Transcendence (Crimson Glory album)
Transcendence is the second studio album by Florida heavy metal group Crimson Glory, released in 1988 via Roadracer Records (now Roadrunner Records) in Europe and MCA Records in United States. It is considered by many to be their finest work. It was recorded at Morrisound Studios.[4]
| Transcendence | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 14 November 1988 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 50:24 | |||
| Label | Roadracer Records (Europe) MCA Records (USA) | |||
| Producer | Jim Morris | |||
| Crimson Glory chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Rock Hard | 9.5/10[3] |
Writing and recording
Masque of the Red Death is about the story written by Edgar Allan Poe. Eternal World was written as an instrumental for the tour of the band's first record in the Netherlands.[4]
The drums are a combination of both live and sampled drums. The band sampled drummer Dana Burnell performing live drums into a synclavier without any cymbals, and then re-recorded the cymbals live later in order to have complete separation of drums and cymbals. Guitarist Jon Drenning stated "It was a very arduous and time consuming way to do it but at the time it seemed like something we wanted to try to achieve; a pristine, clean sound and true separation of all instruments."[4]
Artwork
The artwork was made by Japanese artist Takashi Terada for the Japanese poster art for the 1985 science fiction film Lifeforce. The announced "Transcendence: Renovatio" version was said to feature new cover art, two demo bonus tracks and more was never released.[5]
Reception
In 2005, Transcendence was ranked number 412 in Rock Hard magazine's book of The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time.[6] Loudwire named it at #15 in their list "Top 25 Power Metal Albums of All Time."[7] ThoughtCo named the album in their list "Essential Power Metal Albums."[8]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Lady of Winter" | Midnight, J. Drenning | J. Drenning | 4:00 |
| 2. | "Red Sharks" | D. Burnell, J. Drenning | J. Drenning, J. Lords | 4:52 |
| 3. | "Painted Skies" | Midnight | J. Drenning, Midnight, J. Lords | 5:16 |
| 4. | "Masque of the Red Death" | Midnight | J. Lords, B. Jackson, J. Drenning | 4:15 |
| 5. | "In Dark Places" | Midnight, J. Drenning | J. Drenning, J. Lords | 7:03 |
| 6. | "Where Dragons Rule" | Midnight, J. Drenning | J. Drenning, J. Lords, Midnight | 5:07 |
| 7. | "Lonely" | Midnight, J. Drenning | J. Drenning, J. Lords, Zahner | 5:18 |
| 8. | "Burning Bridges" | Midnight | J. Drenning | 6:32 |
| 9. | "Eternal World" | Midnight, J. Drenning | J. Drenning, J. Lords | 3:54 |
| 10. | "Transcendence" | Midnight | J. Drenning (Intro), Midnight | 4:34 |
Personnel
- Midnight - lead vocals
- Jon Drenning - lead guitar
- Ben Jackson - rhythm guitar
- Jeff Lords - bass guitar
- Dana Burnell - drums
References
- Wagner, Jeff (2010). Mean Deviation: Four Decades of Progressive Heavy Metal. Bazillion Points Books. p. 64. ISBN 978-0-97961-633-4.
- Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Transcendence - Crimson Glory | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
- Trojan, Frank. "Crimson Glory - Transcendence". Rock Hard (in German). Archived from the original on June 16, 2013. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
- "Transcendence". Maxium Metal. March 18, 2010.
- "Crimson Glory: Remasters, Upcoming Releases Detailed". Blabbermouth.net. April 18, 2006. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
- [...], Rock Hard (Hrsg.). [Red.: Michael Rensen. Mitarb.: Götz Kühnemund] (2005). Best of Rock & Metal die 500 stärksten Scheiben aller Zeiten. Königswinter: Heel. p. 44. ISBN 3-89880-517-4.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
- DiVita, Joe (July 5, 2017). "Top 25 Power Metal Albums of All Time". Loudwire. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
- Marsicano, Dan. "Essential Power Metal Albums". ThoughtCo. Archived from the original on October 29, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
