BIOGRAPHY:

For years, Symphony X were victims of the cruel fate which befalls many an American act, the “Big In Europe/Japan Syndrome.” Since signing to InsideOut Music, the situation has improved, but The Odyssey, the sixth studio album from this heretofore underappreciated New Jersey outfit, Symphony X will make a major impact here at home! The nine tracks expand beyond the progressive metal base that has earned the band a devout audience, who travel hundreds, if not thousands of miles, to witness one of the rare Stateside appearances, including co-headlining gigs at both ProgPower USA festivals. Poised for their first US tour, supporting the live debut of Blind Guardian, scores of new converts are on the horizon. “We are really looking forward to touring in our own country,” offers Michael Romeo, a seasoned veteran of many overseas jaunts. “We didn’t want to do a concept album again, so it was back to old stuff, more striped down, aggressive.” The Odyssey unites Symphony X hallmarks: top notch musicianship and sharp melodic vocals, with some new, heavier guitar tones and gritty production values. That isn’t to say they skimped on the recording. “There is still piano and some of the nicer, longer songs, but guitars and vocals are just up front this time, more heavy riffs, a little tougher,” explains the guitarist. “From the start of songwriting, we decided to let the new material sound harder and rawer, more ´in your face`, if you like. It was great to see it all, even Russell had fun making his vocal lines more spontaneous and harder.”

´Wicked`, and ´Incantations Of The Apprentice` prove the decision to employ a more punishing sound was successful, while the aptly titled ´King Of Terrors` (complete with sinister Vincent Price voiceover), is one of the most lethal songs in the Symphony X arsenal. “The lyrics to ´King Of Terrors` are based on The Pit & The Pendulum by Edgar Allan Poe,” says Romeo. “We had the feeling that this dark, heavy song needed dark spooky lyrics. Edgar Allan Poe is perfect for stuff like this.” Some might worry the band’s stellar abilities will be overshadowed by this newfound muscle. Fear not. ´Accolade II`, a continuation of the song on The Divine Wings Of Tragedy, is proof the heavier sound hasn’t completely buried the band's more melodic, epic side. The 29-minute title track, sub-divided into seven distinct chapters, is a breathtaking musical trip through Homer’s epic poem. A standard of literature classes around the globe, various stages of Odysseus' harrowing post-Trojan War journey home are played out, in both lyrical and instrumental forms. Symphony X relates the Greeks’ episode with a Cyclops (‘The Eye’), the temptations of the Sirens' song (´Sirens`), their conquest of Circe (´Circe – Daughter Of The Sun`), a perilous sea journey (´Scylla And Charybdis`) and finally the hero’s return home, with all its bloody consequences (´The Fate Of The Suitors / Champion Of Ithaka`). “Originally, Mike (LePond, bass) came up with the idea,”enthuses the guitarist. “I had just been watching The Seven Voyages Of Sinbad. God, I love Ray Harihousen. So I asked if it had the Cyclops in it. I especially like the chapter about Scylla and Charybdis, which we included in the form of a long instrumental part. It was a really exciting stage of Odysseus' journey. We’ve given it a real Wagner-like flair and lots of depth.”

In order to realize their visions of an exciting and deliberately harder album, Symphony X took over almost all the work on The Odyssey. In addition to the songwriting and arranging, all pre-production and the work in the studio was kept firmly in the musicians' control. “That requires a Hell of a lot of energy, but it’s definitely worth it”, Romeo says with satisfaction. Only the final mix of the songs was done outside the band. “I did all the pre-production at home and it was sounding good. I went out, bought a computer and took a month to learn how the (mixing) software worked. I started doing stuff, until ‘Disc Full.’ I thought, ‘What the Hell do we do now?’ That’s when I called Steve.” The person in question is Steve Evetts, who had worked with the band, on The Divine Wings Of Tragedy and who, in the meantime, had also mixed for Sepultura. “We got to a point where we needed someone objective, who could listen to the material with an open mind. Steve had an intuitive feeling about how the songs should sound. Luckily, he’d just returned from Brazil, so he said, ‘Bring your stuff over.’”

HISTORY:

Symphony X sprang to life in April 1994, following the release of Michael Romeo´s demo tape, The Dark Chapter. In addition to the former Gemini guitarist, the initial line-up included keyboardist Michael Pinnella and drummer Jason Rullo. That same year, the band recorded an eponymous debut. Eight months later, their sophomore release, The Damnation Game, introduced new singer Russell Allen, The album received tremendous critical praise. In the Fall of ‘96 their third installment, The Divine Wings Of Tragedy, Symphony X became an international sensation, garnering top marks with the European press and lofty positions in the annual Readers’ Polls in the most important metal mags throughout Germany, France and Italy. Accolades such as “the best Progressive Power Metal band in the world” and “the best Progressive Metal album of the year” were heaped onto Symphony X. After a line-up change, which saw Thomas Walling temporarily replaced Jason Rullo on drums, Twilight In Olympus hit stores in March of 1998. Around the same time, Symphony X made played their first concerts. The on-stage debut was in Japan, which kicked off a worldwide tour. Drummer Jason Rullo returned to the fold in time for the fifth studio album, appropriately entitled V—The New Mythology Suite. A European tour, in support of V, followed, in the Fall of 2000. During the tour, Symphony X recorded a 2 CD set, Live On The Edge Of Forever, at the legendary Paris venue, ´Elysee Montmartre`. The live album was released in October 2001, just in time for another European tour, this time supporting Savatage. Once again, the shows displayed the tremendous technical capabilities of each of the five band members. Symphony X is mentioned in the same mesmerizing, technically proficient breath as contemporaries like Dream Theater, Savatage and Transatlantic because of the superior quality of their music, as well as the superlative talents of band members Michael Romeo, singer Russell Allen, drummer Jason Rullo, keyboardist Michael Pinella and bass player Michael Lepond. These facts are not only underlined by every releases to date, but demonstrated more than ever on their new album, The Odyssey.