(Symphonic Metal / Operatic Metal) Therion - Sitra Ahra (Limited Edition) - 2010, APE (image+.cue+scans) lossless

REM GENRE "Gothic Metal"
REM DATE 2010
REM DISCID 9A0E5C0B
REM COMMENT "ExactAudioCopy v0.99pb4"
PERFORMER "Therion"
TITLE "Sitra Ahra"
FILE "Therion - Sitra Ahra.ape" WAVE
TRACK 01 AUDIO
TITLE "Introduction/Sitra Ahra"
PERFORMER "Therion"
FLAGS DCP
INDEX 01 00:00:00
TRACK 02 AUDIO
TITLE "Kings Of Edom"
PERFORMER "Therion"
FLAGS DCP
INDEX 01 05:24:63
TRACK 03 AUDIO
TITLE "Unguentum Sabbati"
PERFORMER "Therion"
FLAGS DCP
INDEX 01 14:16:49
TRACK 04 AUDIO
TITLE "Land Of Canaan"
PERFORMER "Therion"
FLAGS DCP
INDEX 01 19:26:48
TRACK 05 AUDIO
TITLE "Hellequin"
PERFORMER "Therion"
FLAGS DCP
INDEX 01 29:59:41
TRACK 06 AUDIO
TITLE "2012"
PERFORMER "Therion"
FLAGS DCP
INDEX 01 35:17:59
TRACK 07 AUDIO
TITLE "Cu Chulainn"
PERFORMER "Therion"
FLAGS DCP
INDEX 01 39:34:21
TRACK 08 AUDIO
TITLE "Kali Yuga - Part III"
PERFORMER "Therion"
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INDEX 01 43:50:50
TRACK 09 AUDIO
TITLE "The Shells Are Open"
PERFORMER "Therion"
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INDEX 01 47:31:70
TRACK 10 AUDIO
TITLE "Din"
PERFORMER "Therion"
FLAGS DCP
INDEX 01 51:16:42
TRACK 11 AUDIO
TITLE "Children Of The Stone - After The Inquisition"
PERFORMER "Therion"
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INDEX 01 53:54:31

"Biography"
Some thoughts by Christofer Johnsson about the lyrical concept behind Sitra Ahra:
The album is the fourth album in the quadralogy.
Back in 1999 I started to write music for a follow up album to Deggial. Lets call it Album-X. I wrote 7-8 songs for it before I one day played 2 songs (later named "Secret of The Runes" and "Asgard") to former guitarist Kristian Niemann that I had written for a side project (which in the end never happened) and he said "Hey, those songs should not be used for some project, they belong in Therion!" I didn't know how they would fit in with the THERION album I was writing on and didn't bother much about it until I woke up one day and had the idea tot to make a nordic concept album, in which those two songs actually was perfect. So Album-X had to be put on hold and instead the Secret of The Runes album was made.
In 2003 we went back to the saved songs to record a new album (Album-X, remember?), but meanwhile we had written a lot more songs and now all of a sudden we had enough material for 3 albums! Let's call them Album X, Y and Z. They formed a trilogy and we decided to record two of them and release at the same time and saved the third one for the future. So we recorded Sirius B (Album-X) and Lemuria (Album-Y) and Album-Z was saved.
2005 I got the idea for a completely different kind of album due to some songs I had written and the decision was made to put Album-Z on hold a bit longer and in 2006 we recorded Gothic Kabbalah instead. However, we took 2 songs from Album-Z ( "Der Mitternachtslöwe" and "Adulruna Rediviva") and put on the Gothic Kabbalah album and because of that this record got connected to the trilogy and thus we all of a sudden had a quadralogy.
In 2009 it was finally time to start record the Album-Z, now entitled Sitra Ahra. As we had taken 2 songs from it and put on Gothic Kabbalah, there was space for some new songs to be added as well.
The above is very important to understand, as this means only a few of the songs on Sitra Ahra are written in recent years. The majority of the songs are from the same pool of songs from which Sirius B and Lemuria was created from, meaning they were written between 2000-2004 (there was even a song from 1999, but we decided not to use it on the album in the end).
