Evergrey

(I'm still working on my review for the live album, but I don't wanna hold up the listening party, so I spent my train rides today scribbling down my thoughts on this one)

Monday Morning Apocalype
You know how the 90s were a rough time for many of the metal bands of the 80s? Or how many bands of the 90s struggled in the latter half of the early 2000s? Turns out Evergrey isn't immune to that effect either and we see a massive style shift, that will continue for the next couple of albums. I guess it is a common experience for bands that make it past their 10th anniversary lol

Monday Morning Apocalypse
The title track sets the tone immediately. Gone are the elaborate instrumental sections and the proggy structures. This is Evergrey at its most straightforward, almost pure heavy metal at points. It's not bad, but if you were expecting something closer to Solitude, Truth or Circle this song (and album) will disappoint you.
I like how the vocals use effects for almost the entirety of the song, which makes the ending of the song, without the effects and with Tom's higher register, hit that much harder.
The solos aren't too flashy, but fit well with the song. At least they didn't get rid of those! The production is also a step above Inner Circle's and might be my favorite to this point. Overall a strong and solid rocker, 8/10.

Unspeakable
We get an eerie and forbidding intro with clean guitars, joined by a tom groove on the drums once the vocals kick in.
I like how Tom uses his lower range with harmonies on this album. He already did that to a degree on the previous one, but here it's a bit more frequent.
"Lonely thoughts try to conquering you" is sung with such conviction that I can't help but to smile a bit.
I like the music in the chorus a lot, the lyrics are a bit of a letdown though. Not even the writing itself, I'm talking about the topic of the song. Kinda feels too mundane at points.
That said we get a short gang shout in the verses after the first chorus which is a cute touch. Tom's delivery is badass throughout though.
The reprise of the intro works well as a transition to the solo. I also really like the part before the final chorus where eveything drops away for a bit, then comes in again, only for the main vocals to drop away and let the backing harmonies carry the first line. Neat little moment.
Not a song that will make my top 10, but still a fun one to listen to, another 8/10.

Lost
The intro riff is one of my highlights on the album. It takes a similar idea like the one in In The Wake Of The Weary but moves it around a bunch; if it were only that the song would be a 10/10, but there's still 3 minutes of song left.
The verses opt for clean guitars and pull back the energy and aggression a bit. I don't hate it actually, it works. The chorus on the other side is a simplified version of the intro riff and it kinda misses for me unfortunately. The melody is fine, but nothing special. Feels a bit like wasted potential.
The bridge after the second chorus on the other hand is great once more. Tom sounds phenomenal and it leads to a really different kind of solo section for Evergrey standards. Very understated, almost bluesy, without feeling like a ballad.
After that we get a key change and another variation of the intro riff. This time it's actually more faithful, but it uses clean guitars instead. Overall a pretty good example of thematic writing, taking one idea and developing it in different ways depending on the needs of the section. Just a bummer that we never hear the best part of the song again. I'm feeling rather generous today, so I'll go with a 7/10.

Obedience
The intro might make you think we're getting a mid-tempo stomper, but nooo, once the next riff kicks in the song pummels along relentlessly for a bit. The aggression is a welcome change compared to the previous tracks.
Special shout out to Tom's delivery in the verses; the man's really found what keys and ranges work for his voice and it shows.
The chorus allows for some breathing room but thankfully doesn't go for some kind of mid-tempo anthem (which will happen quite a bit on later albums).
We get the intro section as a transition once again, which leads directly into the awesome solo section.
The first one uses the busy drum rhythm heard throughout the song, the second one has a straightforward backing instead, and I love this back and forth. A step above the other songs for me and the first 9/10, despite the somewhat weak lyrics.

The Curtain Fall
I'm not shy about my dislike of fade-outs. This song chooses to start with a fade-in and I weirdly don't hate it? I really like how the bass is rumbling beneath the main riff. We need more audible bass in metal!
Overall a by the numbers rocker/heavy metal tune. Doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it's still nice if you're in the mood for something simple to headbang to. Probably another 8/10.

In Remembrance
Time for a mid-tempo song. Wouldn't really call it a half ballad, despite the quieter parts. The chorus features the low register harmonies quite prominently, I like that. Also cool how the second round of verses mixes it up by adding drums and chugging guitars. I also enjoy how the final chorus keeps the main part but changes the main vocals/lyrics, as well as the variation of the riff in the last repetition.
This so far feels the most like a Recreation Day style song followed to its logical conclusion and given enough time to have everything written out properly instead of repeating the chorus for the last quarter of the song. I think it's a 7/10 for me. Not bad, but also not the most interesting song.

At Loss For Words
One of my favorites, 10/10, yadda yadda, no one cares. Let's get to the interesting stuff. Behold the ramblings of a madman:

This might be the single most genius thing Evergrey have ever written and I've thought about creating a thread solely to discuss this song multiple times. Let me explain.

