Trilogy

I'm starting to run out of Yngwie Malmsteen jokes to pad out the introductions to reviews of his output, so thankfully Trilogy comes with its own merrymaking cover art, which neatly undermines the title by making a dragon with 3 heads instead of 3 dragons appearing one after the other. Oh, and the dragon seems amusingly overweight, to the point where I'm worried about its ability to fly. Plus Malmsteen is posing on the edge of a cliff, shooting at it. With his guitar. Obviously. In the past, I've often mixed up Marching Out and Odyssey with this full-length, since surely if one of them sounded like it needed a more serious cover with a close-up of the guitarist it would be the one with the boring name and 'Trilogy Suite Op:5' on. Instead of the expected fantasy art, Odyssey gets a photo of the tired-looking musician. Man, the '80s must have been so different to modern times.

I promise to talk more about the music now, which retains the high level of all Malmsteen's '80s work, though regrettably not my favourite vocalist among the several in the band during that period. Mark Boals certainly can't be called bad, and his howling belted notes at the close of 'Liar' prove that he had the pipes to match the effervescent guitar, yet his voice just hits me as a bit generic compared to the adventurous Jeff Scott Soto. Fundamentally, that comment extends to the style of the whole album, the Swedes (okay, so Boals is American) aiming less for the power metal target that Malmsteen had lately helped create and settling more for hard rock and heavy metal anthems with very flashy guitar solos emerging at specific points. Therefore, everyone plays in a more restrained manner than the preceding 2 full-lengths, coming close to hair/stadium metal of the Mötley Crüe or Scorpions type, while also letting loose for the much quicker power metal cuts 'Liar' and 'Fury', in addition to a couple of instrumentals that fall into yet another bracket - neoclassical shred. Yes, all that seems a bit confusing, and not really in an exciting way, since Trilogy rarely attempts to bridge the gaps between those styles to make something more interesting. Besides, I don't fall into all 3 categories of music fan, and I don't suppose many others will either.

I could therefore claim that Malmsteen didn't know what he wanted from this release; however, I expect he calculated that some songs would work better as singles, others would please the existing fans of up-tempo metal, and the classically influenced pieces would do no harm in promoting his name as the best guitarist of the generation. Occasionally, the material does match up, such as the quick shred-fest 'Fury' that keyboardist Jens Johansson also enjoys following the progressively more flamboyant instrumental 'Crying'. Troublingly for me, Trilogy found a mix that caters roughly to those diverse interests without giving me the full enjoyment of the band sound: sonically lacking a bit of power from the drums, bass, and rhythm guitar, it's the keys and especially the lead guitar that totally leap out of the speakers to almost obscure the backing during solos and downplay the instrumentation when the slower rockers arrow in on a dumb chorus like that of 'Fire'. I tend to avoid listening to this album because the song titles sound boring, but frankly the whole release sounds boring too, whether I like the song in question or not.

In order to avoid being the guy who says, "I like this song and this one, but these ones don't suit me," I'll just summarize thus. The rockers and backing vocal-loaded 'Magic Mirror' sound significantly dated to me, and I find myself weighing up the simplicity of the vocal hooks and the blistering soloing alongside with a very confused look on my face. The thin sound and backing keys don't help in this situation, although 'Dark Ages' manages to prosper where 'Queen in Love' fails due to the band doing something unexpected rhythmically, namely slowing the beat way down to increase the drama. The latter song just feels thin and insignificant, which is partly me being a snob to '80s rock but also an acknowledgement that a line-up of this calibre could have done better with that decent main riff. To clarify, nothing on Trilogy makes me feel awful, just parts seem too obviously calculated to have their full impact.

That last sentence is what all my complaints come down to, because any dissatisfaction should be tempered by the knowledge that Malmsteen wanted to have this mixture of styles and was still trying to be creative at times, even if nowhere near as much as when he first emerged. Sadly, this ranks as by far my least favourite of the early efforts from our shredder friend, neither making me drop my jaw in astonishment (alright, maybe the closer once or twice) nor sing along when Boals gives it some welly. Indeed, the sort of title track instrumental that concludes the 41 minute offering proves just how much the band held back in terms of ideas across the other tracks, with both lead players really going nuts and some of the guitar lines being outstanding, notably the first theme after the drums kick in. Still don't know why it's a trilogy though.

