renkls
Here's a album that really disappointed me. I say disappointed because perhaps my favorite album ever (or at least top 10) is The Sacrilege of Fatal Arms, a 'remix'/extended version of this album, Sacrilegium. This is one case where the 'directors cut' completely lays the original to shame.
Now what kind of music does Devil Doll play? A look at the tracklist says this is one 58 minute epic, which is not the case, however it's certainly epic in a different sense. Devil Doll plays pretty hard rock/bombast prog throughout their discography, and on this album is fitted with instruments as broad as choirs and pianos. As with all Devil Doll releases, the metal influence is slight.
This album was intended to be a grand statement by the band, and as The Sacrilege of Fatal Arms proved, all the elements for a masterpiece were there - but were scattered abysmally. The album design as a single track is so scattershot, parts segue and jump so unexpectedly and randomly there's no way you could ever pick up what the hell the album is about without studying the lyrics carefully, and relistening many, many times, both of which I've done.
To simplify the album to explain further, there seems to be two interlinked narrative themes throughout the album, both interweaved in this CD in a very haphazard way. The music itself lacks any real build or flow because each part seems individual to itself, not part of some grander picture. If Mr. Doctor had not retrospectively remixed this into the true masterpiece it originally could have been, I'd write this off as a very poor release. Such as it is however, I can understand its importance in relation to one of my favorite albums, but still...
I seldom play this album anymore because it simply pales in comparison to its far superior remake/remix. For all who read this, I suggest that you give this a listen along with The Sacrilege of Fatal Arms and decide which works best for you.