Silence, indicating being at a loss for words, is obviously an important part to this song. We see that in the numerous times when certain vocal lines are cut short, most notably in the first chorus. "Or to forever be [silent]". We hear this phrase a lot in the song, sometimes in full, sometimes in shortened form.

The guitars follow that line of thought as well. The chorus riff starts out with harmonized guitars ascending one step before continuing with the rest of the riff. They end the riff by following the vocal lines I quoted in te previous paragraph. Okay, wow, the guitars play a cool riff, what is so special about that Vaenyr?

The magic of the song unfolds in the final chorus, which sees the chorus repeated twice. Once that happens we notice a couple of things. The first being that the shortened lyric now becomes "or to forever be at loss for words [...]" and so on. The second, and the reason I adore this song, is that we see how the full guitar riff loops. The end of the riff follows the vocals, the start of the repetition with the harmonized ascending guitars is actually part of the same melody. So, the only time we hear the full melodic idea of the riff is when the chorus loops and starts over again. And only then, since the second repetition cuts the full idea short again. To summarize: the riff doesn't end at the end of the measure, the two next beats are part of the riff as well but we only hear it once in the entire song.

Does that make any sense? Doesn't matter, I adore this fucking song.

Till Dagmar
This one is difficult to score, since it's just a short piano interlude. I get its inclusion on the album, especially with the backing story, and it has some beautiful moments. But it's not a piece I come back to often, to be honest. I'll go with a 5/10.

Still In The Water
We're entering the more inconsistent and weaker part of the album now. The intro riff with the low "aaah" is so out of left field that it's actually pretty cool.
Once the verse starts the song changes direction for the worse though. We get a clean 6/8 riff in phrygian, with some chugs on the second round through. The pre-chorus sees the return of the "aaah"s and then we get an even more unorthodox chorus with the melody being hummed instead of sung. Hey, at least points for originality, I guess?
The transition to the main riff works well and the verse following this time is in 4/4, which is a pretty cool change. The transition to the next chorus on the other hand doesn't work as well. At least Tom get's a chance to belt some lines over the humming. The following solo section might be the most alternative metal Evergrey have sounded so far.
We get a bit of Carina! Unfortunately it's far too little and it feels like a waste. Would've been nice to hear her on another track. There are some cool parts here and there, but it's definitely not one of Evergrey's highlights. I'll go with a 6/10. (Also, fuck the fade out)

The Dark I Walk You Through
Hey, know what we haven't had yet? A brooding and dark intro in phrygian with clean guitars. Yeah.
I do like the drum groove heard in the verse. The changes in perspective between the verse and chorus are somewhat clunky. The chorus itself is alright, I suppose.
No idea how to feel about the "did you scream at all?" sung by the backing vocals. Such an unhinged section that I almost have to admire the effort lol
I do really enjoy the part right after the second chorus ("if I could I would do anything to change it") that leads to a simple solo. Funny that the best part of the solo is the drum rhythm beneath it.
Tom sounds great throughout and the piano outro is lovely, but that's not enough to turn around the song for me. Probably a 5/10.

I Should
Time for the album to bounce back a bit with one of the catchiest riffs and melodies on the entire record. We get a brief section of calm before going back to the main riff. The chorus is brilliant and I really enjoy the melodies.
Hate to sound like a broken record, but I really enjoy how Tom sounds on all of these songs. I also enjoy how the solo section picks up steam for the second half, which is sorely needed after the pacing of the previous three songs. One of my favorites with a 9/10.

Closure
Rather unorthodox closing track for the album in the form of a piano ballad. Not sure that's the choice I would've gone with, but it is what it is. Tom and piano are not a combination that can really go wrong. The question is rather if this song does anything to justify its existence.
Truth be told it's not the most exciting piece. It's not bad either. At least Tom gets a chance to stretch vocally a bit, I suppose. I do enjoy the lyrics though. Overall it's probably a 6/10. There are other Evergrey ballads that I'd rather revisit.

My current ranking of Evergrey songs:
1. Solitude Within
2. The Essence Of Conviction
3. At Loss For Words
4. Where All Good Sleep
5. Mark Of The Triangle
6. As I Lie Here Bleeding
7. A Touch Of Blessing
8. When Darkness Falls
9. Faith Restored
10. The Encounter

Not much has changed, with At Loss For Words being the only addition. The next few albums probably won't affect the top 10 either. While they are commonly seen as the weakest ones there are still some cool tracks here and there though.
 
Torn (2008)
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After the disappointment that was Monday Morning Apocalypse, Evergrey returned with their 7th album on a different label (SPV)and with a new bass player (Jari Kainulainen)

Tom Englund after the release of Torn:
"We have made changes in everything surrounding EVERGREY, everything from management, record label to booking and perhaps most important, changed our own approach to this thing called EVERGREY.
It came to a time a while ago where we ALL were tired of everything surrounding this bitch called the music industry. It affected our whole perception of what and who we were. It most certainly killed everything close to joy and in the end made it feel like a boring 9-5 job where you don't like your co-workers and just want to go home. But, as I said, we've been through that now and coming out on the other end of this rather dark tunnel are five guys who have the same determination, goals and fire to keep this ball spinning for another couple of laps!"

