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В 1987 году в истории тяжелой музыки произошло знаменательное событие: увидел свет третий альбом тогда еще ничем не отличившейся и малоизвестной группы Helloween. Альбом носил ставшее теперь легендарным название "Keeper Of The Seven Keys: Part I". Через год Helloween выпустили продолжение "Keeper Of The Seven Keys: Part II". Музыка, представленная на этих альбомах, являлась чем-то средним между speed и heavy metal, она блистала мелодичными гитарными риффами, скоростными соло, мощными барабанными партиями и высоким вокалом. Так появился на свет жанр power metal. Helloween получили громадное признание, за ними потянулись десятки, а со временем - сотни подражателей. "Киперы" для многих и по сей день являются важнейшим событием в тяжелой музыке. Но Helloween предстояло непростое испытание. Фактически сразу после выхода " Part II" лидер и основной композитор группы Kai Hansen покинул ряды своей команды, основав Gamma Ray. Оставшись без него, музыканты не смогли или не захотели продолжить линию, проведенную бывшим лидером, и выпустили два довольно спорных, хоть по-своему и неплохих альбома, тем не менее, разочаровав большую часть фанатов, присоединившихся к группе со времен первого Keeper'а. Затем группу покинул незабвенный вокалист Michael Kiske. Так заканчивается эра классического Helloween.
В 2009-ом году Michael Kiske, после работы в нескольких так и не добившихся большого успеха проектах, основывает новую группу под названием Unisonic. 5-го июня 2010-го года он впервые за 17 лет выходит на сцену. А в 2011-ом году для многих происходит и вовсе невероятное событие: гитаристом и основным композитором Unisonic становится Kai Hansen. Итак, два столпа классического Helloween снова вместе: легендарный голос и легендарный гитарист-композитор. Оправдывает ли Unisonic столь гигантские ожидания и надежды? На самом деле, ответить на этот вопрос невероятно сложно, а быть может, и вовсе невозможно. Хотя бы потому, что Unisonic - это не "Keeper Of The Seven Keys: Part III", а нечто своеобразное и самодостаточное. Поэтому я не стану проводить никаких параллелей с творениями 1987-1988 годов, а рассмотрю данный релиз, как дебютный альбом новой немецкой группы.
Музыка коллектива соединила в себе любовь к hard rock и power metal. В итоге получилась смесь из высокой мелодичности и довольно низкой скорости и тяжести. Такой подход выглядит свежо и говорит о хорошем взаимопонимании между Каем и остальными участниками группы, так как Kiske и Ward изначально задумывали Unisonic рок-проектом, но в итоге получился все же power metal с ярко выраженными оттенками hard'n'heavy. Наверное, именно поэтому складывается ощущение, что альбом был записан еще в середине девяностых - настолько его звучание не похоже на современный power. Все музыканты группы - «ветераны», поэтому в техническом плане альбом на высоте. Материал получился разнообразным, на релизе есть и скоростные вещи, и среднетемповые, не обошлось и без меланхолических баллад, которых было записано целых три. Что же до отдельных композиций, то они все по-своему хороши; кому-то не понравятся одни, кому-то другие, а для кого-то альбом и вовсе окажется безупречным.
Что же с вокалом? Michael Kiske уже совсем не тот, что прежде, в нем более нет его юношеского задора и необузданной харизмы, поутихла страсть к высоким нотам. Это совсем другой, повзрослевший Kiske, спокойный, размеренный и… без единого волоска на голове. И все же, потеряв значительную силу своего голоса, он оставил за собой уникальность и узнаваемость, а также свое мастерство. Kiske не разучился красиво петь, делает это он довольно разнообразно и технично, и объективный слушатель вряд ли станет его в чем-либо упрекать.
Вывод: альбом получился крепким, целостным и интересным. В первую очередь он хорош тем, что предлагает музыку, в которой разные типы слушателей обязательно найдут что-то для себя, такого эффекта позволила добиться открытая музыкальная концепция группы. Этот альбом мало в чем можно упрекнуть, он действительно аккуратно создан, и может быть подвергнут лишь личной критике. Так что если вы любите rock и metal, и до сих пор не послушали этот замечательный альбом, то сделайте это - вряд ли вы пожалеете о потраченном времени. |
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Everybody there?
How about you?
Come on over here
Get in the groove
Another ride
Another day
We've come and gone
A long long way!
