I admit it. I’m a Rhapsody fan. I’ve taken a lot of crap for it (and given just as much back), but it’s worth it – and I refuse to call them Rhapsody of Fire. So it’s only natural I get excited when their guitarist and primary songwriter Luca Turilli puts out a solo album. Hell, I should be doing cartwheels because this is one of two albums he has just released (the other one is under the moniker of Luca Turilli’s Dreamquest). Unfortunately, in the case of this, The Infinite Wonders of Creation, I find myself rather bored and unimpressed, but at least amused with the subject matter.
If Rhapsody is symphonic epic Hollywood metal, then this album is symphonic epic hippie metal. What the hell is hippie metal, you ask? No, it isn’t Cathedral and other such stoner bands – it’s metal all about the wonders of nature. Yes, that’s right. We get tracks with titles like “Mother Nature”, “Silver Moon”, and “The Miracle of Life”. You know, I love nature as much as anybody else, and often stand in awe of it, but I got enough songs about it when I was in grade school – “On Top of Old Smokey”, “This Land is Your Land”, “America the Beautiful” – you get the idea. I don’t want to hear about it in my metal, really.
Although many of the trademark Rhapsody elements are here, the music is significantly watered down. It doesn’t help that much of the vocals are handled by the thin-voiced Bridget Fogle. When she gets paired up with Olaf Hayer, she all but disappears. Aside from that, all the bombast and grandeur are gone. As Hayer pours his heart into lyrics about “My beloved wild jumping dolphins / and the whales’ immortal chant”, you can’t help but laugh. Such a far cry away from “The Ancient Forest of Elves”… Overall, a bit too much gothic-type stuff here, tracks that would normally be used as filler or interludes on a Rhapsody album here take center stage, and it’s just not a good fit.
Maybe I should be happy that this album is such a snoozer. It could mean that Turilli is still saving his best ideas for Rhapsody’s forthcoming epic Triumph or Agony. As for Dreamquest, you’ll just have to wait for that review – coming soon.