By no means they are to be regarded as "leftovers". These where songs equal to those ending up on Lemuria and Sirius B, we just divided the songs we had on 3 albums. This really created a unique approach to the songs as I have evolved so much musically since those songs were written. I think of it in terms as a vintage wine that becomes better and better with the years.
"Новости"
10 декабря 2010 года Киев посетит легендарная симфоник-металл группа Therion со своим новым альбомом, Sitra Ahra, который является завершающей главой в трилогии альбомов ‘Sirius B’ and ‘Lemuria’. Представлять группу Therion с ее неизменным лидером и основателем Кристофером Джонсоном не имеет смысла, группа и ее лидер являются основателями и ведущими в стиле симфоник-метал. Начиная с 1987 года не было такого, чтоб хоть один из альбомов Therion (их было 14) повторялся или играл такое, что уже было придумано на момент их релизов. Каждый из альбомов Therion имеет неимоверный магнетизм, а еще каждый альбом как отдельный мир не связывает творчество группы с определенным стилем. Все альбомы имеют новшества и являются экспериментальным прорывом в звучании.
Известно, что от альбома к альбому Therion меняет составы своих музыкантов. В альбоме Sitra Ahra (2010) года почти все соло ритм секции записал аргентинский музыкант Кристиан Видаль. Томас Виикстрём прекрасный оперный тенор в этот раз как никогда показал всю свою многогранность голоса.
Если соотносить стили и давать характеристику альбому Sitra Ahra то можно с уверенностью сказать что мы слышим насыщенное барокковыми звучаниями мелодии. В альбом вошли 11 композиций, каждая при этом по своему содержанию не имеет схожести с другой. Но единое все же есть - альбом наполнен хоровым и оперным исполнением песен с музыкальным сопровождением в стиле симфонического оркестра и гладкими роковыми соло. Большинство композиций имеет обширную гитарную базу, но классическая музыка с явным влиянием прогрессива не уступает, а даже наоборот диктует свои правила.
Приступая к прослушиванию альбома не успеваешь удивляться гамме звуков и ритмов. Композиция Kali Yuga III напомнит нам о том, классическом Therionе который сформировался у нас в понимании как уже живая легенда. Невероятно удачливо собрана композиция Kings of Edom от роковых начал до прекрасных оперных хоров, с неимоверно быстрой барокковой концовкой, за что Кристоферу Джонсону отдельная оценка. Можно с уверенностью сказать, что мы стали свидетелями рождения нового звучания в симфоническом металле. Интерлюдией в альбоме является композиция ‘Kings Of Edom’ своим вступительным словом повествуя о главной идеи альбома. Эпическая композиция ‘Land Of Canaan’ – фентезийное повествование. Слова просто не могут описать весь колорит идей, что закладывались в музыкальную основу этой композиции. Особенно их трудно подобрать, когда за дело берутся вокалисты Therion в сопровождении гармоники и флейты. Слушая эту композицию ты путешествуешь, ты бываешь в неизвестных и не познанных мирах музыки. В композиции ‘2012’ мы наблюдаем перепалку гитар с одной стороны и виолончелей с другой в сопровождении чудного вокала присущего прогресив металлу. Блековым звучанием в усилители врывается композиция ’ Din’ где контртенор пытается перечить классическому блековскому рычанию. After The Inquisition: Children Of The Stone’ завершает альбом органом с акустическим звучанием гитары под детский хор.
Что можно сказать, подводя итоги? Кристофер Йонссон создал прекрасный альбом как подарок уходящему году, а может как итог к его завершению. Но все равно многие скажут, что этот альбом надолго задержится в чартах и даже в истории прогрессив-симфоник-металла.
