Magenta - Metamorphosis
CD Info
2008
Sensory Records
4 Tracks
English lyrics
Metamorphosis is the fourth full length studio album from this Welsh band. I was very interested in hearing this album after learning that two of the tracks would clock in at 20 minutes each. There aren’t many bands out there that can really make a 20 minute song work though, so I was worried that Magenta just couldn’t handle keeping such long songs interesting throughout the entire duration. Given my feelings about Magenta’s past album Seven, I had hope that they could indeed handle such long songs.
First off, let me describe the music. The music is still very much symphonic prog, however, Magenta have added a couple little elements that were not there on Seven. For instance, Magenta has added the Uilleann Pipes to their music at times—any band using Uilleann Pipes are just playing to my heart! The celtic elements really work well, adding a beautiful dimension to the music on Metamorphosis. The music on Metamorphosis sounds a little less…influenced? They are definitely adding more of their own elements to their music, which I certainly appreciate. The vocals and instruments are as nice as ever.
The two long songs are "The Ballad of Samuel Layne" and "Metamorphosis". I actually feel that they are both pretty well done, however, I feel like "The Ballad of Samuel Layne" is more successful overall versus "Metamorphosis". They thankfully add many parts to the songs to keep the listeners attention. The two shorter songs "Prekestolen" and "Blind Faith" are well composed as well. "Prekestolen" in particular is a highlight of the album for me—the celtic atmosphere is just beautiful.
I don’t think this album is as good as Seven, but it’s definitely a great album. If you were a fan of Magenta before, you should give this album a listen. Prog fans would also enjoy this album I think.
8 / 10