Yngwie Malmsteen's "Trilogy" is not just my favorite power metal album ever, but my favorite metal album overall. This album was my start for metal. It was one of the first albums I listened to all the way through. It was a pretty impactful album on not just me, but for metal overall. I think "Trilogy" out of "Rising Force" and "Marching Out", at least in my observation, has much better playing than the others. There's really no reason why this shouldn't have been Yngwie's best at that time because I think just about every great guitarist like him just keeps progressing as they practice (and practice and practice and practice).

I found the overall sound production of "Trilogy" better than that of "Marching Out". Which one had better playing is still in debate despite of what I think, but the sound production for "Trilogy" is much better than "Marching Out". It sounds more... professional, easy for non-metal fans to listen to. I think Yngwie might have mixed both "Rising Force" and "Marching Out" to make "Trilogy". I see elements of both on display. Come to think of it, that's a perfect combo. One reviewer of this album said "Third time's a charm."

7 of the 9 tracks on "Trilogy" have lyrics and a verse-chorus-like structure. I think that might have helped Yngwie gain popularity because I've heard a lot of people, including Marty Friedman, to not do an all-instrumental album. "Rising Force" wasn't an all instrumental album, but only two had lyrics and a verse-chorus-like structure while the rest were instrumentals. I mean, I enjoyed all of it, but I see what Marty means. But anyways, I find all of the songs with lyrics on "Trilogy" enjoyable and memorable. I've heard quite a bit of criticism about Yngwie's songs that have lyrics and a verse-chorus-like structure. Not sure why yet, but feel free to tell me. Every song was very memorable and distinct, at least to me. Probably my favorite off of the album was "Queen In Love". It's one Yngwie doesn't really do anymore and it's not all that popular, but it was popular enough to make the "Yngwie Malmsteen Anthology" music book. The solo to "Queen In Love" is the first Yngwie Malmsteen solo I ever learned. Very special song to me. The sweep-picked diminished arpeggios before the main solo starts would make a great etude.

Speaking of iconic guitar licks and solos, "Trilogy" has plenty, as you probably figured out or know. This album also has some of the best (probably improvised) improvised solos I have ever heard, like "Fury". By the sound of it, he just sounds fearless and lets it all out. The great Johann Sebastian Bach said, "It's easy to play any musical instrument: all you have to do is touch the right key at the right time and the instrument will play itself." I truly believe that's what Yngwie has unleashed here (no 'unleash the fury' reference intended). Also, to those who say Yngwie Malmsteen has no feel and emotion and just mindlessly shreds: you have obviously never heard "You Don't Remember, I'll Never Forget".

As for the two instrumental songs, I really loved those. the "Trilogy Suite" is actually my 2nd favorite on the whole album. Although, I would have to say that the "Trilogy Suite" is, from a technical standpoint, and although "Queen In Love" is my favorite, the best song on the whole album. It's a lot like a suite you might hear in the Baroque period: 1st movement fast, 2nd movement slow, 3rd movement fast. Most suites I've played from the Baroque period from composers like Handel have around 4-5 movements and a prelude (which would be the first movement, so the 2nd movement would be fast and the 3rd slow, etc) at the beginning before the first fast movement. Yngwie's is a little different. Another interesting thing about the "Trilogy Suite" is the structure of the 1st movement. Based on all the repeats of certain sections and the recap before it ends, I think the 1st movement of the "Trilogy Suite" is in rondo form. Just compare sheet music of W.A. Mozart's "Rondo Alla Turka" and the 1st movement of Y.J. Malmsteen's "Trilogy Suite" and you will see what I mean.

I know Yngwie is the big star here because it's his music he composed, but I'm sure he and most of you would agree with me here: Mark Boals vocals are fabulous! I can't go without mentioning him. He sounds like a mix of Ronnie James Dio and Ian Gillan. What more could you want. On the chorus of the song "You Don't Remember, I'll Never Forget", the vocals just soar. Mark just lets it all out there. Every musician that helped record this album really did do their best here. Again, look back to that Johann Sebastian Bach quote.

In closing, first, a few things that I must note but I don't think I could make a paragraph about. First, is the obvious Deep Purple influence Yngwie uses everywhere on "Trilogy", particularly in the drums. The influence in the guitar is something everyone already knows so I won't go into that, but I really love that Yngwie looked back at a lot of his influences on this album. I think it was very personal to him to put some of that in the songs and contributed to the feel of the album. After the guitar introduction in the "Trilogy Suite" (which, come to think about it, could count as a prelude 1st movement), the drums go right in to a directly-inspired by Deep Purple/Rainbow rhythm with a double bass kick and snare on the 'and' on every beat. Imagine being a Deep Purple fan hearing this for the first time and you hear that. It's definitely invokes a "HELL YEAH!" moment/feeling. There's a good chance that's what Yngwie felt like writing that. "Trilogy" is obviously a power metal essential. I would also recommend this to any classical music fans anywhere, well, the instrumental tracks at least.