Review of the songs later tonight.
 
TORN
It's a bummer to hear where these guys are headed based on the previous album and now this, even blander, follow-up. According to @Vaenyr this is basically what to expect for the next couple albums and possibly into the future. I gotta say, I'm very unenthused with the direction. It reminds me a lot of The Great Dumbdownening that occurred with Kamelot around Ghost Opera. We're just straying farther and farther from interesting, challenging music. Oh well. I'll continue to do brief reviews, but it seems like we're just coasting into mediocrity for the rest of the discography.

MindRuler said:
Evergrey returned with their 7th album on a different label (SPV)and with a new bass player (Jari Kainulainen)
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Some nice bass fills on this album, though! Sounds like a good addition.

MindRuler said:
Tom Englund after the release of Torn:
"We have made changes in everything surrounding EVERGREY, everything from management, record label to booking and perhaps most important, changed our own approach to this thing called EVERGREY.
It came to a time a while ago where we ALL were tired of everything surrounding this bitch called the music industry. It affected our whole perception of what and who we were. It most certainly killed everything close to joy and in the end made it feel like a boring 9-5 job where you don't like your co-workers and just want to go home. But, as I said, we've been through that now and coming out on the other end of this rather dark tunnel are five guys who have the same determination, goals and fire to keep this ball spinning for another couple of laps!"
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Honestly this is a shocking statement based on the songs on display throughout Torn. This sounds even more label-driven and hit-chasing than the previous record.

Broken Wings
Beep bloops, downtuned chord riffs. A nice, dramatic way to start a record, I suppose. Tom sounds alright, but the melodies are choppy and overwrought again. Chorus is catchy enough. I think I hear Carina? The first solo bit doesn't do much, but the subdued section that follows is pleasant enough. By the end of the song I'm a bit onboard but still underwhelmed. 7/10

Soaked
No build up here, just straight to Tom being sad. It's an effective intro that is hampered once again by too many lyrics. The heavier verse feels completely disconnected from the intro, though. This one flows like a tepid pond. The chorus is entirely flaccid. Another good melodic solo, though. The solo is the only highlight of this song. The fade out sucks. 4/10

Fear
Ok, alright, here we go: Evergrey is still here! The opening riff here is killer. Like pre-djent meets modern Symphony X. Very heavy, very groovy. The verse vocals are solid. I don't think the chorus is very catchy, but it's inoffensive. There's some very cool bass fills behind the second verse that you'll need headphones to hear. The bridge riffing is really cool, but the vocals over top of it are phrased very poorly. Solo is fine. For the third time in a row we have a guitar solo followed by a quiet bridge with production effects...I am once again bored by the template. I don't know. I guess I'll give this one an 8/10 solely for the riff.

When Kingdoms Fall
I take great offense at the way this song starts. It's like they hard edited out a long intro or something? It just kicks in almost immediately after Fear and doesn't work at all, especially because of the mid-tempo gallop tempo. There's some decent moments of Diet Opethian octave chord riffing in the intro, but then for some reason...we change keys and drop into a piano verse? Once again: too many lyrics rob the instrumental of its emotional power. There's not a vocal hook to be found in the whole song. There's a brief moment of cool riffing after the second chorus...that then drops down into another subdued secondary bridge for a barely existent guitar solo. Yawn. 4/10

In Confidence
More heavy riffing, but it's very stock this time. Just some chordal chugging and open strums. The first line of the chorus ("I told you in confidence") is incredibly catchy, but everything that follows is an absolute jumbled mess. Which sucks, because the riffing underneath it is really, really cool. At least there is a good pair of solos (and more killer bass fills underneath)! Musically, this one is at least inspiring. 7/10

Fail
I think one of the major signs of a band's decline is song title creativity. And we're really starting to hit the skids here with the one-word song titles. Anyway, this song is about as interesting as its title. The vocals don't fit very well over the instrumentals. We get some more plodding around. Tom gets really soulful in the chorus, but it weirdly doesn't sound as great as it should. Even the guitar solo seems to lose its inspiration halfway through. 3/10

Numb
Here we go with the indistinguishable, unmemorable song titles again. Oh yeah: same can be said of the nu-metal riffing. It's just woefully boring. The vocals are fine, I guess. The chorus is alright. There's a solo after the first chorus, which is cool. The actual bridge is just some soundscape building with whispers and octave guitar slides before another "big solo moment" that doesn't really do much for the composition. Good news, I guess this song is slightly better than the previous song? 4/10