Unisonic, unisonic, unisonic
Chuggin like a monster
Buzzin like a hive
Everything is set
To overdrive
Give a little here
Take a little there
Living on the edge but
I don't care.
Another ride
Another day
We've come and gone
A long long way!
Unisonic, unisonic, unisonic
Comin out of nowhere
Healing all the pain
Summoning the demons
From your brain
Frisk you up
Shake you down
Listen to the sounds around
And when the stars will come alive
A million voices fill the sky
And then a sound will shake the night
It's Unisonic!
And there's no end to come I know
There is no enemy or foe
We're cryin out for all the world to know:
We're Unisonic!
Unisonic!
2. Souls Alive
[Music: Meyer, Lyrics: Ward]
Shot in the dark, walk in the park
Hiding frustration, refusing to talk
Loosing your mind, pretending nothing is wrong.
Ooh, such a lonely child
Hiding the tears, wasting the years
Trapped in a world of despair
Kneel to insanity, don´t let the cries be heard
They are the young hearts that suffer in the end
Need some time to make amends
Need to find another way
The cloth was only a disguise,
Abuse of power, simply lies
Heaven, keep their souls alive
Blank is the face, show no disgrace
Feeling alone in this gathering place
Reading the lines, but none define what they do
Ooh, what a cautious child
Open their mind, reasons we´ll find
Why must one be so betrayed?
Kneel to insanity, don't let the cries be heard
They are the:
Young hearts that suffer in the end
Need some time to make amends
Need to find another way
The cloth was only a disguise,
Abuse of power, simply lies
Heaven, keep their souls alive
They see the light, feel the hand on their shoulder
Wrong or right? they don´t want you to know
Who´s to blame? when the world's in denial
Where´s the shame? can you look them in the eyes?
Look at them in their eyes.
Can you see our demise?
3. Never Too Late
[Music: Hansen, Lyrics: Hansen]
I sit at home, I’m all alone,
I don’t know what to do
don't wanna see nobody else
I get so bored with all the news,
they bring me down again
I end up talking to myself
There is a voice inside my head
it talks to me again and says:
Wait,
‘cos there is a million ways to make my day
out on my own
Wait,
‘cos there is a million songs, still left unsung,
still to create
and it’s never too late
Whatever’s cool with all the fools
is not for my own sake
don’t wanna ask for no one’s help
I’ll find the key and let them see
I do it my own way
and if they try to break my will
The voice comes back into my head
it talks to me again and says:
Wait,
‘cos there is a million ways to make my day
out on my own
Wait,
‘cos there is a million songs, still left unsung,
still to create
and it’s never too late
There’s a way to be free from the dark
and there’s a way to get out of all the cold
There’s a way to be safe from it all
there’s a way, a better way
There is a voice inside my head
just walk the silver line
or rather you’d be dead
Wait,
‘cos there is a million ways to make your day
out on your own
Wait,
‘cos there is a million songs, still left unsung,
still to create
and it’s never too late
4. I've Tried
[Music: Ward, Lyrics: Ward]
I’ve been down
long and tedious roads
Stood alone in the dark
with all that I own
My agenda is open and simple:
I must survive, ohhhh
There’s so many things one can regret
and more that one denies
but I’ll always have my pride
Don’t you know that I’ve tried
shying away from danger
hiding the tears I’ve cried
brushing aside the anger
God only knows how I’ve tried
The words define
and occupy our mind
but the question remains:
Is this craving for freedom
still what we strive?
For our hearts are torn with delusions
of who we are, ohhhh
So I’ll ask my judge and jurors be
to take it all in stride
cuz’ it’s building up inside
Don’t you know that I’ve tried
shying away from danger
hiding the tears I’ve cried
brushing aside the anger
Yes I’ve tried
letting the rest think for me
swallowing all my pride
I never said I’m sorry
but God only knows how I’ve tried
Where is the sin?
The crime is “knowing everything”
So I often wonder:
Why should I care
when the crime’s everywhere?