This was the first vinyl I bought, at the age of 13, in January 1988. It was a few days after the New Year festivities, and I was walking around with loads of money in my pockets given me by the relatives. I was literally wondering what to buy, and then I saw this sitting on a shop window. I was already a metalhead, and I was sure this would be some kind of metal although I’d never heard of Yngwie Malmsteen before. And man, was I right in my extensively precocious grasp of the metal panorama at the time…

The poor vinyl got worn off from being listened to time and time again, and the gramophone also started showing signs of fatigue as previously it was only used to the sounds of ABBA, Elvis and Bulgarian and Russian pop singers. Needless to add, the album entered my blood stream back then, and has never left it…

At the time of this album’s release, Yngwie Malmsteen had already established himself as a guitar wizard, first with his participation in Steeler and Alcatrazz, and then with his solo career that had already amounted to two full-lengths. If the self-titled debut was pretty much a vehicle for him to exhibit his prodigious skills, the sophomore was a full-fledged metal record clinging towards the US power metal wave. Jeff Scott Soto is a great vocalist, no doubt about that, but I’ve always found his somewhat hoarse timbre not the most suitable one for the heavy/power metal outfits he’s been involved with. This third instalment introduces Mark Boals, a complete unknown at the time, but his passionate performance elevates this recording to the level of a masterpiece, arguably the finest achievement in the axeman’s lengthy discography.

The more aggressive edge of the preceding effort has been toned down a bit, which to some may be a pullback, but Malmsteen’s compositional genius has been given more freedom not restricted to a specific genre. It’s classic heavy metal in its purest, finest form and there could hardly be a better way to open this roller-coaster than “You Don’t Remember, I’ll Never Forget”, a great poignant hymn Boals’ amazing high-strung vocals soaring above this unforgettable “riffs vs. keyboards” duel. Time for some vigorous speed metal, and “Liar” provides it handsomely, a 4-min ball of fury with sharp cutting guitars Boals pitching it beyond the humanly possible Halford-esque parametres. An immediate antidote to this restrained aggression is served with “Queen in Love”, a supreme heavy, doomy semi-ballad that would make all queens around the world cry for various nostalgic, melancholic reasons. Mentioning “crying”, this is the title of the following instrumental, the ultimate tear-jerker in the annals of metal, a genuinely sad piece Malmsteen crossing his lead swagger with stunning, breath-taking acoustics; the ballad has never sounded so appealing… not before, not after.

Side B of the vinyl starts with “Fury”, another rousing speedy anthem with some of the greatest choruses to ever grace the metal field. An antidote immediately provided again, Malmsteen doesn’t want to turn this effort into a speed metal “symphony” obviously, with “Fire”, a catchy heavy metal number with more overt keyboard presence and an unmitigated radio-fiery…sorry, friendly vibe. The fire turns to “magic” on “Magic Mirror”, the next in line faster-paced piece with outstanding performance by Malmsteen and Boals, “a marriage” made in heaven, a pity that it failed to produce a few more pieces of greatness during the genre’s golden period. But of course the next in line “antidote” follows suit, “Dark Ages”, a doom metal winner which would make even Candlemass proud, a dark epic hypnotizer with seismic ship-sinking rhythms. This brooding hit is the furthest possible piece from “Trilogy Suite Op:5”, the closing instrumental, Malmsteen’s signature creation, one that would make every metalhead around the universe instantly recognize him. Back in the 80’s it could be heard from every radio station, manic shredding and piercing drilling leads assembled together to produce one of the ten best instrumentals in the annals of metal, a magnificent closure to the man’s magnum opus.

There’s a lot of diversity on offer here that would attract a wide gamut of fans, and with Malmsteen’s guitar ruling over the proceedings the final result can’t be anything short of outstanding. This is the virtuoso’s finest and most inspired performance, and combined with the great attached vocals it simply can’t be beaten, not by him, not by anyone. Albums like this showed that the mother of all metal genres, classic heavy metal, would continue to lead the pack through the 80’s regardless of how many “offspring” would be spawned along the way. It was also the beginning of the man’s actual golden trilogy also comprising “Odyssey” and ”Eclipse”, a magnificent triple containing some of the most treasured moments in metal. It didn’t quite deplete his creative arsenal, most of his albums from the 90’s were also quite good, but it was obvious that Malmsteen really wanted those earlier albums to matter, at the time when metal was at its peak.

