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A Pleasant Shade of Gray

Fates Warning

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Album Review

Though they'd pretty much come to epitomize the very essence of progressive metal over the years with their ever-challenging work, Fates Warning had surprisingly never committed to a full-on concept album — almost a prerequisite of the genre. That is, until 1997's ambitious A Pleasant Shade of Gray, which corrected this oversight with 12 tracks forming a single, Herculean magnum opus. But while it offers up another helping of rhythmically complex progressive metal full of intricately woven time changes, this is no Operation: Mindcrime. The guitar riffs and melodic hooks contained here are simply not that memorable, requiring way too many listens before leaving any lasting impressions and overshadowing the band's remarkable musicianship. There are no song titles either; each track is identified as "Part I," "Part II," etc., with perhaps the most memorable moments taking place on "Part IV" through "Part VIII" (the last, a loving tribute to Kansas if ever there was one). All told, A Pleasant Shade of Gray is a challenging listen and not for the faint of heart. ~ Steve Huey & Ed Rivadavia, Rovi

Customer Reviews

part XII

this track is really cool...gets stuck in my head all day. no one else does this! some might compair to dream theater, but i think they are quite different. FW is to me more about the bottom line--interesting music. Where as DT imo gets a bit carried away , and their singer is intollerable. FW actually weaves atmosphere. Interesting that Kevin Moore is involved. this album is the real metropolis part 2...

Easy to overlook, impossible to forget

This is probably one of the most challenging albums that I have ever listened to. While it doesn't have the political stylings of other concept albums (ie, The Wall, Mindcime I & II), this is one of the deepest compositions that I've come across in a very long time. As a long time fan of FW, I remember being physically stunned the first time I listened to it. The lyrics alone will no doubt guide anyone going through just about any hardship to a better place emotionally, but its the music that grabs you and doesn't let go. This is one of those albums that you could listen to for several months straight, and still discover something new every time you listen to it. If you are new to Fates Warning, this is not a bad starting point, because it nicely fills in the gap from Perfect Symmetry. Its as if 'Parallels' and 'Inside Out' were just a bad dream. The biggest challange with Fates Warning is picking a favorite song or album, as there are too many to choose from. This opus makes that decision of picking a favorite album much more difficult.

kind of grey

This one has steadily grown on me for over a year now. I am still noticing new shades of beauty. I really appriciate that these guys had the artistic integrity and the creativity to put out this masterpiece!

Biography

Formed: Hartford, CT

Genre: Rock

Years Active: '80s, '90s, '00s, '10s

When prog rock first reared its head during the early '70s, it contained elements of hard rock, but few bands crossed the line into heavy metal. This all changed during the '80s, when bands such as Dream Theater, Watchtower, and Fates Warning merged their love of Yes and Rush with their admiration for Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. Formed in Hartford, CT in 1983, Fates Warning has endured quite a few lineup changes since its inception, with the exception of guitarist Jim Matheos, who has been present...
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