I might have been a fool
for giving more than I had
Don’t you know what I’ve tried
shying away from danger
hiding the tears I’ve cried
brushing aside the anger
Yes I’ve tried
letting the rest think for me
swallowing all my pride
I never said I’m sorry
but God only knows how I’ve tried
yes, God only knows how I’ve tried
5. Star Rider
[Music: Ward, Lyrics: Ward/Hansen]
The sky is dark, it's nearing dawn
and all the senses are aware
The drama mounts, the camera’s on
there is a tension in the air
All systems go, t minus nine
and vapor soars across the sun
He’s lifting up to the divine
the thunder shakes him like a gun
All for one
Star rider – star rider
heeding the call
Out in the heavens
one and for all
He’s lifting up and looking out
over the mountains down below
Raise your hands
He’s got to prove, beyond a doubt
there is a space that we should know
It’s such a grand illusion
And then the light becomes the dark
home is so very far away
Got to stake your claim
The second stage left on the mark
Right on the mark
And all that’s left is just to pray
Gonna be what you wanna be
Make the day!
Following the truth following the
Star rider – star rider
heeding the call
Out in the heavens
one and for all
It’s all that I wanna be
so much that I can’t believe
It’s magic!
It’s all that I wanna be
so much that I can’t believe
It’s all that I wanna be
so much that I can’t believe
Show me
There’s more than the eye can see
far behind the sun...
Star rider – star rider
heeding the call
Out in the heavens
one and for all
6. Never Change Me
[Music: Hansen, Lyrics: Hansen]
So here we're talking again tonight
and you say nothing is alright for you
that things could all be so much better
if I would choose a different way
There’s one thing you should know
before I turn to go:
You’ve pulled the trigger on a bomb
and the timer’s going crazy
No, you’ll never change me tonight
‘cos so far I’m doing alright
You’ll get the best of me
but you will never change me
at all
Heaven knows what I’ve gone through
and the situation’s getting worse
the same old game, it drives me crazy
I need a place to hide
before I kiss the sky
You’ve got my back to the wall
but it never gets you anywhere
No, you’ll never change me tonight
‘cos so far I’m doing alright
You’ll get the best of me
but you will never change me
never change me at all
Don’t need a reason why
now go and kiss the sky
this is our last goodbye
You’ve got your ass on a bomb, and the timer’s going...
No, you’ll never change me tonight
‘cos so far I’m doing alright
You’ll get the best of me
but you will never change me
never change me at all
7. Renegade
[Music: Ward, Lyrics: Ward]
I can feel the winds are changing
thunder’s underground
Like an unsung visionary
longing to be found
Take me home
I’ve got no place I can roam
Been a rebel for so long
All the days I’ve had to be strong
being my own savior
Faces in the night
they storm the barricades
Run with the renegades
“wrong” is now the “right”
leading this escapade
Run with the renegades
Is it time for retribution?
Or is it time to die?
Should I live in constant fear, it’s
one eye for an eye?
I’m on fire
my will out reasons desire
And I’m tired of walking the wire
All this time it took me to learn
I don’t need a savior
Faces in the night
they storm the barricades
Run with the renegades
“wrong” is now the “right”
leading this escapade
My path’s already laid
when I run with the renegades
Take me home
there’s nowhere left I can roam
It’s a journey to the unknown
I’ve been waiting here far too long
let me be your savior
Faces in the night
Faces in the night
they storm the barricades
We run with the renegades
“wrong” is now the “right”
out on our escapade
They carry us away, because
our path’s already made
And we run with the renegades
8. My Sanctuary
[Music: Ward/Hansen, Lyrics: Ward]
I play a role in a world gone wrong
Create a man that can do what I can't do
Skills are meant for two.
Into the realm where the shadows fall
I'm looking for the one that will
Keep me safe from you
And tell me who is who
Now I'm hiding from the enemy
Just fighting to be me
I'm out in the cold
So alive, running free
In my sanctuary
Flying on wings of eternal bliss
Preoccupied with a creature that won't fall
I left him standing tall
I'm summoned then to a familiar place
And looming in the door is a woman oh so cool
She says "your kind of late for school"
Now I'm screaming out in misery
Why can't she leave me be?