Boals returned in 1999 to help his old comrade have a good start of the new millennium, but the two efforts (“Alchemy”, “War to End All Wars”) they made together at that time were a bit above average, Malmsteen entering the autopilot stage from his career which has been operating up to the present day. The man had his moments of glory, he was up there with the finest when the best metal was forged, he established himself as the greatest guitar player of all times, and once upon a time he made this “Trilogy” that still remains one of the undisputable gems on the metal field.

The 80's were a great time for Yngwie. He had a creative peak (Marching Out) that he wouldn't hit until Magnum Opus 10 years later. On Odyssey, he would reach his commercial peak. And on Trilogy, he hit his technical peak. The guitar playing here is above top notch, and easily blows everything else out of the water. What's more, is that this album, despite the greatness of Marching Out, is the foundation of the "yngwie sound". Every Yngwie album made after this can be easily heard in Trilogy.

We have a fairly good mix of songs here, ranging from slow (Dark Ages) to fast (Liar). Liar and Fury, the two uptempo songs, kick absolute ass. They pretty much form the basis of all future uptempo lyrical matter, and foreshadow the "YOU'VE UNLEAHSED THE FHOOKIN FYOORY!" debacle nicely. We also have some more midtempo treats (Magic Mirror and Fire) which possess brutally inspired licks and solos. I'm still trying to learn the first lead on Magic Mirror, it's hard as hell, and Fire sounds like Heaven Tonight, but way less cheesy and way better. However, You Don't Remember and Crying form the cheesier end of the spectrum, and if you like mid-slow pop metal songs, then you'll find those to be absolutely thrilling. They are by no means bad songs, but just not my cup of tea. As well, it was a a poor choice to open the album with You Don't Remember. Liar or Magic Mirror would've been more appropriate.

WARNING: 2 paragraph fellating of a single song to follow.

Any misgivings about Trilogy are instantly eased by Trilogy Suite op. 5. Jesus christ that song is awesome. It's so awesome, that a friend of mine, the most closeminded black metal nerd ever, downloaded the song and gushed to me about how awesome it was. In fact, it's so awesome, that one of the licks in the beginning was copped by Gorgoroth on Oggeledelse Og Undergang. While it is indeed 9 minutes of shredding, isn't that what we listen to Malmsteen instrumentals for? However, for those who don't like 9 minutes of shredding, it's got substance too. It's really melodic and has a beautiful acoustic section in the middle, amidst the stratocaster madness.

While on his ordinary songs, it's preferable to have the fretboard acrobatics take a backseat to coherence and simplicity to make room for the often outstanding singing, on his instrumentals, it's full speed ahead. And here, Malmsteen doesn't fail to deliver; it's sure to get your head bobbing up and down and up and down. It must be noted as well that the keyboards are equally awesome, and get several solo spots in between Malmsteen's shred-fests. If a song defined shred, it would be this. It certainly fits the cover, as this is high enough energy to slay even the mightiest tiamet.

However, the other members of the band shouldn't be skirted. Anders Johansson, as I've said before, is a beast. His drumming radiates power, and has only gotten better since Marching Out. And although many people bash Mark Boals, I personally like his singing. In fact, having listened to his future efforts with Ring of Fire and on Malmsteen's later albums (Alchemy and War to End All Wars) I must say that this is his best performance, especially on Fury and Magic Mirror. As well, as good as Joe Lynn Turner and Jeff Scott Soto are, Trilogy wouldn't be the same without Mark Boals.

All in all, Trilogy defines Yngwie's career better than any album. Sure, there may be a couple shortcomings, but it's made up in full and then some by the momentuous Trilogy Suite op. 5. As well, when Trilogy is awesome, like on Liar, Fury, and Magic Mirror, it's fucking excellent, instantly memorable, "best songs he's ever made" awesome. And when Trilogy is lacking, it's still listenable. Given that I rarely listen to an album all the way through unless it's good shit, I must give this thing a 90. It truly deserves its cover.

