SAVATAGE - POETS & MADMEN - NUCLEAR BLAST
The new Savatage album Poets & Madmen is something of a 'back to the future' release for the Florida elder statesmen. But more on that later. For years the prestige band of Atlantic Records (ie the band that doesn't really sell enough for the major, but is kept for showcase reasons), Savatage has been released to Nuclear Blast in North America and Steamhammer in Europe. A European EP entitled Commissar (misspelled German for commissioner) was out a couple of months ago, but otherwise this is the band's first release in some three years. Not only has the band undergone a couple of label changes but also lost its singer and guitarist. It's the new line up that sees the band, while not completely regaining the heavier sounds of the early days, feature a sound a little more guitar-oriented and with Jon Oliva again front stage resembling something harder than the output of the past decade. It's all reminiscent of the story of Sisyphus: pushing boulders up the hill only to watch them roll back down immediately. The pomp, concept, piano, Queen-inspired harmonies, etc. are all still present. The band already has a new vocalist in tow whose direction is unclear. It's just that, as was the case on albums like Streets or Gutter Ballet, Savatage now incorporates some instances of heaviness. That and Jon Oliva's original vocals will probably mean a little more interest this time around on behalf of heavy metal fans. Otherwise persons like this writer will forever cling to the old LPs like Power Of The Night or Dungeons Are Calling as our only Savatagian treasures. - Ali "The Metallian"