Torn
...sigh. I really don't mean to go on and on about one-word song titles, but fuck guys, come on! More Diet Opethian chordal riffing to start here (and good bass fills!) before the inevitable quiet verse. The vocals are once again wildly uncatchy. The solo is similar to every other solo on the album, but it's nice. Another boring 4/10

Nothing Is Erased
Some double bass and some decent riffing once again, thank goodness! So, of course, what does Tom do? Writes his most overly complicated, ridiculously phrased lyrics yet! The verse melodies are absolutely terrible here and the chorus is infuriatingly simplistic. I'm so turned off by this version of Evergey, folks. 3/10

Still Walk Alone
Is that the bass going nuts at the beginning of the song? If so: that's rad. Either way, the music is much more promising than what came before. Heavy, technical, groovy fun. Unfortunately the transition into the chorus is really bad and the chorus itself is weaker than Tabasco. The bridge is good, though, with a pair of cool solos and a nice chugging pattern. We even get a third guitar solo, which is neat. It dies in another quiet, bleep bloop bridge transition back to the shitty chorus. Blarg. 5/10

These Scars
It's nice to hear some get-up-and-go on the final song, I guess it had to happen sometime. Tom sounds very cool in the verse, but the pre-chorus stinks and the chorus isn't much better. The lyrics are ridiculous, too. They really need an English editor. Our savior Carina arrives in the bridge and levels up the song by quite a lot! She sounds absolutely awesome. (It's never too late to become a band with two lead singers, Tom...) There's a very cool riffing section after the solo that is easily the most interesting thing to happen on the whole album. I guess I'll give this one an 8/10 solely for Carina.

Album Ratings
Torn - 5.1/10
Monday Morning Apocalypse - 6.1/10
The Inner Circle - 7.7/10
Recreation Day - 6.4/10
In Search of Truth - 8/10
Solitude, Dominance, Tragedy - 7.3/10
The Dark Discovery - 5.5/10

I'm making a playlist of all my favorite tracks from these albums (essentially anything I rate an 8-10/10).

Playlist Additions
Torn - 2 songs
Monday Morning Apocalypse - 4 songs
The Inner Circle - 6 songs
Recreation Day - 3 songs
In Search of Truth - 6 songs
Solitude, Dominance, Tragedy - 5 songs
The Dark Discovery - 1 song
 
MrKnickerbocker said:
No build up here, just straight to Tom being sad.
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Goddamn, I need that on a sticker or a shirt. I'm sitting here laughing like a maniac at that one lol

MrKnickerbocker said:
(It's never too late to become a band with two lead singers, Tom...)
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Is this the right part to mention that the two split up and got a divorce a few years back? :innocent:

I hope you'll give the albums post Hymns a spin, you might like them more.
 
Broken Wings
Nice intro with synths, earwormy keyboards in the verses and catchy chorus. Decent guitar solo and twin guitars. I love the bass in the slow section right before the chorus. Chugging outro with returning synth sounds. Good opener! 8/10
Soaked
Emotional Tom and muted riffs in the intro, djenty guitars and space sounds introducing the verse. Another catchy chorus although a bit too repetitive to be great. Second verse has mighty meaty riffing. The intro got repeated and we go back to the chorus. Great melodic solo! Fade out riff. Quite ok-ish song. 7/10
Fear
Superheavy intro, djenty chugging in the verses and (again!) a fantastic chorus! Double layered vocals of Tom in second verse. After the chorus we get some shredding riff and a lovely bridge flowing into a midtempo part with solo, then a quiet part with whispering Tom. Djenty riffs and chorus again. Great! 8/10
When Kingdoms Fall
Nice fast intro that transitions into a quiet part which is almost doomy. Nicely built up verse, haunting keyboards and great vocals of Tom lifting this toward a higher level. The chugging riff from the intro returns and is very addictive! The chorus isn´t catchy but this song doesn´t need it. Nice instrumental part with galopping bass, faster drumming and then the bridge. One of the highlights of the album! 9/10
In Confidence
The intro has some Dark Discovery vibes!
Good verse, weak chorus but tasty riff after the chorus! Shredding guitarsolo followed by another, not that melodic and we know Evergrey has alot better. Tasty riff returns in the outro. Quite weak track. 5/10
Fail
Clear guitars followed by a djent part. Meaty riffs and good vocal lines in the verses. Nice guitars and what a beast of a chorus! This is the Evergrey I adore! The keyboard line played in the second verse is amazing. Again the chorus. Instrumental section with great guitar solo. Chugging in the chorus this time with haunting keyboards in the background. Shredding outro. Fantastic song! 10/10
Numb
Some nu metalish riffs. Forgettable verse, the chorus is a tiny bit better but quite pale and bland. The instrumental section is cool though. Together with the solo it saves the song abit. 6/10
Torn
Title track time! Not so keen on the intro. Clear guitars and emotional Tom reminds me of the ballads on their sophomore album. Distorted guitars in the chorus but the song itself is far from their best. The bridge and solo are quite poor. I´ll be very mild by giving it a 6/10
Nothing Is Erased
Promising intro but unfortunately very poor verse and an even poorer chorus. This must be one of their worst choruses. The instrumental section with solo is good but not great. Forgettable track. 5/10
Still Walk Alone
What´s wrong guys??? After 3 poor songs you might think this next one´s a banger but no. Technical intro but poor chorus. Decent guitar solo with super great fast proggy part attached to it, and the shredding solo time again. but not enough to save the whole song I guess. Just too much ideas stuffed into one song that don´t work. 5/10
These Scars
Doomy intro, chugging guitars. Yup! Vintage Evergrey. Great vocals in the verses! And oh yes! A super catchy chorus! For the end of the record they're back! After 4(!) bad songs. Carina´s back too! I just love the outro! Together with Fail the highlight of this weird mixedbag of an album. Fantastic song! 10/10
Caught In A Lie
The bonustrack of the digipack version. It's unbelievable why they didn´t release this as a regular track instead of one of the lesser tracks.
This was always my favourite of the album but...after relistening I have to put These Scars and Fail next to it. 10/10

