┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │■ ■│ │ .-/ .-. │ │ _.-~ / ___ | ~-._ │ │ \:/ -~| / __/| .\:/ │ │ / || (:/:| \ │ │ / /\/| |:\___\| |\ \ │ │ / /:::|.::/:::/:.|:\ \ │ │ / /:::/ \\/:::/::/:::\ \ │ │ / .::\ \-~~~~-/\/:.. \ │ │ /..:::::\ /:::::..\ │ │ /::::::::- -::::::::\ │ │ \:::::-~ ~-:::::/ │ │ \:-~ ~-:/ │ │ METAL CLASSICS ARCHIVE │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ P R E S E N T S │ │ │ │ │ │ + Excelsis - Standing Stone + │ │ │ │ │ │╔═════════════════════╗ │ │║ Release Information ║ │ │╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Release Date.Oct-19-2013 Encoder......L3.97 -V2 --vbr-new ║ │ │║ Genre........Metal Graber.......EAC ║ │ │║ Year.........2008 Khz/Bitrate..44,1/ Br ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Ripper.......anthem Songs........11 ║ │ │║ Covers.......Yes Url... www.escelsis.ch ║ │ │║ ║ │ │╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │╔═════════════════════╗ │ │║ Release Notes ║ │ │╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Artist : Excelsis Rating : You Decide! ║ │ │║ Album : Standing Stone Label : Dragonslayer ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ ║ │ │╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Description : ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ For a band that have been running as long as ║ │ │║ Excelsis, it is curious that the most anyone can ║ │ │║ usually tell you about them is that they had a ║ │ │║ song included on the end of Iron SaviorÆs ║ │ │║ æUnificationÆ CD after winning some sort of ║ │ │║ magazine competition. Maybe the fact that the ║ │ │║ Swiss outfit have continued on since with barely ║ │ │║ a flicker of interest from the world at large is ║ │ │║ explanation enough as to why that sort of ║ │ │║ promotion never caught on. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Being as ignorant to their movements as the ║ │ │║ next man in the street, I was surprised to see ║ │ │║ just how consistently they have been turning out ║ │ │║ CDs, and even though æThe standing stoneÆ was ║ │ │║ their first full-length in 4 years, that it is ║ │ │║ their 5th overall without any sort of serious ║ │ │║ label backing is still testament to strong ║ │ │║ perseverance if nothing else. While the epic ║ │ │║ power/folk metal style Excelsis play is ║ │ │║ certainly far more en vogue than when they ║ │ │║ started out in 1996, they have still managed to ║ │ │║ maintain an identity of their own and donÆt ║ │ │║ conform to the more typical sprightly variant of ║ │ │║ the style that is doing the rounds these days. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ The songs are punctuated by flutes and pipes ║ │ │║ played by a few of the band members as well as ║ │ │║ the keyboards, which are used strictly for ║ │ │║ setting atmosphere and the odd symphonic ║ │ │║ arrangement rather than as a lead instrument, ║ │ │║ but the music remains grounded in down-tempo ║ │ │║ epic metal rather than a fully-formed folk/power ║ │ │║ combination. Mⁿnggu BeyelerÆs vocals are very ║ │ │║ much reminiscent of Chris Boltendahl, gruff and ║ │ │║ rough-edged yet still oddly melodic, and are ║ │ │║ quite suitable for the gritty tone that ║ │ │║ underpins their style at all times. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ While Excelsis are quite successful with æThe ║ │ │║ standing stoneÆ in crafting a sweeping ║ │ │║ atmosphere, the final product is not wholly ║ │ │║ satisfactory, with too much repetition in song ║ │ │║ structure to keep any surprises in store for the ║ │ │║ listener. With nearly every song running 7 ║ │ │║ minutes or longer, and most broken up by some ║ │ │║ sort of acoustic interlude, the band have ║ │ │║ undermined their own good work by signposting ║ │ │║ exactly where the songs are going to go well in ║ │ │║ advance. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ The lack of urgency in the songs also becomes ║ │ │║ glaringly apparent early on, and very few of ║ │ │║ them ever pay off by delivering a sudden shift ║ │ │║ in tempo. This build-up with lack of conclusion ║ │ │║ is the equivalent of watching a historical epic ║ │ │║ film with the battle scenes cut out, and the CD ║ │ │║ suffers terribly for it, in places becoming a ║ │ │║ tiresome slog rather than the heroic journey ║ │ │║ that the band are aiming for. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ The frustration levels only increase when the ║ │ │║ quality of some of the individual songs is taken ║ │ │║ into account. ôArmour of Godö, through some ║ │ │║ excellent guitar playing, actually manages to ║ │ │║ gradually build some bruised intensity and makes ║ │ │║ better use of its extended running time than ║ │ │║ most of the other songs. On the other hand, ║ │ │║ ôLost chamberö is the proud owner of some ║ │ │║ typically gentle folk melodies that are used to ║ │ │║ create a wind-swept romantic ode. The title ║ │ │║ track is one of the few that actually delivers ║ │ │║ on its promise, and its shifts in pace and style ║ │ │║ emphasize what could have been they had been ║ │ │║ used more liberally throughout the CD. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ æThe standing stoneÆ is a tough one to describe ║ │ │║ fully, for while the individual songs do nothing ║ │ │║ wrong in their own right, the CD as a whole ║ │ │║ cannot come with a strong recommendation. A ║ │ │║ little bit more imagination when it comes to ║ │ │║ building their admittedly compelling melodies ║ │ │║ into full songs is required from Excelsis if ║ │ │║ they ever intend to be serious competitors. The ║ │ │║ CD flirts with excellence, but in the end the ║ │ │║ biggest thing that can be taken away is a sense ║ │ │║ of anticlimax. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ ║ │ │╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │╔═════════════════════╗ │ │║ Release Tracklist ║ │ │╚═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════ │ │ │ │ 01 - Yleitig [03:18] │ │ 02 - Soldiers of Heaven [05:33] │ │ 03 - The March [09:03] │ │ 04 - For Death and Glory [08:22] │ │ 05 - Lost Chamber [05:39] │ │ 06 - The Silent Song [06:27] │ │ 07 - The Siege [07:18] │ │ 08 - Armour of Gods [07:57] │ │ 09 - Standing Stone [07:10] │ │ 10 - Fire [06:58] │ │ 11 - The Classic Chamber [02:26] │ │ │ │ Total Length : [70:11 minn │ │ │ │ │ │ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ╔═════════════════════╗ │ │ ║ Greetings To: ║ │ │ ╚═════════════════════╝ │ │ │ │ Too all people who contributes to make this │ │ archive of good music in a exceptional conditions │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │■ ■│ └───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