STRATOVARIUS - Intermission
April 27, 2001, 23 years ago
(Nuclear Blast)
The band is taking an extended break while guitar wizard Timo Tolkki focuses on his solo album - a break that includes festival dates, oddly enough - but they've assembled a package of odds and bits to tide their legion of fans over until the next official studio album is recorded. And the fans will be pleased, particularly those in Canada and the States. Along with three brand new songs and an instrumental done up in expected Stratovarian style, Intermission features cover songs from the Judas Priest and Dio tribute albums - 'Bloodstone' and 'Kill The King' respectively - a couple live versions, including a cover of Russ Ballard's 'I Surrender', and several unreleased and hard-to-find studio tracks. Of particular note is the inclusion of 'Why Are We Here?' and 'It's A Mystery', two above-par tracks originally found on the Infinite Limited Edition bonus CD, the European bonus shred 'Cold Winter Nights' taken from Destiny, and the Japanese bonus anthem 'When The Night Meets The Day'. One too many ballads, but that's a typical complaint from me. Very cool collector's package for the fans, although diehards will probably regret spending all those extra bucks digging up these rarities over the past several years.
