Visions (Stratovarius album)
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Visions is the sixth studio album by power metal band Stratovarius, released on 28 April 1997 through Noise Records. The album reached No. 4 on the Finnish albums chart and remained on that chart for 23 weeks.[1] It is a concept album about Nostradamus.[5]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [5] |
| Rock Hard | 9.5/10[6] |
Steve Huey at AllMusic gave Visions four stars out of five, calling it "as ambitious as neoclassical metal gets" and saying "there are some fine moments on the record", but also remarking that "too much of the material sinks under its own weight, particularly the ten-minute title track."[5]
In 2005, the album was ranked No. 297 in Rock Hard magazine's book of The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time.[7]
Track listing
All music is composed by Timo Tolkki, except where noted
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Kiss of Judas" | Timo Kotipelto | 5:49 |
| 2. | "Black Diamond" | Kotipelto | 5:39 |
| 3. | "Forever Free" | Kotipelto | 6:00 |
| 4. | "Before the Winter" | Tolkki | 6:07 |
| 5. | "Legions" | Tolkki | 5:43 |
| 6. | "The Abyss of Your Eyes" | Kotipelto | 5:38 |
| 7. | "Holy Light" | (instrumental) | 5:45 |
| 8. | "Paradise" | Tolkki | 4:27 |
| 9. | "Coming Home" | Tolkki | 5:36 |
| 10. | "Visions (Southern Cross)" | Tolkki | 10:17 |
| Total length: | 61:01 | ||
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Black Diamond" (demo) | Kotipelto | 5:07 |
| 12. | "Uncertainty" (live; music by Kotipelto) | Kotipelto | 6:13 |
Personnel
- Timo Kotipelto – lead vocals
- Timo Tolkki – guitar, background vocals, mastering, production
- Jens Johansson – keyboards, harpsichord
- Jörg Michael – drums
- Jari Kainulainen – bass guitar
- Kimmo Blom – background vocals
- Marko Vaara – background vocals
- Richard Johnson – background vocals, lyrical consultation
- James M. Johnson – spoken vocals
- Mikko Karmila – engineering, mixing
- Pauli Saastamoinen – mastering
Chart performance
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Finnish albums chart | 4[1] |
Trivia
In the end of "Before the Winter", the Force Theme from the Star Wars franchise can be heard.
References
- ^ a b c "Stratovarius - Visions (album)". finnishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2014-11-06.
- ^ Visions (CD release "TT 0031-2").
- ^ "Stratovarius - The Kiss Of Judas (song)". finnishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2014-11-06.
- ^ "Stratovarius - Black Diamond (song)". finnishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2014-11-06.
- ^ a b c Huey, Steve. "Visions - Stratovarius". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2014-11-06.
- ^ Albrecht, Frank. "Stratovarius Visions". (in German). Rock Hard. 120. Retrieved 2014-11-06.
- ^ [...], Rock Hard (Hrsg.). [Red.: Michael Rensen. Mitarb.: Götz Kühnemund] (2005). Best of Rock & Metal die 500 stärksten Scheiben aller Zeiten. Königswinter: Heel. p. 94. ISBN 3-89880-517-4.
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