Theories Of Flight
Right from the impressive first minutes of their new album, Fates Warning proves itself to be one of those rare veteran bands capable of delivering new material as poignant as powerful as their many high points of the past. One listen to the textures, momentum, attack and emotion in “From The Rooftops,” and it’s apparent that the band who defined progressive metal with albums such as ‘Awaken The Guardian,’ ‘Perfect Symmetry,’ ‘Parallels’ and ‘A Pleasant Shade Of Gray’ has plenty of new paths to travel…
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Performed by the core lineup that returned to form with 2013’s ‘Darkness In A Different Light’ (guitarist Jim Matheos, vocalist Ray Alder, bassist Joey Vera, and drummer Bobby Jarzombek), Fates Warning’s twelfth album, ‘Theories Of Flight,’ is a new facet of the band’s signature mix of melodic finesse, high-level performance and brooding melancholy.
It even pushes the goalposts of the previous album out a bit further in each direction. Subdued parts are that much more lush, while other moments strike with ferocity not heard on a Fates album in quite some time. With the aforementioned core four providing most of the performances, occasional Fates member Frank Aresti performs guitar solos on “From The Rooftops” and “White Flag,” while current touring member Michael Abdow also has a guitar solo spot on the latter tune.
With hooky, melodic burners such as “Seven Stars” and “SOS” leading to the more involved “The Light And Shade Of Things,” and even more light and shade beyond that, until the dramatic title track concludes the journey, ‘Theories Of Flight’s 53 minutes is definitive Fates Warning
