As The World Bleeds
by
Theocracy Theocracy's past two efforts (Theocracy and Mirror of Souls, in 2003 and 2008 respectively) have left us with some of the best lyrical theology in the entire industry, and some of the most unique...
Mirror of Souls
by
Theocracy 5 years ago, Matt Smith released a solo album under the monicker Theocracy. It was under the Metal Ages record label, which unfortunately fell through. So, what has Smith been doing in 5 years? For...
Majestic | Posted May-14-2012
5 years ago, Matt Smith released a solo album under the monicker Theocracy. It was under the Metal Ages record label, which unfortunately fell through. So, what has Smith been doing in 5 years? For starters, he's gotten immeasurably better at production - this album sounds so much cleaner than the debut. He's also found a new record label - Ulterium, home of fellow Christian Metal acts Sinbreed, Innerwish, and Harmony. Finally, he's gotten a few new band members together - Guitarist Jon Hinds and Drummer Shawn Benson, which means no more drum machine!
For those unfamiliar with Progressive Power Metal, it is characterized by complex, heavy, and fast guitar-based music, oftentimes with symphonic overtones. The singing is almost exclusively clean - that is, no screaming - and the vocalists tend to be top-notch. Smith is no exception - his range is amazing. While most bands of the genere focuse on soloing, there is a noticeable lack of solos on Mirror of Souls - Smith even says "I suck at writing solos" in an interview. So, the lack of solos is forgiveable - I'd rather not have them then have them feel forced or poorly written.
The album begins with A Tower of Ashes, which features an orchestral opening punctuated by guitars before breaking into a fast-paced power metal song. The lyrics are about how we place our pride above God, and how that sense self-inflation is just an illusion that crumble into dust. On Eagles' Wings, the first single, is more Hard Rock than metal, but it's ridiculously catchy and still fairly heavy. The lyrics are about praising God, even in the hard times. The bridge is incredibly empowering.
Laying the Demon to Rest is definitely not a song you'd expect from a power metal band. 2 parts Thrash and 1 part Prog, it quickly became a fan favorite. Characterized by incredibly heavy riffs, a haunting first verse, choral refrains, and fast-paced, almost hardcore, part in the bridge, the song definitely fits the bill of Matt's "wanting to do something people wouldn't expect." Lyrically, the song is about spiritual warfare. Bethlehem is a ballad in the vein of "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)." It features counterpoint vocals towards the end, and is almost Christmas-esque, speaking of Christ's birth. However, with lyrics like "When all the world was sleeping deep in darkness, a child in Bethlehem fulfilled the promise. The ancients prophecied a great deliverer, the one to break the curse of sin forever. He didn't come with any worldly fanfare, no royal treatment, just a dark cross to bear. In Bethlehem a brand new dawn is rising, a star to guide the way, forver shining. New hope was born for all creation that night, for through the darkness came the brightest light," it's so much more meaningful than the typical hallmark fare heard on the radio at Christmastime.
Absolution Day is a fast-paced, heavy song that's part praise and worship, and part sermon. The first half of the song creates a mental image of a courtroom, where a man is being sentenced to death, a sentence which the man knows he deserves. However, a man steps forward and says "Wait! No more! I will take his penalty, place the judgement all on me, and let him go free." It's an obvious metaphor for Jesus dying for our sins. The man then responds with the only appropriate response - praise: "Adonai, I raise my hands to the sky in praise, for You have taken my sins away, behold today is my absolution day." The second part of the song - from the bridge onward, is about justification - and how it's only possible through faith, not works. Smith writes that no priest, church, holy water, laws, or sacraments can make him righeous in the eyes of God - but God has provided a way for "absolution for all who believe" by the death of Jesus.
The Writing in the Sand is a slower, melodic song about the well-known story where Jesus interrupts an execution by stoning, saying "Let him who is without sin caste the first sonte." However, Smith gives it a twist, and writes from the perspective of one of the men about to stone the girl. Martyr is faster, heavy song, written in dedication of those who suffered, and ultimately died, for the faith.
The title track is so theologically complex, I was still finding new metaphors 4 years later. It's an incredibly diverse song, musically, with slow melodic parts, heavy fast parts, orchestral parts, and piano-driven parts. Part I, The House of Mirrors, is about a man (from hereonout known as "the narrator") entering a room full of mirrors. In each one, he sees himself differently. Each mirror has a name attached to it, and he figures out that he's seeing himself the way other people see him. They see him as an almost unanimously moral man, and he is filled with pride. He then sees a massive golden door, which he suspects will take him further into paradise, but leads him outside into a storm. The storm is a metaphor for sin, and the golden door, temptation. It's fairly accurate, as Lucifer often disguises sin as something good and righteous.