Evergrey Torned up Top 10:
1. A Touch Of Blessing
2. Solitude Within
3. Recreation Day
4. Nosferatu
5. More Than Ever
6. Fail
7. End Of Your Days
8. She Speaks To The Dead
9. The Masterplan
10. Monday Morning Apocalypse



Evergrey Album Ranking:
1. Solitude Dominance Tragedy
2. In Search Of Truth
3. Recreation Day
4. The Inner Circle
5. Torn
6. The Dark Discovery
7. Monday Morning Apocalypse

Torn has a few weak tracks, maybe more than Monday Morning Apocalypse or The Dark Discovery but it has higher highs.
 
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MindRuler said:
It's the best song on the album IMO and a mystery why it wasn´t included.
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Opinion before the relistening! I´d rank Fail higher now than Caught In A Lie. That's the great thing about this chronological review of their albums. Some nice surprises along the way. I rate In Search Of Truth now lower than before and some songs I appreciate more than before!
 
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As I said before They look like they're trying to develop the same song with every album. This one is a meh album to be honest.
I can't wait for The Atlantic and later ones.
 
GLORIOUS COLLISION
After the last two records this is a very minor step in the right direction, at least. It sounds more like Evergrey than the downtuned, nu-metalish tendencies heard on Torn. It’s still about as spicy as White People Taco Night, though. There isn't a single great song here and considering every song sounds virtually identical: it's wayyyyyyy too long. I think we're veering more towards consistency, but that is true of both the good songs and the bad songs. Big shout out to the future Mr. Floor Jansen on the drums, being as interesting and solid as ever.

Leave It Behind Us
Paint by numbers. Not bad. It's fine. I don't know. We're starting off solid, but bland. 7/10

You
Yawn. Awful vocal melodies. Syncopated chugging with subdued piano in the bridge and Carina’s vocals save it from being absolutely terrible, I guess. 4/10

Wrong
Calling all sadbois! This is pop metal, but it’s not bad. Good vocal melodies this time! I’ve made this comparison before but I feel like I’m listening to Sevendust. Tom sounds really good. This was clearly a single. 8/10

Frozen
A riff! Unfortunately just more of the same. Bad vocal melodies again that are so awkward they can’t be made anthemic no matter how hard Tom tries. There’s a cool guitar and keyboard unison in the bridge but it goes nowhere due to the obligatory quiet, bleep bloop section before another minute of choruses. 5/10

Restoring the Loss
Solid riffing and vocals. More paint by numbers, but enjoyable enough. 7/10

To Fit the Mold
Very dynamic and emotional, with some nice acoustic sections. It’s a little stock, but Tom’s conviction really sells this one. Also the harmonized bridge and solo are sublime. 8/10

Out of Reach
Beans on toast. 5/10

The Phantom Letters
Some very cool moments, including a really neat shredding solo, but I just don’t think this one ever comes together. It’s a bit disjointed. 6/10

The Disease...
A powerful intro bungled by more awkward vocal phrasing. I don’t like the key changes in this one. Maybe it’s just a switch from minor to major? I don’t know. This demo needed more time in the oven. 4/10

It Comes From Within
First time I’ve found myself unconsciously headbanging so far on this record. This sounds like classic Evergrey and it’s a good tune. The vocals are overwrought again but I actually like the excessive lyrics in this chorus! They run straight into each other in a pretty cool way. Best track yet. 9/10

Free
Another nothingburger ballad. 4/10

I'm Drowning Alone
Is the keyboard loop Owl City’s “Fireflies”? Cool main riff and a good chorus. Tom and Carina’s daughter makes her first appearance after a cool symphonic bridge. This one is more solid pop metal. 8/10

...And The Distance
Another piano ballad? The track listing is weird on this album. It picks up halfway through and Carina finally appears on some leads! Still, this song doesn’t do much for me. There’s a version where Carina sings lead on the whole thing and it’s a little bit better, but I daresay the flaws in Tom’s lyrics are even more obvious without him signing. Still, I wish they had gone with the Carina version. But as it is: 6/10

Album Ratings
Glorious Collision - 6.2/10
Torn - 5.1/10
Monday Morning Apocalypse - 6.1/10
The Inner Circle - 7.7/10
Recreation Day - 6.4/10
In Search of Truth - 8/10
Solitude, Dominance, Tragedy - 7.3/10
The Dark Discovery - 5.5/10

I'm making a playlist of all my favorite tracks from these albums (essentially anything I rate an 8-10/10).

