Underworld --- Adagio --- 2003 (Nothing To Say)
Ever heard a full concert orchestra stuffed into a heavy metal shell? Listen to this and you will! Adagio pride themselves on not only being heavy and progressive, but on playing intricate, complex orchestral music, the ultimate fusion of classical and metal, which I would like to call Orchestral Metal, except I can't, as that assumes there are no vocals, which is not true. So, what else to call their style? Classical Metal doesn't really cut it either, and Metal Concertos is misleading again. I like Dramatic Metal, but I think we'll probably have to stick with the standard Progressive Metal, though Adagio are far from your standard prog metal band.
A French group, Adagio are the brainchild of guitarist Stephan Forte, though its really the work of Kevin Codfert on the piano that characterise the sound of Adagio and gives the band their edge. The album opens with a great keyboard solo followed by a truly wonderful piano solo, introducing “Next Profundis”, and coming as close to a classical concerto as I have so far heard, outside of the world of classical music. The vocals of David Readman are clear and powerful, though I am informed that on their next two albums they dispensed with his services and resorted more to “death vocals”, which is disappointing (though I haven't yet heard their other albums at this point).
The piano really drives this track, though the guitars certainly do their part, with a really nifty solo on this track, and the power of the drumming by Dirk Bruinenberg should not be understated either. They obviously enjoy a penchant for using latin names for their songs, but my latin is not up to scratch, so I have no clue what either of the first two tracks mean. I know “profundis” is generally to do with depth, so perhaps the opener is “the next level” or something, but the second track, “Solvet saeclum in favilla” --- not a clue. It's full of choral vocals though, and has a very dramatic and epic feel to it, and indeed at just over eight minutes it is epic enough. The vocals on this are gruffer, more rough and raspy, and you can see the beginnings of the direction Adagio would later go in manifest in the singing on this track.
Not as reliant on the piano this time, this track is built more around Forte's guitar work, with some solid keyboard wizardry from Codfert. It's got an overall faster tempo than the opener, and is a little heavier too. Some really nice acoustic and electric guitar as it winds towards its end, then a great keyboard solo. “Chosen” is almost as long, with a church organ intro. Adagio really weave incredible, dramatic soundscapes with their music, and the technical proficiency of this band is something to behold. It really is a pity if they went down the “death vocals” route, as that rules out their releases post this for me. Of course, you may not feel the same way, but I just can't enjoy any music that employs that mode of singing.
The title track is a thirteen-minute monster, with a four-minute overture, I guess you'd call it, that sounds like it should be in one of the “Lord of the Rings” movies --- all heavy organ, keyboards and choral voices. The piece is a progressive/classical
meisterwerke. full of chugging guitars, rolling drums and keyboard runs, with Readman singing at the top of his game. It ends powerfully too, and then we're into the only ballad on the album.
“Promises” shows what a metal band can really do when they put their minds to it. Carried on acoustic guitar and breathy keyboard, it's a powerful vehicle for Readman's vocal talents. A very effective string section is recreated on Cadfert's synthesiser, and it really adds atmosphere to the song. A really nice piano run brings the song to a close, then it's on to the penultimate track, “The mirror stage”. Another powerful rocker that takes the tempo right back up again, with very prog-rock keyboards from Cadfert, and the last performance from Readman, as the closer is an instrumental.
An eight-minute instrumental? No problem to these guys! “Niflheim” closes the album in fine style --- at least I know what
this means. Niflheim is one of the nine worlds in Norse mythology, the world of mists. The track itself is, as might be expected by now, epic, dramatic and full of swirling keyboards, screeching guitars and pounding drums, with the sort of rhythm that puts you in mind of an army marching to war. The track changes time signature, speeds up and slows down --- and this all in the first two minutes!
It's a virtuouso performance to mark the end of a quite remarkable album. I really doubt you'll have heard anything like Adagio before: I certainly haven't. Take a listen to this album and prepare to be amazed. Seriously.
TRACKLISTING
1. Next profundis
2. Introitus/Solvet saeclum in favilla
3. Chosen
4. From my sleep to someone else
5. Underworld
6. Promises
7. The mirror stage
8. Niflheim