Warthur This was recorded at the same sessions that yielded Savatage's debut album, Sirens, which in practice means it's much of a piece with it (especially given the fairly tight schedule they were on). It's pretty engaging, but as with Sirens we don't really get that much of what would make Savatage truly stand out coming through here; they're still rooted in NWOBHM-ish trad metal, and the power metal and progressive elements that would eventually be hallmarks of their sound are mere whispers on the wind at this stage. Not bad, but anyone with a decent range of early 1980s metal in their collection has already heard plenty of stuff like this.

Warthur It's probably fair to say that Savatage hadn't quite developed the sound they are known for - power metal with progressive sensibilities - at the time they recorded their debut album. This and the Dungeons Are Calling EP were recorded in the same sessions, the band having been given an opportunity to get a few precious days of studio time in and deciding to get as much material on tape as they could without half-assing things to an unacceptable extent.

What you get here is fairly straightforward trad metal, with some notes of the fantastical and perhaps a pinch of NWOBHM influence to add spice. It's... fine. Really, it's not bad. The problem is that it rarely if ever rises above that standard; if you've heard much traditional heavy metal, you've heard a lot of stuff that sounds like this, and can probably name a dozen albums which give you more pleasure than this one at that - some of those may even be by Savatage.

In short, this is comprehensively OK-to-good, but there's little sign of what Savatage would become given time.

SilentScream213 Savatage is one of those bands that has quite a few albums in competition for their magnum opus, and depending on some, Edge of Thorns is that album. The most prominent difference here is that Zachary Stevens replaces Jon Oliva on vocals, though Oliva was still heavily involved in writing. Zachary has a more refined vocal style; it’s smoother and more operatic, and dare I say accessible. This reviewer prefers Jon’s poignant delivery and passion, but Zachary is certainly no detriment to the band.

Otherwise, the album is a pretty balanced package, a culmination of the styles they’ve developed on the past 3 albums. It’s lush with piano, and features a strong variety of riff driven rockers, beautiful ballads and effective instrumentals. Unfortunately the first 2 tracks are the strongest, which is a pet peeve of mine. Monstrous openers showcase precisely Savatage utilizing their melodic ballad-meets-metal style (Edge of Thorns) and classic riff writing prowess (He Carves His Stone), but it never meets those heights again. Thankfully, there aren’t any bad tracks, and the album is class quality front to back.

lukretion Savatage are an iconic band that have attracted praise both from metal and progressive rock press and fans. Some of their records rightly belong in the metal music annals. Alas, Poets and Madmen, their last album to date, isn't one of them. It's a deflated, uninspired record that, while touching all the right notes that are typical of Savatage's music, comes across as a faded version of the band that once was, leaving me deeply dissatisfied.

Released in February 2001, Commissioner is the single that preceded the full-length album Poets and Madmen. It is comprised of three songs. Two are taken from the forthcoming LP ("Commissar" and "Drive"), while the third ("Voyage") is a short original instrumental. Of the two album tracks, "Commissar" is the best. It contains all the elements that characterize Savatage's music: driving guitar riffs, check. Sophisticated piano and keyboard arrangements, check. Vocals that range from hard and gritty to velvety and sweet, check. Choral arrangements to give the music an extra dramatic flavor, check. Blistering guitar solos, check. However, although the band use all the right ingredients, the final product is a little insipid. The melodies are not that transcendental and everything feels like a half-hearted attempt to follow the classic Savatage formula (including a little déjà-vu moment on the fast vocal section of the song that reminds me of a similar passage from The Wake of Magellan). The meandering and shifting song structure does not help either. "Drive" is a shorter, more compact piece that pushes harder on the accelerator with a heavier sound and faster tempo. Again, it ticks all the right boxes but fails to leave a lasting impression. Meanwhile, "Voyage" is a 2 minutes and a half long instrumental acoustic piece by Al Pitrelli: nice but nothing to write home about.

The two album songs are exactly the same versions that you can find on the full-length and the only new track is really not much more than a small acoustic postlude, so given the choice I do not see why you should get this instead of the LP. A little more extra material, or at least alternate versions of some album tracks, could have made this a semi-interesting release. But the lack of extra non-album material combined with my general coldness towards the material from Poets and Madmen, makes me rate this release as really only for completionists who want to have all Savatage's releases. Everyone else should just get the full-length album.

SilentScream213 Savatage’s first attempt at a full on Rock Opera is mostly successful. The sound mostly picks up right from the more operatic parts of Gutter Ballet. They turn up the cheese, usually working well with it as they always have. The highs here are magical; Tonight He Grins Again is one of their finest songs ever, and Believe is a great ballad and closer.

The issue here is the same as many other overlong concept albums. At 16 tracks and almost 70 minutes, there is a lot of filler. The first half particularly struggles to deliver as many of the songs are kind of just fun rockers, which is not Savatage’s niche (The only ballad on this half, A Little Too Far, is their worst ever). The second half leans more into the melodic balladry they’re so good at, picking up a nice melancholic tone that brings it home nicely. The lyrics are good, but the story itself really isn’t all that compelling, as it’s just a rock star who got fame, hit rock bottom, got back to rocking… We’ve heard it a million times.

Overrated, especially compared to their other albums, but still holds many gems.