Playlist Additions
Glorious Collision - 4 songs
Torn - 2 songs
Monday Morning Apocalypse - 4 songs
The Inner Circle - 6 songs
Recreation Day - 3 songs
In Search of Truth - 6 songs
Solitude, Dominance, Tragedy - 5 songs
The Dark Discovery - 1 song
 
Glorious Collision (2011)
cover-evergrey-glorious-collision.jpg
And here we are again. Tom changed 3 band members for Evergrey Number 8: Marcus Jidell (guitar), Johan Niemann (bass) and Hannes Van Dahl (drums). The Evergrey sound is still present and Tom & co spiced it up with some slight changes in the songwriting approach. Overall not a bad album but for me the hardest one in their entire catalogue to get into. The production isn´t super great either. A detailed review of the songs later this evening!
 
Leave It Behind Us
I said it before: Evergrey is good in opening songs. This one is no exception to the rule. Simple yet effective verse, catchy chorus where the keyboards play the main role. A bridge followed by a cool instrumental part and long solo with chugging guitars and again the chorus.
Weeping riffs in fade out. Good starter, nothing less and nothing more. 8/10
You
Chuggy intro, keyboards with some weird sound effect and then typical Evergrey melodies. Very convincing Tom in the verse. Chorus sounds abit halfbaked. Some strings right before the second verse. In the second part the guitars get heavier which is the best part of the song. After the chorus there's a Malmsteenian solo and then back to a midtempo part building up to a great chugg fest. Carina shows up in the final too. 7/10
Wrong
Very cool intro with that guitar riff! Quiet verse with only piano and Tom. The chorus is abit heavier although it still sounds very poppy. Second verse has more instrumentation. Nice instrumental part after the chorus although it doesn´t lift the song to a climax. The solo is decent though. The last verse has piano and an emotional Tom with bursting guitars in the chorus. Outro with a fade out guitar solo. 7/10
Frozen
Heavy intro! Awesome verse and catchy chorus! Evergrey by numbers. Especially with the instrumental section after the second chorus with the twin guitars. Unfortunately this part is so short. Nevertheless it's one of the best songs so far. 9/10
Restoring The Loss
This song has some vibes of old Evergrey. Interesting riffing and mysterious singing Tom.
The chorus is ok but I prefer them more catchy.
Quite forgettable track. 6/10
To Fit The Mold
Cheesyweezy intro which will cost this song allready 2 punishment points. Meh! It doesn´t help singing like if you´re under water Tom. The chorus has echoes of the Recreation Days and save the song from total failure. Nice solo too! But still nothing more than a 7/10
Out Of Reach
Vintage Evergrey intro. Quite good verse and simple but effective chorus. Yes this is how Evergrey songs should sound like. More interesting in the second verse with riffs here and there. Great! Interesting solo section too. 9/10
The Phantom Letters
Sad acoustic guitar intro with a very emotional singing Tom. The first minute this sounds like a power ballad but it gets heavier! Chug fest in the chorus and a soothing second verse. The solo is bloody gorgeous followed by great chug riffs, repeating vocal lines of Tom and a shredding solo. Quite epic this one! 8/10
The Disease...
This song starts immediately with guitars and synths in the intro. The verse isn´t great and naming bad Maiden songs (The Apparition) doesn´t help either. The chorus is quite forgettable too. 6/10
It Comes From Within
What have we here? Angelic voices and then chug fest! This sounds like typical Evergrey too and the chorus is catchy! Midtempo bridge with nice riffing. Shredding solo! Chug fest outro. 8/10
Free
Boring ballad! 5/10
I´m Drowning Alone
Quite bland but ok chorus. 7/10
...And The Distance
...And another ballad...but not a good one although a tiny little bit better than Free . 6/10

Evergrey Glorious Song Top 10:
1. A Touch Of Blessing
2. Solitude Within
3. Recreation Day
4. Nosferatu
5. More Than Ever
6. Fail
7. End Of Your Days
8. She Speaks To The Dead
9. The Masterplan
10. Monday Morning Apocalypse

No Glorious Collision song was great enough to change my Top 10. With still 6 albums to go not alot will change although I predict 4 or 5 new ones near the end of the journey.



