From: donnell@sponge.micro.umn.edu (Your Heinous)
Subject: Re: Fates Warning: discography anyone?
Keywords: help I'm a bug!
Organization: none
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1992 15:47:54 GMT

In article <1992Sep8.042414.12353@reed.edu> mojo@reed.edu (cold blue steel and sweet fire) writes:
>
>This goes round in alt.rock-n-roll.metal every so often; we should have a
>FAQ list...
>
>There are six Fates Warning albums, mostly on Metal Blade, all pretty
>readily available.
>
>_Night on Brocken_ is very Iron Maiden-influenced, barely produced at all,
>and a little uneven in the songwriting arena.  I like it, but it's the
>wrong album to start with.  IMHO, John Arch hadn't really gotten control of
>his voice yet.
>
>_The Spectre Within_ is about halfway between _NoB_ and _Awaken the Guardian_
>stylistically.  It's less rhythmically predictable than its predecessor, the
>vocals are a lot better, and the songwriting starts to come together.  Still
>very little production (in particular, the drums are inaudible a lot of the
>time).
>
>_Awaken the Guardian_ is my favourite; by this time I think they pretty much
>had their Maiden influences down to a manageable level (though others
>disagree) and, while the production isn't so slick as to get in the way, it
>doesn't sound like someone recorded their garage band.  Lots of time
>changes a la Mercyful Fate, and the vocals are *brilliant*.
>
>_No Exit_ is a whole lot more produced; the songs are similar to those on
>_AtG_, but it all comes off sounding too slick for me.  The exception is
>"The Ivory Gate of Dreams," which takes up all of side 2 and is pretty
>amazing if you like long progressive-metal epics (I do).  New vocalist (Ray
>Alder), who I can't judge fairly as I don't listen to this album much (or
>the later ones).
>
>IMHO, _Perfect Symmetry_ is a mild failure, but everybody else seems to
>love it.  It sounds a lot more commercial and Queensryche-clonish to my
>ears---"uh, guys, this is supposed to be progressive, so we have to sound
>like the established progressive bands..."
>
>I've only heard one song on _Parallels_---I forget the title, it was the
>flagship track that MTV played---and I thought it was a bad Queensryche copy
>band until the caption at the end of the video came up.
>
>As far as I can tell, people who like late FW stuff like _Parallels_, and
>people who like the early stuff like _The Spectre Within_ or _Awaken the
>Guardian_.
>
>his tears rust the clock and he died as well
>
>	NT
>-- 
><<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<><<<<>>>>>
>Roses are red, violets are blue,           |       Nathan Tenny
>Rhymes can be typeset with BoXes and glue. |        mojo@reed.edu
>	- the TeXBook                      |        tenny@euclid.uoregon.edu

Not to start an argument, but our views are a little different here.

Yes, the production of the first two albums is a little dodgy, but you
should start at the beginning. "Damnation" is stunning, off "NOB", and
my all time fave song by them is "Orphan Gypsy" on "TSW". To my ears,
"Awaken ...." might be better produced, but the songs were better on
"The Spectre Within".

As for the accusations of Queensryche cloning, I suggest you go listen to
"Perfect Symmetry" again. It sounds more like Queensryche does NOW, than
QR did then. Cloning how a band is going to sound in the FUTURE? I think
there may be some borrowing both ways here. And QR never did anything with
the complexity of "At Fates Hands", or even approached the rhythmic variations
Fates uses so well. I love QR, and have all the albums, but Fates is the
better band , musically, and I know some people prefer Alder to Tate.

And some of us like ALL Fates Warning! Arch is an amazing vocallist, reportedly
better Live than on record. If anyone knows where he went, PLEASE LET ME
KNOW! I know he was with Dream Theatre for a while. If demos exist, please
bring them to my attention. I shouldv'e just asked Jim Matheos when I met 
him at the 2nd Milwaukee Metalfest, but I had other things to ask, and he
was rushed. 
<All of this is, of course, just in my scrawny little Opinion!>

					--Judex--