Elements Pt. 2

Elements Pt. 2 is the second half of the diptych, on which, while inheriting the symphonic, grand scale shown on the first half Elements Pt. 1, Stratovarius places its weight on tighter riffs and dramatic melody. Keyboards and guitar intertwine flamboyantly, and each song is clearly built toward widely opened choruses. A record that powerfully caps the grand diptych. Shadowed, solemn introductions and weighty, heavy passages add another deep hue to Stratovarius’s native bright, brisk speed. Keeping the orchestral grandeur the first half held, its major distinction is strongly putting forward a more straight-ahead, powerful metal side. An ambitious work whose grand concept’s whole picture comes clearly into view by listening through both halves. The band’s appeals — speed, symphonic elements and dramatic development — are packed in without reserve. Splendidly completing an ambitious diptych project, it is a fulfilling symphonic-power-metal work — a record showing the height of the band’s creative drive.