Visions | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 28 April 1997 [1] | |||
Recorded | October 1996 – February 1997 | |||
Studio | Finnvox Studios, Helsinki | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 61:01 [2] | |||
Label | Noise | |||
Producer | Timo Tolkki | |||
Stratovarius chronology | ||||
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Singles from Visions | ||||
Visions is the sixth studio album by power metal band Stratovarius, released on 28 April 1997 through Noise Records. The album reached No. 4 on the Finnish albums chart and remained on that chart for 23 weeks. [1] It is a concept album about Nostradamus. [5]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Rock Hard | 9.5/10 [6] |
Steve Huey at AllMusic gave Visions four stars out of five, calling it "as ambitious as neoclassical metal gets" and saying "there are some fine moments on the record", but also remarking that "too much of the material sinks under its own weight, particularly the ten-minute title track." [5]
In 2005, the album was ranked No. 297 in Rock Hard magazine's book of The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time. [7]
Loudwire named the album at sixth in their list "Top 25 Power Metal Albums of All Time." [8] Metal Hammer also named the album in their list "The 10 essential power metal albums." [9]
All music is composed by Timo Tolkki, except where noted
No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "The Kiss of Judas" | Timo Kotipelto | 5:49 |
2. | "Black Diamond" | Kotipelto | 5:39 |
3. | "Forever Free" | Kotipelto | 6:00 |
4. | "Before the Winter" | Tolkki | 6:07 |
5. | "Legions" | Tolkki | 5:43 |
6. | "The Abyss of Your Eyes" | Kotipelto | 5:38 |
7. | "Holy Light" | (instrumental) | 5:45 |
8. | "Paradise" | Tolkki | 4:27 |
9. | "Coming Home" | Tolkki | 5:36 |
10. | "Visions (Southern Cross)" | Tolkki | 10:17 |
Total length: | 61:01 |
No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
---|---|---|---|
11. | "Black Diamond" (demo) | Kotipelto | 5:07 |
12. | "Uncertainty" (live; music by Kotipelto) | Kotipelto | 6:13 |
Chart (1997) | Peak position |
---|---|
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) [12] | 4 |
Japanese Albums (Oricon) [13] | 18 |
Stratovarius is a Finnish power metal band. Formed in 1984, they have released sixteen studio albums, five DVDs and six live albums. The band's line-up has changed many times, and after guitarist Timo Tolkki's departure in 2008, no founding members remain. Currently, the longest standing member is singer Timo Kotipelto, who joined in 1994.
Timo Tapio Tolkki is a Finnish musician best known as the former guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer of the power metal band Stratovarius. With his tenure lasting for more than twenty years, he was the longest standing member of the band before his departure in 2008. After leaving Stratovarius he formed two supergroups named Revolution Renaissance and Symfonia, both of which have since disbanded. In a 2011 article by Guitar World magazine, Tolkki was included in the all-time top 50 list of the world's fastest guitarists.
Keeper of the Seven Keys: Part I is the second studio album by German power metal band Helloween, released in 1987. It marks the first appearance of vocalist Michael Kiske, and is considered the album that created the genre of European-style power metal.
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The Metal Opera Pt. II is the second full-length album by Tobias Sammet's German supergroup project, Avantasia. It is a concept album and a metal opera. The songs carry on the story begun in The Metal Opera, with the same characters. Both albums were written over the course of a year, starting in the last quarter of 1998, and both were produced from October 1999 to June 2000, with the works being interrupted for some weeks so Sammet could produce The Savage Poetry with his other band Edguy.
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Elysium is the thirteenth studio album by power metal band Stratovarius, released on 12 January 2011 through Victor Entertainment (Japan) and on 14 January through Edel AG (worldwide). It is the last Stratovarius album to feature longtime drummer Jörg Michael, who left the band in 2012. Elysium reached No. 1 on the Finnish albums chart, as well as reaching the top 80 in five other countries. "Darkest Hours" was released as a single, reaching No. 4 on the Finnish singles chart.
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