FATES WARNING - Awaken The Guardian
July 22, 2005, 19 years ago
(Metal Blade)
I guess you can’t really blame the fact that when people acknowledge Awaken The Guardian as the pinnacle of Fates Warning’s career, it does sound somewhat of a cliché. Nevertheless, this glorious reissue, packaged in the Metal Blade tradition (as they did with the Armoured Saint and the somewhat-recent Voivod War And Pain reissues) showcases this classic 1986 treasure, tinged up, and remastered to crystallizing effect. Such a reissue also serves as a reminder of when dark progressive metal emitted such a magical presence, one that was unique and defining, but also not-of-this-world, one that reflects the distinct spaced-out, soft-toned cover art. Clearly this album is right up there with Queensryche’s The Warning and Rage For Order, maybe even more intricate in feel. And of course, the ultimate defining moment of such an album is John Arch’s mesmerizing vocal performance. So it’s quite clear that such an album is in its own sphere, even to this day, resonating like that ghost of the past whose presence hovers with magnitude. The reissue also features a second disc with live and demo tracks, and a third DVD disc which captures the only footage in which the Awaken The Guardian lineup are featured. It is from a Long Island gig in 1986; the sound, as the band noted in the disclaimer, is less than desirable, the footage very bootleg-like, but it does capture a cool and nostalgic Cliff ‘Em All intimacy.