Description

The transition from Timo Tolkki to Timo Koltipelto proved to be a wise choice. Tolkki rivals Yngwie in how he plays on this and all Stratovarius albums. They both have similar styles. Koltipelto easily proves why he is in the band in the opening track “Against the Wind”. The very last verse of the song ends with a scream so high pitched, that i’m not sure if Michael Kiske or Geoff Tate could ever go that high. Songwriting on this album needs some improvement. Distant Skies has a great riff, but lacks compelling lyrics and 030366 seems like something that a teenage mallcore fan could make up in his sleep. One of the brightest spots of this album is the band named instrumental “Stratovarius”. If you don’t believe that Tolkki is even close to Yngwie, then check this song out! The album may have a few songs that you’ll always skip, but its a pretty decent place to start your Stratovarius collection.

Track listing:
1. Against The Wind
2. Distant Skies
3. Galaxies
4. Winter
5. Stratovarius
6. Lord Of All Wasteland
7. 030366
8. Nightfall
9. We Hold The Key
10. Twilight Symphony
11. Call Of The Wilderness