It’s an oddity, I guess, for someone who loves words as much as I do, that recently, I have rediscovered the joy of instrumental music.
And if a few weeks ago I may have skimmed over this, then no longer.
Missing “Drama” would have been a real loss, given how evocative even the opening “Illumination” is. The credits are going up here, your imagination is running wild.
And Marty Friedman is only getting started.
The string-laden opening of “Song for an Eternal Child” is simply beautiful and there’s a Latin feel, and if the first few of these have sounded like they belonged on the soundtrack to “Frozen” or some other grandiose production, then “Thrill City” is absolutely metal.
That’s the skill of people like Marty Friedman. They make the impossible look easy. They can do anything they like with a guitar – and that includes roping in Like A Storm’s Chris Brooks for the utterly soaring “Dead of Winter” – and rather giving a glimpse into the fact that if this record had gone down the vocals route, it would have been just as superb. Indeed, there is another version of the song in Spanish, with Steven Baquero Vargas taking over.
“Mirage” allows itself to extend over six and A half minutes, while at the other end of the scale, the 83 seconds of “Acapella” is a quirky little piece, which leads into the appropriately emotional “Tearful Confession” brilliantly.
Maybe a surprise to me just how gentle and soothing “Drama” is, as “Icicles” proves, is enough to melt anyone’s heart.
Perhaps because it was recorded in the Italian sunshine it sounds so laid back, gentle, and ultimately satisfying. Allow yourself to be immersed in its calming embrace.
“Drama” is a thrilling act in a stellar career.
Rating 8.5/10
