissapointment I still had a good feeling about "Nemesis". I knew that if the band could fit the pieces that they have gathered the last five years together they would create an album that probably could be one of the bands best albums.

I was a little surprised to find that "Nemesis" is different from its two predecessors. Instead of stable progressive power metal with a lot of epicness we get a more traditional Stratovarius album with more straight forward, symphonic power metal. The epicness is not completely gone but it does not take as much space as it did on "Polaris" and "Elysium".

The first half of the album is more or less just speed. It is classic power metal a la Stratovarius at its best. The only times the speed is in the background on the first six songs are the heavy "Stand My Ground" and the semi-heavy-epic "Out of The Fog". But if we once again focus on the songs that has speed in their veins I would like to put forward the single "Unbreakable". "Unbreakable" has several small pieces that makes this song a fantastic experience from the epic quire in the build up to the "falling rain" (come up with a better name to describe that sound yourself) in the background on the chorus that gives this song a more apocalyptic feel, a feeling that follows through in most of the songs on "Nemesis". One of these songs are "Halcyon Days" with its magnificent chorus and futuristic sound effects.

The second half of the album is more like the Stratovarius we have learned to know in the past five years. A little more progressive approach. One perfect example is the mellow "Castles In The Air" that is a great craftsmanship of a song and is groovy enough to make your head rock back and forth. Definitely the kind of song you want Stratovarius to make in this genre. Another good progressive tune from "Nemesis" is "One Must Fall" that has a great amount of heaviness to cooperate with the progressive part so the song does not sound either sloppy or overworked. Also, great work on the vocal harmonies on the chorus so the song gains an extra level of strength. The only real ballad in "Nemesis" is "If The Story Is Over", a ballad that gives the album some good variation but it is not one of the bands better ballads. It is decent but not overwhelmingly great.

You could say that "Nemesis" is tying up the bonds between the old and the new Stratovarius. On one side we have classic symphonic power metal and on the other we have more delicate and progressive tunes. No matter what I love it. Stratovarius is bringing out the best out of their pre- and post Timo Tolkki periods and makes probably one of the best European power metal album in the last ten years. There are a few songs that fall between the cracks but overall this is a album that proves that Stratovarius still got some punch in themselves.

Songs worthy of recognition: Unbreakable, Stand My Ground, Halcyon Days, One Must Fall

Rating: 8,5/10 Fantasies