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После удачного "Open The Gates" американские рокеры Manilla Road не разочаровали, выдавая по-прежнему мощнейший хэви метал. И закрепить успех помог группе этот альбом, выпущенный в 1986 году. По сравнению с "Open The Gates" с технической стороны заметны улучшения: великолепно прописанные громкие ударные и бас, техничные и забойные гитарные партии говорят о явном прогрессе коллектива. Сама музыка стала еще тяжелее и "грязнее", приобретая слегка трэшевый оттенок. Марк Шелтон все чаще рычит и поет голосом, отчасти напоминающим многоуважаемого Лемми из Motorhead. Однако музыка не имеет ничего общего с "Моторами", здесь не встретишь веселухи, это серьезный техничный хэви метал, приправленный потрясной "маниловской" мелодичностью и эпичностью. Лучшие песни - напористые "Dementia", "Divine Victim", мрачные и агрессивные номера "Hammer Of Witches", "Isle Of The Dead", "Take By Storm", и, конечно же, шикарный многотемповый эпик "The Deluge" с очень красивыми соло-партиями. Пристального внимания заслуживают и остальные песни - это отличные боевики "Shadows In The Black", "Friction In The Mass" и любопытные инструменталы "Morbid Tabernacle" и "Rest In Pieces". Посредственные песни? Это явно не про этот альбом. Приятно осознавать, что группа подтверждает свой культовый статус таким сильным альбомом, который претендует на звание лучшего у группы. Поэтому он вполне достоин высшего балла. |
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2. Shadow In The Black
Place that is not a place
Vortex of fire The Gateway
To all the outer planes
Where life's own Magic mountains
Circle beyond all time
Feeding The Tree with white light
Demons in dark disguise
Shall never break The Lifeline
Before The Throne
Demon of wrath
Not flesh nor bone
A shadow in the black
Cryptic The Spiral Way
Even so in this space-age
Leaving rectors dismayed
Seeking out wisdom's daybreak
Hidden by dark of night
Not even seen by hindsight
Spectre who plagues the mind
Of Bards inside the limelight
Before The Throne
Demon of wrath
Not flesh nor bone
A shadow in the black
Nightmare like is the unknown
Demon seed guarding The Throne
Test of faith probing The Soul
Eight fold way of paying the toll
[CHORUS]
Frost, from beyond the grave
Fire, to burn us the way
Rock, the strength of The Soul
Fight, this shadow of old
Here inside The Maze
Trinity of Flame
As the lightning cracks
We banish the shadow in the black
Holy war and righteous crusades
Like burning Witches at the stake
Narrow minds will never believe
Until The Dead rise from The Sea
[CHORUS]
3. Divine Victim
Hail to the Queen
Of Victory
Her holy war was England's shame
She was no fiend
Of heresy
Put to the death by evil's flame
[CHORUS]
Another victim
Of Christianity
Ecclesiastic fire from Hell
Divine the victim
No sanctuary
Her sacred soul she would not sell
Faithful her ways
Through all her days
Enlightened child of Tree and Stone
Born of the slaved
All France she saved
Conquering Angels of Orleans
[CHORUS]
4. Hammer Of The Witches
Hammer of Hell
Not of The Well
A book of sin
Fathered by men
Unholy deeds
Done out of greed
Murder by law
In the Name of God
Burn them all
Burn them all
Burn them all
The blood runs cold
We've paid the toll
They burned the truth
Out of our youth
Bringers of pain
In the Father's name
Not of The Well
We'll send them back to Hell
And burn them all
Burn them all
Burn them all
5. Morbid Tabernacle
[Instrumental]
6. Isle Of The Dead
Across the seas of nevermore
There lies the ancient bloody shore
Where living dead still walk the land
Demon warriors of the damned
The fires burn blood red
Upon the Isle of the Dead
The mariners still tell the tale
Of the island gate to Hell
Where sinners of the seven seas
Live out the curse of blasphemy
The fires burn blood red
Upon the Isle of the Dead
Black gate to Nifleheim
The Bells of Hell still chime
Judgement beyond the grave
Condemns their souls to burn in flames
The fires burn blood red
Upon the Isle of the Dead
7. Taken By Storm
Black horizon
Darker than night
The Forest echoes
Tales of the fight
A Holy Warchild
Come to The Stone
To worship wisdom
Usurp The Throne
Fire in his eyes
Like flames of war
Burning the skies
Taken by storm
Armies of Hell
Devouring life
Knights of The Well
Stand strong and fight
On nightmares' wings
Atland shall die
The Tyrant King
Opens The Eye
Black Magik steel
Come to the land
Sons of The Wheel
Make their last stand
8. The Deluge
[I. Eye of the Sea]
Lost from memory
Plato's tragedy
Few are left that believe
In the land of mystery
To all shores they did flee
Warned in time by The Priests
Atlantis' key
The Eye of the Sea
[II. The Drowned Lands]
From the depths of the ocean
Came the spawn of the deep
From the wratch of Poseidon
Tritons rose from the sea
Fire and rain from the Heavens
Triton waves rose to the sky
Split asunder by Poseidon
For opening The Sacred Eye
Land of all wonders
Engulfed by the waves
Where pyramids first rose
And sank to their graves
Isle of our fathers
Founder of our ways
Now lost to the oceans
And blue corral caves
Valusia's great Trident
Thrust into the land
Collapsing what once was
By Poseidon's hand
Flood of destruction
Remembered by all
Though most have forgotten
Atlantis' Fall
[III. Engulfed Cathedral]
9. Friction In Mass
Feeling the pain
Inside this tortured frame
Scrying the past
Visions in broken glass
Riding The Wave
To bring back The Ancient Ways
Rune Spells be cast
Dark secret of Holy Mass
Oh can't you tell
The Magik is inside The Well
The Triad's flames
Doth cover all the planes
Fight to the last
Be more than war Friction in Mass
Black hail and rain
Nightmares outside the brain
Unholy wrath
Friction that lights The Path
Knights of the Flame
Defenders in Odin's name
Life comes to pass
The Magik of Hallowmas
Oh can't you see
The Fire is inside of thee
The Triad's flames
Doth cover all the planes
Fight to the last
Be more than war Friction in Mass
Sacred Laws of old
And ancient spells
Are never lost to those
Born of The Well
The icey wastes of home
Bred into me
A taste for the unknown
A hate for blasphemy
The waters of The Lake
Purify The Soul
But wisdom of The Fates
Always has its toll
The Fires of Mars have burned
Inside of thee
The tides shall soon be turned
By destiny
Evil lords of war
Drunk on virgin blood
Ram through the door
Letting loose The Flood
Titons rise again
Gorgons of Light
The wars now begin
'Tis time to fight
Warriors rise from the grave
Longships sailing The Wave
Bloodshed on every shore
Friction massing from war
Knights of The Flame
Rise from the grave
Fight to the last
Friction In Mass
Too wild to tame
Setting the world ablaze
Bards of the craft
Burning the midnight wax
Breaking the chain
Avenging the wrongly slain
Lords of The Axe
Servants of Candlemas
Oh can't you see
The Magik is inside of thee.
10. Rest In Pieces
[Instrumental]