LEGEND PART II

This is the second installment of the Legend series, which details the events of the apocalypse as foretold in the Bible. Saviour Machine gets more and more advanced and pompous with each release I hear. Legend II was definitely their most technical album to date, with more atmosphere and energy than the best movie soundtrack can manage.

Eric Clayton, the singer/composer even dubbed the Legend series as the "Unofficial Soundtrack to the End of the World". This installment sounds very soundtrack-like too. The drums are more "supressed", with the strings and orchestration more up front this time. It makes for a very interesting and fitting concept, given this album's apocalyptic content.

Saviour Machine is one of the few projects/bands left that I think actually writes music. They don't come up with some riffs and play around until they get a platinum song. They don't steal other musicians' jams and twist them up for their own. They actually write music and compose it the old-fashioned way, as real musicians should do, in my opinion. You can definitely hear the difference on this album too, between composing and "pretending" artists.

There are so many instruments on this album I can't keep track. Guitars, bass, drums, choir, piano/keyboard, violin, cello, and probably tons more fill up this release with some fantastic arrangements and epic melodies. The song "The Whore Of Babylon" has a very Egyptian sound to it, while "Behold A Pale Horse" is an odd blend of classical music and rock. Legend II has the best variety between tracks I've ever heard. The 10 minute long masterpiece "The Promise" has some incredible parts in it also as it takes you on a musical journey. The closing song "War In Heaven - The Second Fall" is an excellent gothic/symphonic piece that ends the album.

If you're looking for real music to escape the monotony of rock and metal, look no more. Saviour Machine has elements of so many styles, and its great to hear something different and creative every once in a while. I would recommend this to everyone. This is usually the most popular Saviour Machine album in America, and I would think anyone who can appreciate the talents of well composed music should love Legend II.

Synopsis: "Legend II" is definitely NOT for everyone, but is a unique musical experience, that is very worth to make, even if you're not religious. Saviour Machine is already a legend in christian music circles and remain as the leading force of the White Metal genre. Even "Legend II" hasn't much in league with metal anymore, but the musicianal progress from a progressive goth metal band to a more pompous, operatic gothic rock act already started with their second album "Saviour Machine II". Personally, I prefer the more song-oriented first two albums by the band, specially Saviour Machine I shows the more rock/metal-biased side of the band. But as a concept album, Saviour Machine created a truely rare and phenomenal musical masterpiece with "Legend II", that shouldn't be overlooked. Because I must stay as much objective as possible, 8 points and 4 stars must be enough for a recommendation for you folks. Since you need the special "acquired taste" to truely appreciate the music of this band and specially the complex Legend Triology.

rating: 8/10 points = 82 % on MPV scale = 4/5 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