Good, not great (I'd give this 3.5 stars if I could)
Matt from www.prog.web.com | 08/20/2001
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Somewhat akin to Vanden Plas' _Far Off Grace_, this one comes across as something of a Dream Theater-meets-Dokken blend (maybe with a little acoustic Extreme thrown into the mix). A greater amount of variety on _Eurasia_, Avalon's fourth release, makes this one a stronger release, however. Meant as an exploration of "historic personalities and countries of the largest continent of the earth - Eurasia", this album contains a distinct tribal, East-Asian theme that pervades the album, courtesy of traditional rhythms, Buddhist chants, spiritual female vocals, and Indian sitars -- performed by a wide array of expert guest musicians. Personally, I could take or leave this exotic aspect of it, though it does succeed in giving the album a unique, ritualistic flavor. While some of the album's efforts may be unavailing, expect crisp vocals, mean riffs, and sweet solos from almost every one of the album's twelve tracks. Highlights include "Temujin", "Eternal Flame", "The Stranger", and "The Painting" -- the 7-minute "Eternal Flame" in particular, which is probably one of 2000's 10 best songs (though not in my Top 5). Also of interest is the band's cover of Mr. Mister's "Kyrie" which stays relatively true to the original, adding a splash of metal edge and slightly trimming the introduction. As a side note, Sascha Paeth's (Rhapsody, Angra, Luca Turilli, Kamelot) production work on the album is top notch, as one would expect. Some purely average songs and a few less than exhilarating instrumental segue tracks hold the album back a bit, though there is still enough quality material on here to make it a worthwhile purchase. Vanden Plas fans definitely need to check this one out."
A stunning prog/ power metal disc
C. Lira | Washington state, USA | 04/07/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Avalon's 4th title is an incredible concept disc about the Eurasian land mass, its people and places. It kicks off with a traditional Buddhist chant then goes into the crunchy guitars of "Burning Souls". The next song, "Temujin" is about Genghis Khan, leader of the Huns, whose influence spread across both continents. It's one of those songs you just keep finding yourself humming. Throughout the disc there's strong playing by all the group, and lead singer Chitral Somapala has an incredible voice to bring it all home. The sound and production are fantastic, with ethnic elements woven throughout. This disc hasn't left my changer since I got it 6 months ago......"
Highly unnapreciated power metal, do not overlook this band
Francis Buchannan | bakersville, north carolina usa | 01/15/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"i love avalon, i read a review that compared them to dokken, why is that just because they play heavy metal guitar, no offense to who wrote that review cause they also had some cool things to say about the mellodic metal powerhouse that is avalon, to me out of my lifetime experience as an avid metal head and power metal collector, i would compare avalon to conception and kamelot. the singer could give roy khan a run for his money, his vocals are very similar to roy's(aka kamelot)
and the music is as well. this is a highly talented band, the guitars are breathtaking and go from mellodic rage to suttle and relaxing mellodic beauty. it is a shame this was their last album and 4th overall, i could be wrong but i have found no more albums by avalon since eurasia. this is mellodic power metal the way it should be played, im very loving of my metal, i love power to speed to anything thats not goofy and talentless like todays nu metal and so on. any one can growl and beat a guitar to death, but it takes talent and a love for metal to be as good as avalon. i will allso suggest that if your truly a metalhead that you check out these awesome titles.WOLF(evil star) amazing metal album, one of the best in years, if you like attacker,omen,manilla road,slayer,metallica and acts like priest and maiden you will freak over wolf, also check out tad morose(modus vivendi)amazing mellodic power metal, and anything by silent force. any way avalon should not be overlooked by any one who has the love for metal burning inside them, i may sound like the lyrics to a manowar song but i cant help but love metal, its more than just music to me , its my life, my love, and my motivation.
brandon whitson"
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1