ARENA — Immortal? (review)

ARENA — Immortal? album cover Album · 2000 · Non-Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
Warthur
On the whole, Immortal is a fairly significant album in the Arena discography. With Rob Sowden joining on vocals, the band had a lineup which would remain stable for their next few albums, and with his extensive songwriting contributions this one John Mitchell demonstrated that in the short space of time since he had joined the band for The Visitor he had become a central member of the group - effectively becoming a third co-leader of the band alongside Clive Nolan and Mick Pointer.

I feel like it suffers a little from coming in between major conceptual works like The Visitor and Contagion; next to the other two, it risks feeling a little lightweight. On the other hand, as time has gone by it's grown on me, with a sort of cinematic soundtrack edge to the material creeping in (particularly, and aptly, on Moviedrome) that makes it sound almost like the soundtrack to a movie that doesn't exist.

The metallic edge which would come to the fore on Contagion hasn't yet fully developed here, but there's a few hints to it, and as such Immortal? is also notable as the point where the band's original more purist neo-prog sound reached a natural conclusion.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

The Goblin Sessions Heavy Metal
THEM
Buy this album from MMA partners
Tormenta De Arena Metalcore
VORAGO
Buy this album from MMA partners
Infinite Metalcore
FUTURE GHOST
Buy this album from MMA partners
Heretic Melodic Death Metal
SUNCINDER
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Skull Burned Wearing Hell Like A Life Vest As The Night Wept Mathcore
FRONTIERER
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

Future Ghost - Wolves (Official Music Video)
FUTURE GHOST
Bosh66· 1 day ago
Future Ghost - Nemesis Game (Official Music Video)
FUTURE GHOST
Bosh66· 1 day ago
Harrowed TwentyTenVideo
HARROWED
Bosh66· 3 days ago
Sunmancer - Realms of Dilemma (Official Visualizer)
SUNMANCER
Bosh66· 8 days ago
Sunmancer - Lower Cavalier (Official Visualizer)
SUNMANCER
Bosh66· 8 days ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed