Like on the first ‘Acoustic Adventures‘ album I have zero complains about Tony‘s vocals. He is still just as good as when these songs where first recorded. I guess not everyone likes his voice, but personally, I absolutely love it and I think it’s pretty impressive, sounding great not only in his normal style, but also in these far softer, acoustic songs. There is just so much feeling in his voice and in these songs. For me, this works especially well in ‘San Sebastian‘ and ‘Victoria’s Secret‘, which have been drastically reduced in speed, maybe even better than in their original version.
The acoustic arrangements feel more intimate than their original versions, but they don’t lack technical finesse. As on ‘Volume 1’ the mix and production have been done very nicely. There aren’t really any surprises on the album though, I mean this both in the best and in the worst way. These versions are instant classics. They feel like they were always meant to be this way, but they also feel like you listened to them millions of times already after just a few spins.
In conclusion, I can only say that this album is exactly what you’d expect: another 12 acoustic versions of well known Sonata Arctica songs. Nothing more, nothing less. The only song that is a bit more extravagant is ‘Flag In The Ground‘, but to be honest I like the more classical approach to acoustic songs better, so I don’t actually miss any big experimention here.
SONATA ARCTICA are:
Tony Kakko | vocals & keyboards
Elias Viljanen | guitars
Pasi Kauppinen | bass
Henrik “Henkka” Klingenberg | keyboards
Tommy Portimo | drums
Links
REVIEW SCORE
| 7.6 | If you’ve heard Volume 1 of ‘Acoustic Adventures‘, you already have a pretty clear view on what to expect from this record. It’s still great quality, but don’t expect any surprises or big innovations, simply acoustic versions of another 12 well known Sonata Arctica songs. Nothing more, nothing less. |
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