I'm out in the cold
So alive, running free
In my sanctuary
Flying high, only me
In my sanctuary, my sanctuary
I'm hiding from the enemy
So much to loose
I wanna take control
Sanctuary, Sanctuary
Give me Sanctuary
So alive, running free
In my sanctuary
Flying high, only me
In my sanctuary, my sanctuary
Give me sanctuary, sanctuary
Give me sanctuary, sanctuary
So alive, running free
In my sanctuary
9. King For A Day
[Music: Hansen, Lyrics: Hansen]
Where are the chains
that keep holding me down in my life
Who holds the key
to unlock all the doors in my mind
No one came to rescue me
I don’t want to wait for a sign
I take my leave from all I’ve known
and fly out into the divine
Free as the wind
onwards I sail
King of my world
King for a day
Where is the love
I’ve been searching for all of the time
Who is the God
that just keeps me from heaven to find
On and on and on I hear myself
cry for redemption
Let me go
I walk the line and I will waste no time
I’m free and I am me after all
Free as the wind
onwards I sail
King of my world
King for a day
I am free as the wind
onwards I sail
King of my world
King for a day
I am free as the wind
and on and on, on and on I sail
in my great white hall I’m leaving all, I’ll
be forever
King for a day
10. We Rise
[Music: Ward/Hansen, Lyrics: Ward]
Hands of time are spinning
miles and miles rolling away in the dark
One more night defeated
paid our dues so we can leave our mark
but it takes forever
Wait for me, oh wait for me
though all is said and done
driven by desire to be the number one
We rise, we fall
the writings on the wall
I don’t want to live this life forever
It’s all a game
It’s always been the same
No one gets to live this life forever!
Seeds of fate are growing
like a vine creeping into the cracks
First comes the delusion
then reality will break you apart
without compensation
Wait for me, oh wait for me
though all is said and done
driven by desire to be the number one
We rise, we fall
the writings on the wall
I don’t want to live this life forever
It’s all a game
it’s always been the same
And no one gets to live this life forever!
We rise, we fall
the writings on the wall
I don’t want to live this life forever!
It’s all a game
it’s always been the same
no one gets to live this life forever!
11. No One Ever Sees Me
[Music: Kiske, Lyrics: Kiske]
Anna hurts herself to cover up
the deeper pain inside
and if you ask she’s alright
but in the night she cries
Her father says: You better get your head right!
Cause if you don’t, you’ll lose the fight of life!
You’ll find a man that will give you guidance
Who you can tell what you never shared with us
do you ever think about us?
No one ever sees me!
No one ever hears me!
No one knows me
No one feels my pain
I fade away
Sati’s dad is honoring
what always was tradition
he will choose who’ll marry her,
there must be no confusion!
And if she starts to babble ‘bout love
I will forget what I am made of
I will end her life with my own hands
do what it takes and what honor still demands
it ends right here
No one ever sees me!
No one ever hears me!
No one knows me
No one feels my pain
I fade away
No one ever sees me!
No one ever hears me!
No one knows me
No one feels my pain
12. Over The Rainbow
[Limited Edition Bonus Track]
[Music: Hansen, Lyrics: Hansen]
I was a child, a little boy
the world a place of endless joy
When tears were falling from my face
you came to dry them all away
So come to me and make me see
the smile upon your face
But yesterday is miles away
another time and place
The evening comes and shadows fall
and then I realize:
Another day I’ll see you in the light
Over the rainbow
Over the rainbow
Flying high among the clouds
our souls united in a shroud
eternity will be our place
so safe and sound beyond the race
So I don’t care about the world
as I vanish in the night
I know I’ll see you on the other side
Over the Rainbow
Over the Rainbow
I should have done better
but in the end
all that matters is peace of mind
all we shall amend
Yeah, we should have done better
we shall amend
but all that matters
is freedom of mind in the end
We’re flying high...
Over the rainbow
(we fly among the stars)
Over the rainbow
with the beating of our hearts
Over the rainbow
out in Space and time
Over the rainbow
finding peace of mind
13. The Morning After
[Japanese Bonus Track]
Still we go! It's all a show
How much farther can we fall, who knows?
There used to be eternal bliss everyday
Innocence has no defense
Being labeled as not heaven sent
It's the hardest lesson to be learned
And it shows us all the way
You can win, you can lose
You must try and have to choose
Don't give in! There will be a morning after
It's a fight, not a game!
And for love nothing's in vein
Don't just lock away the passion in your heart
Mothers cry, children die
All in all it's one goodbye
We're crying out: What's leading us through the night?!
Some of us carry much
It's often hard to stay in touch
With their inner light to guide them through
But it shows us all the way
You can win, you can lose
You must try and have to chose
Don't give in! There will be a morning after!
It's a fight, not a game!
And for love nothing's in vein
Don't give in! There will be a morning after!