LEGEND PART III:I

Let me preface this by saying that Saviour Machine is NOT a metal band. If you start listening to the band with that false preconception, you will be disappointed. Saviour Machine is rock opera, put simply. They draw influences from gothic music, opera, classical music, hard rock, and all kinds of stuff. They are very theatrical and focused on creating epic music, not light-speed metal or any of the sort. If you can't appreciate well-crafted, diverse, and insightful music like this, you'd do best to just stay away from Saviour Machine.

Firstly, this is a bit more watered down than past Saviour Machine albums. It has a few good riffs and rhythms, but overall it lacks the impact that the first two albums (Saviour Machine I and II) and the other two Legend albums held. This has less of an Eastern atmosphere than Legend II did, and I would call this the "calm after the storm", the storm being the chaotic ingenuity of the previous installment. Legend III:I brings resolution to the chaos, and so it seems a little less impressive, in my opinion.

There are still the choir sections, orchestral arrangements, and everything that makes this part of the Legend series, but the songwriting appears to be more "tight" and centralized around repetitious themes. I would say this is my least favorite Saviour Machine album, but it's still a decent record. Tracks like "1260 Days", "The Plague And The Darkness", "The Ancient Serpent", and "The End Of The Age" are what save this CD from being a total bore. My advice is that you go for Legend II, Saviour Machine I, or Saviour Machin II if you're looking for their prime material, and I think its best to check them out in the order of their release.

And so to wrap up this review, Legend III:I isn't quite what I'd hoped, but it's not a failure by any means either. Anyone who finds Saviour Machine's music to be boring needs their brain examined. Sure, it's not noisy mayhem and it doesn't have excessive guitar wankery, but this band has done far more than most metal bands can - they have created music with emotion, passion, epic intensity, and innovation. They actually write out their music and compose it, unlike most bands that work out childish riffs and retarded lyrics. Give Saviour Machine a try, and if they're not your style, just move on. Cheers!

Album rating: 6.5/10 points = 66 % on MPV scale = 3/5 stars

point-system: 0 - 3 points = 1 star / 3.5 - 5.5 points = 2 stars / 6 - 7 points = 3 stars / 7.5 - 8.5 points = 4 stars / 9 - 10 points = 5 stars