Review Summary: Symphony X delivers another outstanding offering of grandiose potato salad
Symphony X, in my experience, appears to be a rather well-liked band. I have yet to meet someone who absolutely disdains them, much like Iron Maiden or Blind Guardian. There are plenty who don't have a taste for them, but it's difficult to deny their chops. Russell Allen is a undeniably outstanding vocalist, alongside prominent shredder Michael Romeo. While these two tend to carry the band beyond a bland rhythm second, Symphony X has proven to be a thoroughly solid act throughout the years.
After a four-year gap between records, Symphony X has dropped what appears to be an almost identical album to the band's 2011 effort, Iconoclast. Everything about Underworld sounds... safe. The "Wall of Sound" production is in full effect here, but it isn't detrimental to the core of the music. The guitars are thick, the vocals nice and defined in the mix, the bass is there, and the drums are at a modest volume. Everything sounds fine. One can't help but to miss the diverse style of production used in their efforts
The Divine Wings of Tragedy and
The Odyssey, however.
The album kicks off with a so-so symphonic intro does a fine enough job at setting the tone, but it comes off as a little forced and forgettable. Then, with the real opener,
Nevermore, the man of the hour makes his presence known. Romeo lays down another of his signature-sounding licks. After a mediocre intro, this kicks the album into full gear. Allen delivers solid vocal work here, however the chorus doesn't quite fit with the riffs of the song, leaving the track with a slightly awkward feel to it. Instrumentally, however, the track excels.
The title track,
Underworld, however, is easily one of the best songs the band has come up with in their entire career. This is the song they were trying to write all throughout Iconoclast but couldn't quite execute. Pounding riffs, a catchy chorus, fluid-double bass. This track comes off as more aggressive and sinister than anything they've written previously, with Russel Allen delivering some top-notch screams to give the track the kick it needs.
"Descend the abyss ever faster...
Hidden from light... demons of DEAAAAAAAATTTTTTHHHHHH!"
The fourth track, Without You, is another solid Symphony X ballad. It has that high-flying catchy chorus that Symphony X almost always achieves when they put out this style of song. While it doesn't eclipse their masterpiece of a track
Accolade II off of
The Odyssey, this is a great contribution to their backlog of ballads.
The band follows this up with another ass-kicking tune
Kiss of Fire. The main riff here is outstanding. Some will find this track to be too plain and straight-forward, but the riffs here kick it up a notch for me.
Then we reach the B-side. This is where the album takes a bit of a dip for me. There's noting particularly wrong with any of these songs. The riffs are solid, Allen's vocals are still great. However, I can't help but to feel that they weren't trying hard enough to bring these songs any real identity. They all sort of meld into each other and none stand out as particularly interesting or memorable. The only track that comes close to standing out,
Swan Song, is quite good. But, like
Without You, it's no
Accolade II.
The closer,
Legend, has a nice drop-the-mic-and-close-the-book feel to it. It's catchy, upbeat, progressive, and rather generic. But solid all around.
This is an album that a sizable portion of the metal community will eventually listen to, and end up finishing completely unmoved or unaffected in any way. I might be an outlier, however, because I think that this record is an excellent contribution to the Power Metal genre. If you already have a distaste for Power Metal, skip this album and spin something else. This certainly won't change your mind. This album is exactly as advertised. If you've heard Paradise Lost and Iconoclast, you've essentially already heard Underworld. The band has not progressed at all in their last two efforts, but I just happen to be fine with that. They know what they do well, they execute it, and deliver beautifully. While this album never quite chips away at the high-point of their career,
Paradise Lost, this is deeply solid and satisfying entry to their catalog.
