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Post by walpurgis on Apr 30, 2009 1:41:30 GMT -5
I've been an old Fates fan since Night on Brocken, first hearing it on WNHU in Connecticut (read the liner notes). I bought Brocken on vinyl and it was one of my favorite albums, along with Maiden, Metallica, Accept, Witchfinder General (see Sorceress), etc. I also heard a few songs off Spectre, but eventually stopped listening to the genre for many years.
When Maiden's Brave New World was released I bought it on a whim and it quickly became the only CD I'd listen to for about a month. Soon thereafter I went back and caught up with everything I had missed since Powerslave.
Now, I'm starting to do the same with Fates Warning. Earlier this year I heard ATG for the first time. I was disappointed to learn that this was the last album with John Arch. I even bought Twist of Fate before the reissued No Exit and Perfect Symmetry CDs.
That's where I am now. I'm slowly getting used to Alder. I like Symmetry slightly better than No Exit, but I still lean toward the older sound and think Awaken the Guardian is their best.
No stopping now, so what should I do? Start with FWX and go backward one at a time? Start with Parallels and go forward? Or just buy all five at once?
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Post by thraxhead on May 1, 2009 12:59:16 GMT -5
What should you do now? I would suggest stop buying their albums because you already own their best anyway. hahaha.
(jusk kidding)
I will give my opinions on them:
Parallels (1991) and Inside Out (1994)
Parallels was the last album that Ray utilized his falsetto with any real effectiveness (and the live album Still Life (1998) was the last album that Ray had utilized his falsetto in the live setting). I find Inside Out to be a little more adventurous than its predecessor, and enjoy the melodies much better on on Inside Out. Fates had realized that they had taken the "world music" path as far as they could go with this one, which segueways into the next one ...
A Pleasant Shade of Gray (1997)
This album features only 1 song, about 54 minutes in length, broken up into 12 movements. I sometimes forget about this one among the pantheon of their musical output, but it is a very, very good album, offering traces of their progressive rock path since Symmetry, but better guitar production, excellent melodies, and even traces of gothic/industrial, which completely threw me for a loop.
Disconnected (2000)
I like this album because it did a complete 180 on the stuff they did in the 90's, and provided insight to where they might be heading musically. Without the instrumentals, there are really only 5 complete songs on here, and Fates does a good job of expanding on a complete LP with only a few musical ideas to work with.
FWX (2004)
Good stuff. Unlike their other stuff. Tunes like "Another Perfect Day" and "River Wide, Ocean Deep" push their musical boundaries further and further from their core, yet they remain trademark Fates Warning in their entirety.
I recommend going 1 at a time, starting with Parallels and marching your way through time. You may find yourself wandering through a magical journey of growth, or maybe take a cynical approach and swear allegiance to the oler material (I prefer the Arch years myself). Either way, you seem to have rekindled a newfound appreciation for this great band, which is good to see. I sometimes wish I could listen to them all over again for the first time.
thraxhead
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OG
Simple Human  ![]() http://www.fat
Right where I want to be.
Posts: 51
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Post by OG on May 2, 2009 18:12:34 GMT -5
Well said, old friend. Well said.
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Post by walpurgis on May 19, 2009 11:44:52 GMT -5
Thanks for the reviews, Thrax. I have since gotten Parallels and Inside Out. Much of Parallels seems to be catchy choruses; it's good, but after a few listens of each, I like Inside Out better, especially Monument which is the best Alder era song I've heard yet. APSOG is on order ...
Is the band still active, or a side project for Alder and Matheos?
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Post by ddddyyyy on Aug 14, 2009 1:22:01 GMT -5
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Post by walpurgis on Jul 4, 2010 21:18:33 GMT -5
okay, over a year later and Fates Warning is my #2 favorite band. And I'm going to see them in Texas next weekend!
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Post by stillwater on Jul 6, 2010 23:00:37 GMT -5
Cool man!!I saw them at the Hollywood show in march!!WOW,best show ive ever seen!!I hope you found out you liked the Parallels album?That was the first album I heard from Fates Warning and is my favorite, so I was super happy to see these guys for the first time(very special show for me)!!It was a 10 hour drive but well worth it:-)Oh,got to meet the band as well which I was super nervous because Im a pretty new fan,found out about them 6 years ago!So as you would guess it would be the best show ive ever seen (and im a huge metallica fan) and never will forget!! 2 favorite bands now:Fates Warning/Metallica it was the other way around a year ago  |
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Post by walpurgis on Jul 8, 2010 17:49:27 GMT -5
stillwater: I'm looking forward to the show this weekend! Parallels gets better each time I listen to it. It really is a great album. Almost perfect. This will be my first time seeing them too. That's cool you got to meet them. I'm driving 5 hours to see them, so you have me beat. Did they have FW shirts to sell there? I desperately need one. I saw Iron Maiden last month; they're my current favorite band. Fates Warning is #2, although the order was reversed when I was going thru all the FW albums for the first time last year. Metallica is probably 3rd or 4th for me. Death Magnetic was a very welcome release. I saw Metallica in a small venue many years ago before they became giants.
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Post by stillwater on Jul 8, 2010 19:31:58 GMT -5
stillwater: I'm looking forward to the show this weekend! Parallels gets better each time I listen to it. It really is a great album. Almost perfect. This will be my first time seeing them too. That's cool you got to meet them. I'm driving 5 hours to see them, so you have me beat. Did they have FW shirts to sell there? I desperately need one. I saw Iron Maiden last month; they're my current favorite band. Fates Warning is #2, although the order was reversed when I was going thru all the FW albums for the first time last year. Metallica is probably 3rd or 4th for me. Death Magnetic was a very welcome release. I saw Metallica in a small venue many years ago before they became giants. Hey bro Yeah,They did have a really cool Parallels T-shirt at the show!!I bought one but I regret not getting a 2nd as its very hard to find Fates Warning shirts:-(So this is the only one I have and I hate to wear it out:-( Iron maiden kicks ass one of my top 5 bands for sure!!I still need to see them LIVE!!Im a pretty big Metallica fan and have seen them 9 times,last show was in Vegas last december 8-)Im also a crazy cd collector have over 600 metallica items and now starting to go crazy on my Fates Warning collection!! Hope you have a great time at the show!!! |
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Post by jonnypummel on Dec 28, 2010 20:50:41 GMT -5
FW's sound continued to change and evolve from album to album, hence the term progressive I suppose. For several years I did not like anything after No Exit and abandoned the band even though I had bought Perfect Symmetry and Paralells. Only when they started re-releasing the older ones did I begin to let go of my preconception of what they should sound like and really listen to the later releases again and APSOG and Disconnected for the first time. I think the change comes from maturity and their sound changing was most evident with the lineup changes. But I am glad I rediscovered them and gave all the records a chance. My faves are The Specter Within, Perfect Symmetry and FWX.
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