Evergrey Album Ranking:
1. Solitude Dominance Tragedy
2. In Search Of Truth
3. Recreation Day
4. The Inner Circle
5. Torn
6. The Dark Discovery
7. Monday Morning Apocalypse
8. Glorious Collision
 
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(Damn, you guys are really quick! :p I'm also working on my review for Torn, which I'll probably post later today. Hopefully I'll get to Glorious Collision by tomorrow!)

A Night To Remember
I'm pretty happy with the overall sound of the live album. The snare has a bit too much reverb, the bass drum is a bit too clicky, but other than that a pretty good sounding live album in my opinion. It is kinda annoying that the guitar's aren't panned, which muddies up some of the sections, but I get why they did that. Tom is playing guitar and singing and they probably didn't want to pan Henrik's guitar down the middle whenever Tom stopped playing.
The setlist covers the most important songs of the first 5 albums. There are a couple of tracks that I would've exchanged with some others, but I still maintain that almost all songs here are the definitive versions compared to the studio tracks.
The name of the live album is somewhat generic, the artwork a nice idea conceptually. Though putting the crying toddler front and center for the Recreation Day part is a hilarious choice. They just have to have done that for fun lol

Intro
The first thing heard in the intro is a crying baby, which is certainly a choice on how to start a metal concert lol
Beyond that this track is actually quite cool. It's a synth instrumental creating hype, with some of the vocal samples from the first album thrown on top. It does its job and ending on "we all have to die eventually" is badass.

Blinded
The full stop for several seconds prior to the first verse is a fun idea and a cute way of subverting the listener's expectations.
In the pre-chorus we get to hear the backing vocalists (one man, two women, the latter including Carina!) and they'll be heard extensively throughout the album. I really love the energy they bring to the songs and almost every song on this album sounds better than the studio version in my opinion.
Tom has to hold back in certain parts to maintain his voice, which is understandable. Though kind of a bummer of missing out on the awesome "Fearing truth will prevail" from the studio version.
Towards the end of the solo we get to hear the audience participate with some "hey"s in rhythm. Evergrey are no Maiden, but there are plenty of moments throughout the concert for the audience to shine.
I love how one of the vocalists outright screams the last "Blinded" in the chorus.

End Of Your Days
No wasting time, Tom thanks the audience and the band immediately goes into the next song. I already liked the studio version but this one is so much superior, it's not funny. The production is much better, the backing vocals are epic, Tom encourages the audience to clap along at certain sections.
I also like (which I didn't point out in the previous song) how there are sections where Rikard and Henrik provide backing vocals without the extra singers, which gives them quite a different sound. Funnily enough, despite Tom altering lines here and there to help his voice, there are moments where he sings far more aggressively and borderlines shouts out a couple of words lol
I adore Tom's lines in the final chorus, where he even adds some new harmonies. The ending of the song is slightly altered, which will happen to a bunch of other songs too. Difficult going back to the studio version after hearing this one.

More Than Ever
This one gets an extended piano intro (which will also happen to a bunch of other tracks). This is the first instance of Tom talking to the audience for more than a few seconds.
As I had mentioned in my review for the studio version this one is made for the stage. Especially with the extra vocalists for the anthemic chorus. Damn, I get goosebumps whenever that first "Believing more than ever" comes around!
The instrumental sections are all tight as hell. I don't think there are any obvious mistakes that I can think of at the moment. I particularly enjoy the ending to this version. In the studio they had a bunch of overdubs which made the final part of the outro solo kinda unbalanced and weird sounding, here they had to make it work with two guitars and it worked flawlessly.

She Speaks To The Dead
No time to rest, straight into the next song! The intro is omitted, this version starts out with the song's intro solo. So, for those who aren't the biggest fans of the vocal samples and spoken word passages, this should be an improvement.
I could see how the massive choir in the chorus could come across as cheesy or too much, but I love the energy! We also get to hear Henrik's approach to the solos for the songs from the first two albums (in the case of this song the intro solo is played by Tom, the next one by Henrik).

Rulers Of The Mind
Some more audience participation before things get really started, nice.
The "formed and shape like clay" line is interesting; in the studio version we hear Tom scream "clay" afterwards, here this is omitted but he adds more and more distortion to the line as it goes. Pretty cool! I appreciate that the backing vocals in the chorus are rather understated. Full steam ahead wouldn't have worked for that one.
As I mentioned in my review for the studio version, they cut out the weird electronica/sample part and it works sooo much better.
I really like how the second chorus is structured here. In the beginning it's just Tom with Henrik singing the harmony, which doesn't happen a lot on the album. Then for the second half the rest of the vocalists join in, similar to the first chorus.