With two successful, guitar-intensive albums under his belt, Yngwie Malmsteen was a household name. But mainstream success has a way of tempting the prospective artist to become unsatisfied with what they have already achieved. This temptation, most fans reason, is why Yngwie continued to commercialize his sound as the 80’s progressed. Though neoclassical and power metal elements still abound on his third album, 1986’s Trilogy, the overall sound is more reminiscent of typical 80’s pop metal than not.

For the most part, Trilogy isn’t very remarkable as far as metal albums go. Many of the songs feel same-y, with the only real differences occurring in tempo. There’s your straightforward rocking numbers (“You Don’t Remember, I’ll Never Forget,” “Fire,” “Queen in Love”) and there’s your up-tempo power tracks (“Fury,” “Liar”). Both are seasoned with the heavy synthesizers all the bands were so fond of in the mid-80’s and despite a few distinctive riffs arising as the album progresses, there’s not a whole lot of variety here. Mark Boals is the vocalist on this album and he shows that he’s certainly no replacement for Jeff Scott Soto. Boals isn’t bad (he proves his worth from time to time), but he lacks character, not to mention a decent vocal range. And with the standard drums, standard bass, and generally non-technical keyboard work, the only outstanding aspect of Trilogy is the guitarwork. And honestly, Yngwie’s shredding does start to get predictable here.

But there’s still the matter of instrumentals. On Marching Out, the vocal songs were rock solid with the instrumentals being mediocre exceptions. This is exactly the opposite on Trilogy: while the vocal songs lack definition, the two instrumentals are the highlights of the album. “Crying” is characterized by its central acoustic line (synth-backed of course) that serves as the base for some of Yngwie’s more emotive soloing on this album. Some of the harmonic ideas presented here must have certainly had an impact on Michael Romeo, as his compositions in Symphony X regularly reflect this and other Malmsteen masterpieces of the 80’s. Of course, it’s nothing compared to the album’s closer, the epic “Trilogy Suite Op. 5.” Returning in full to his neoclassical roots, the “Trilogy Suite” is one of his finest works, period. Everything just comes together on this song; guitars, bass, drums, and keyboards all working towards a common goal of instrumental perfection.

So although mediocrity abounds, Trilogy is still a pretty good listen overall. And with one of the coolest album covers of all time (though there are more than a few Philistines that dismiss it), it’s definitely worth checking out.


Originally written for: http://www.metal-observer.com

Riding off the success of 2 highly rated albums, Yngwie and Rising Force entered the studio to release yet another instant classic. Unfortunately, they undertook this endeavor missing the original voice that got the where they are, and this is the only place where the album lags a bit. However, the songs remain as strong as ever and the master of shred has actually ratcheted up his instrumental efforts back towards the greatness of his debut effort.

Unlike many I know who have ripped Mark Boals as a no-talent Ian Gillian wannabe, I don't think he is that bad of a vocalist. However, on this particular release he has some problems. His mid-range up to the middle high range is quite strong, but when he gets up into the scream range, it sounds extremely forced. And the fact that he is up in that range fairly often makes him an annoyance at times. Fortunately, the rest of the band is still pulling their weight, enough to mostly make-up for this short fall.

Many of the tracks on here are a bit more radio friendly, as they are down tempo and have fairly toned down solos compared to past works. "You don't remember, I'll never forget" is a solid 80s classic, with a nice catchy keyboard part and some decent minimalistic riffs. "Queen in Love" is a highly catchy song with a powerful chorus, a great hook of a main riff, and probably the best lyrical storytelling Yngwie has put forth. "Fire" is a pleasant love song with a very recognisable guitar riff, again sounding quite 80s. "Dark Ages" is a slow moving tune fairly similar to "I am a Viking", but makes up for a lack of flash and speed with a highly catchy main theme.

We have some decent fast ones on here too. "Liar" has some excellent lead fill ins and some hauntingly morbid lyrics. "Fury" is loaded with strong double bass work courtesy of Anders Johannsen, and some exciting tapping riffs by the maestro. "Magic Mirror" is a bit slower, but loaded with goodies in the instrumental department, and Mark Boals gives one of his better vocal performances.

The true power on this album, however, is the instrumental efforts on here. "Crying" is a rather somber ballad with some high speed acoustic lead lines, fairly similar to late Renaissance lute work actually, but perhaps a bit more noodling. The magnus opus of this album is clearly the "Trilogy Suite", which consists of 3 amazing sections. The first is kicked off with a crazy set of cadenza lines, that leads into a barrage of high speed lead riffs matched by some equally high speed bass (also performed by Yngwie) and drum work, and Jens mimicing the riffs on his synth. The slower section has some more acoustic work, functioning as a tocatta that introduces us to the 3rd and final section, which has an atmospheric quality that gives the feeling of flying through the air. When you associate the music of this amazing instrumental with the rather mystical looking album cover, the result is a magical trip through the imagination that you will not soon forget.