Свой личный вывод от композиций из альбома Sitra Ahra каждый из нас может сделать сам, побывав на живом выступлении Therionа в Киеве, 10 декабря 2010 года в ЦКМ НАУ Национального Авиационного Университета. Этот замечательный подарок подготовило нам Концертное агентство GLOBAL PROMOTION представляя сам концерт и тем самым доказывая, что не собирается останавливаться на достигнутом, все чаще и чаще приглашая в Украину замечательные, а иногда и легендарные группы.http://www.gothic.com.ua/index.php?news=1323&vote=5&aid=1323&Vote=Vote
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A new Therion album always demands a profound investigation; by ingenious composer Cristofer Johnsson as well as by me, before writing down my impressions. The music of the Swedish symphonic metal band appears to be multilayered and the baroque melodies demand your ultimate concentration. Only then, it seems that they have an ingenious catchiness after a few spins. When more and more parts become familiar, a bond with the new music is about to be created. That’s what happened with ‘Sitra Ahra’ once again!
It always made me wonder how Cristofer Johnsson manages to classify his new born compositions in a slightly mathematic order and put them on a shelf for a certain album. With this album we have arrived at the fourth and last album of a quadralogy and most of these songs have been written during the sessions for ‘Sirius B’ and ‘Lemuria’. A direct link is the song ‘Kali Yuga III’. However, do not see these songs as leftovers, these are proper Therion songs that had to mature like vintage wine. The first encounter with ‘Sitra Ahra’ is impressive, that’s what I want to put first.
Many words have been written about the new musicians, helping Cristofer out on this musical adventure. In brief: Thomas Vikström (once known from Candlemass) is recruited as new permanent vocalist and besides a fine rock singer, he appears to be a classical trained tenor. Snowy Shaw has also decided to stay. A new Swedish rhythm section has been invigorated by the Argentinean guitarist Christian Vidal who recorded guitar solos for this album, while Waldemar Sorychta contributed with preproduction and most of the rhythm guitars. On the upcoming tour, he will be the live session bassist. The album is recorded in a new home studio, but it was mixed by Lennart Östlund at the infamous Polar Studios (Led Zeppelin, Abba).
The title track invites us with high-shrieked opera chants and smooth rocking symphonic rock. This album brims with massive choirs: male, female and even a child’s choir in the last track. Most of the songs have a solid guitar base, now and then some melodic solos pop up, but classical music and a kind of progressiveness prevail. That’s what we learn in the nine minutes long ‘Kings Of Edom’ with its gentle acoustic guitar interludes. ‘Unguentum Sabbati’ has an infectious downwards crescendo that reminds me of ‘Echoes’ from Pink Floyd. It is the main melody of this doom-like song. A magnificent highlight is the ten minutes long epic ‘Land Of Canaan’. So much is happening here, words cannot describe this opulence of ideas. What can we think of a sober beginning with percussion and harpsichord, while later on harmonica and flutes are featured and again later an accordion regales those typical Therion sounds. But also vocal-wise, this epos pulls out all the stops: choirs or solo spots; it is a real adventure to listen to.
A cello opens ‘Hellequin’, but an acceleration with pithy choirs leaps more to the eye. Catchy guitar chords feature ‘2012’, in the symphonic part violins appear in the front, but the guitar solo is beautiful too. The choir has a very catchy – and familiar sounding – melody in ‘Cu Chulain’. In ‘The Shells Are Open’, the musical backbone is again very open and accessible, but voluminous choirs add a solemn tinge. The short and fast ‘Din’ has any blackened influences (raucous vocals), even if we hear any high-pitched shrieks à la Halford as well. To occlude we have the calm, contemplative ‘After The Inquisition: Children Of The Stone’ which persists a gentle timbre with flute, acoustic guitars and childlike choirs. It remains rather slow and has a progressive touch. Now and then we hear vintage organ on this record and the spirit of the seventies surely rules, yet in that typical Therion way. The execution of this new bundle of ideas of Cristofer Johnsson is a musical journey that will fascinate many people for hours (the album itself is more than one hour long). Top notch quality!
Review written by Vera for www.lordsofmetal.nl
http://www.metal-archives.com/albums/Therion/Sitra_Ahra/277877

Christofer Johnsson - Guitars, Keyboards
Snowy Shaw - Vocals
Thomas Vikström - Vocals
Lori Lewis - Vocals
Christian Vidal - Guitars
Nalle "Grizzly" Påhlsson - Bass
Johan Koleberg - Drums