Blackened Dawn
Funnily enough, despite this time having additional vocalists, the choir section after the opening verse sounds much thinner than the studio version. The chorus is much fuller though. It's interesting hearing songs from the debut here. The sound obviously isn't as polished as In Search Of Truth for example, but it's still better than what the debut sounded like. There are a couple parts where we can clearly hear Rikard's backing vocals, another thing I like. It's also interesting to hear songs from the debut with a much more experienced Tom on the vocals.
The instrumental section in the middle might be the highlight of this version. We get to hear the audience shout "hey"'s in time with the snare drum, but what's even cooler is the added organ synth melody for the second half of that part.

Waking Up Blind
The live version doesn't change my opinion of the song that much unfortunately. It's fine and I get why they played a ballad at that part of the setlist for the sake of the show's pacing. Despite that, it's still not too exciting either. Ballads are usually tracks where the audience can sing along, which this song doesn't really invite, at least in my opinion. The best part of the studio version were the cool little harmonized acoustic leads, which are missing entirely here, making this even worse.

As I Lie Here Bleeding
I had mentioned that in my review for the studio version, but this one gets an entirely new intro. The original intro is a badass riff, but this version is a ton of fun too. The song's downtuned as well. The backing vocals add a lot to the chorus. Gun to my head, I wouldn't be able to choose which version I prefer; one of those rare times where I think both the studio and the live version are equally good for different reasons.

Misled
This one gets an extended piano intro, which is a nice way to fill the silence until the rest of the band is ready, I suppose. We get prominent vocal harmonies from Henrik once again. He's not the most experienced singer, but it's still fun hearing some other voices now and then. There's also the piano outro, which I'm not sure is really necessary at this stage of the show and serves as kind of an awkward ending to the song.

Mark Of The Triangle
One of the highlights of In Search Of Truth becomes even more awesome with the backing vocalists. Funnily enough the spoken word samples are pretty low in the mix, which might delight some, but I think they could've boosted them a tiny bit more. Some of the vocal lines are changed and I prefer those new versions. Some more vocals by Henrik in the second verse. The instrumental sections are hypnotizing. And this version has a proper ending instead of an annoying fade out.

When The Walls Go Down
Considering the studio version this isn't the track I thought would make the setlist for a live album. It makes sense though, given that they had the string quartet as guest musicians. They had to find some way to justify their inclusion and to show them off, so this was probably the best and most prominent way.

Harmless Wishes
And back to the more conventional songs. The frequency of very audible sharp gasps of air between phrases in the verse is noticeably down compared to the studio version, making this an immediate upgrade. Like with most songs on the album the backing vocals add a lot of punch missing from the studio version. We also have the string quartet joining in for various sections. The post solo section is the first noticeable fuck-up, with Tom getting the lyrics wrong. He plays it off well though.

The Essence Of Conviction
The way Tom sings the verses in the studio version is one of my favorite moments in Evergrey's discography. There was no way to match that energy here, so that's a step back. Thankfully basically everything else is better here, including the vocals in the choruses. As well as the fact that the song has an actual ending this time around. Some of Tom's vocal runs for the "you lied to me" part are nice to hear. I also really enjoy the brief a cappela segment shortly before the song's end. Also, a very good thing that the crying baby samples are barely audible in this version.

Solitude Within
Some of my commentary for individual songs is getting rather short. That's not dependent on my enjoyment of the songs, there's simply not much unique to say and not many changes to the original. This one was a 10/10 on the album and is just as good in the live version. Some of the vocal lines are changed up, but they still work. The "heart is pounding" part sounds epic here! The moments of audience participation work well, too.

Nosferatu
Not a lot of new or exciting stuff to say about that one. The additional vocalists help in the choir parts prior to the chorus. The string quartet is used to great effect as well. One really cool part is the sweep picked lead after the first chorus, which this time is played in unison by the keyboard as well for the first run through and then jumps up a third for the harmony. Awesome stuff.

Recreation Day
Like many of the other tracks this one gets an extended piano intro. The live version is pretty faithful otherwise. The chorus sounds absolutely lovely with the added harmonies. I really like Tom's solo on this one and it's particularly fun for being the only instance in the show where Henrik animates the crowd to participate.

For Every Tear That Falls
Time for a ballad. I would've preferred another track, but at least Carina gets a chance to shine in the spotlight. The sudden applause from the audience when Carina sings her first line never fails to make me smile. The vocal harmonies are lovely.

A Touch Of Blessing
This was still a new song when that concert was recorded, but it has become a live staple since and for good reason! Not many interesting things to say here, it's simply a joy to listen to. One little change compared to the studio version is the transition from the solo to the final chorus being different.

The Masterplan
This one gets the Running Free treatment of being stretched to over 10 minutes, but I can't fault them. Despite being one of their proggier tracks the chorus is super catchy. The hand off during the solo sections is awesome.
The extended crowd work is done well and Tom even references Bruce and Live After Death (which Anders did for one of the In Flames live albums as well lol). It's also kinda hilarious how Tom thanks all the people, introduces his band mates, Rikard then tries to get some applause for Tom, but Tom just interrupts him and continues with the script.

Now on to Torn! Time to catch up :D
 
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