In conclusion, Yngwie faithful may see the flaws in this release, but this is about as far from a throw away album as you can get. Yngwie gives us some of his best lead work here, and his lyrics are still mostly on the right side of the creation process (though I concede his later songs are a bit corny). So what are you waiting for? Get your ass off the couch and either get to your local CD store or planet your potato roots next to your computer and type in the URL for Amazon.com!

After two classic albums, Yngwie started to slip with this one. He became a little too obsessed with mainstream success, and his ego got too out of hand, and as a result he began alienating bandmembers and fans alike. This album does not feature Jeff Scott Soto (my fave singer of his), instead it has the incredibly annoying Mark Boals, whose high-pitched Halford-wannabe howling sets my teeth on edge. This album is where Yngwie's limitations as a songwriter start really appearing, I agree, and it lacks the character of his first two albums.

"You Don't Remember, I'll Never Forget" is not only an awkward title, but a lame song to start an album with. The keyboards sound too much like a circus and the vocals immediately grate from the moment Boals opens his mouth. He fares slightly better on other tunes, but this one in particular is awful, as is "Liar", with the horrible ending squeal of "LI-AAAAAAAAAAARRRRR!!!!" ringing in your ears too long to let you enjoy the other tunes. In terms of playing, "Fury" and "Crying" make up for the awful vocals with spirited guitar/keyboard tradeoffs and fabulous playing respectively (thankfully, the latter is an instrumental), and "Fire" even has a good opening riff which is promptly buried by more attempts at vocal pyrotechnics. The rest...ehhhh, it's good but not great.

Naturally, Mr. Malmsteen will claim that everything he's done is brilliant and worthy of infinite praise, but most folks beg to differ right around the time of this album. I'm one of 'em, and if I ever meet the guy, I'll be glad to tell him to his moon-shaped Scandahoovian face if only to have the pleasure of watching him throw one of his famous tantrums and promise to "bring the fuckin' fury!" my way. Whatever, man. Get this if you are a completist, I say, or download it if you must.

So here is where Yngwie's flaws as a songwriter start to really show themselves. Sure, the guitar playing is top notch, but some of the songs on here are just plain boring.

"You Don't Remember, I'll Never Forget" - well, he manages to pull one out that is just awesome. This is classic 80s metal here. Nice happy chorus, good riffs, oh and of course killer lead guitar (what did you expect? Kerry King?). Then "Liar" is okay, but kinda boring in that the riff ideas never really go anywhere. You staple a decent but incoherent main solo onto three very generic and predictable verses. Then, "Queen in Love" is more of the same.

"Crying" is an instrumental - pretty well done, though not quite as good as some of the other stuff on here. Decent, though. Then, we go through a bunch more forgettable songs, including the relatively fast but otherwise forgettable "Fury" and a few others. Finally, we get to Trilogy Suite, which is the highlight of the album. Here, Yngwie decides "forget writing verses and all that shit" and just shreds. This is what he is good at, and this is definitely the best song to be found here.

So is this album essential? Not as much so as the first two... but hey, maybe for just the cover art alone it is!

Yngwie continues his own brand of neo-classical metal with his third album Trilogy. Yngwie has been known to put technique over actually making decent songs, but on this album he manages to deliver the right mix of technique with good lyrical and musical content. The album begins with You Don't Remember, I'll Never forget, a mid tempo song that conjures up memories of Queensryche's Operation Mindcrime album, which would be released two years later. Liar is a great song, much in the vein of Judas Priest. Queen In Love is much in the vein of the first song. Crying is a great instrumental highlighting Yngwie's incredible talent with the guitar. Fury follows with a vengeance, being one of the fastest and heaviest songs on the album. Fire is a decent song, nothing special. Magic Mirror is another highlight of the album, properly mixing crunch with melody. Dark Ages is a slow melodic piece. The album ends with the highlight of the album. Yngwie's neo-classical Trilogy Suite Op.5, this is a monster of a song. Yngwie shreds all over the guitar, and winds in and out of acoustic and electric.
Fans of neo-classical metal will enjoy this album. As with all of his albums Yngwie shows his incredible skill, and manages to produce songs that can stand on their own.