Part II, The Stranger in the Storm, finds the narrator lost in the storm - lost in sin. He is ready to give up and die when he sees a light - which will ultimately turn out to be God, giving hope to sinners. He quickly heads toward it, but finds an impossible chasm in his way - which is, of course, the separation from God caused by sin. He is approached by a stranger, Jesus, who built a bridge for him - which He did when He died on the cross. The man crosses the chasm and finds another door - above this one is a plaque which reads "Let all who would see reality enter The Hall of Truth." The narrator enters the door.
Part III, The Truth Revealed, is the narrator crying out that, despite all the good things he saw in the House of Mirrors, he still almost died in the storm, and he just wants to know the truth. So, he looks into a final mirror - one which overpowers all the other mirrors. When he looks in, he sees a creature with rotting, diseased flesh. It's eyes are pure black, and it is a horror to look at. The narrator quickly flees the Hall of Truth, and is about head back outside, when the stranger stops him. He explains that the man in the mirror is, in fact, the narrator. The mirror showed him his soul, and when he saw what sin had done to it, he wanted to flee, go back to his old life, that of sin, when the Holy Spirit convicted him. Finally, the narrator acknowledges that Jesus can save him, and asks for forgiveness. The two approach the mirror together, but the only one reflected back is Jesus - He ha taken the narrator's sins, but still remained Holy.
The interesting thing is that it acknowledges there are multiple steps to redemption. Jesus' death made it possible, but it doesn't guarantee anything - you need to actually accept His grace and repent of sin, and ask forgiveness when you stumble.
On the Japanese Edition and the Digibook rerelease, there is a 9th, bonus track, Wages of Sin. The song is the shortest song on any Theocracy record, not counting "Prelude," and is largely a Hard Rock song, with power metal undertones. The song condemns judmentalism, saying that sin has been costly enough without supposedly righteous people looking down on those they see as unrighteous.
All in all, this is a fantastic release, and if you're a fan of Hard Rock or Metal, you'll certainly enjoy this record.
Excellence | Posted May-14-2012
Theocracy's past two efforts (Theocracy and Mirror of Souls, in 2003 and 2008 respectively) have left us with some of the best lyrical theology in the entire industry, and some of the most unique music in the Christian scene. While progressive/power metal is fairly common in secular European circles, it is more severely limited in American, and especially Christian, scenes. Unlike other Christian metal bands, Theocracy isn't simply a rip-off of a popular secular band. While their influences can be determined, and their sound compared to Edguy, Avantasia, Iron Maiden, Blind Guardian, etc., they cannot be called a copy of any single band. They breathe life into an often cheesy genre.
The most notable improvement of 2008's Mirror of Souls comes in the form of Val Allen Wood, their new Lead Guitarist. He is much more comfortable shredding than Matt and Jon (who, although great guitarists, didn't really solo much on Mirror of SOuls). Every single song has at least one guitar solo - but it never feels excessive. They aren't Dream Theater - soloing for the sake of it. Each solo fits pefectly within the song, and feels natural. It is also a much darker record than Mirror of Souls. While the latter had an overarching theme of redemption, this record focuses on the depravity of man - especially in the title track, which announces "So we blame You, 'cause our world's not come out right while the devil's masquerading as an angel of the light. Just imagine all the pride and all the nerve to ask where You've been when we're the one's we served."
I AM kicks off the record with a symphonic flourish, going back and forth between mellow verses and frantic choruses in the first section. The bridge, which features impressive counterpoint vocals before an aweinspiring section. I won't ruin too much, simply because I couldn't do it justice with text only. You must hear it. The song closes out with a melodic section with beautiful lyrics. The Master Storyteller wastes no time coming out with guitars blazing. It has a certain Sonata Arctica feel to it, with lightning fast guitar hooks, yet almost punk-like chords punctuating the verses. The lyrics are about seeing God's hand in everything, and His existance being obvious, if you know where to look.
Nailed is a thrash metal song about the Protestant Reformation, and the need to speak out against corruption in the Church. Contrary to some beliefs, it is not attacking Catholics - it is attcking certain practices that the Church USED to have, such as selling indulgences, and speaking out against justification by works. Hide in the Fairytale has a definite Iron Maiden vibe to it, galloping rhythm guitar and all. The lyrics speak of original sin, with lyrics like "If mankind doesn't have a sinful drive, then tell me why he'd reck his life to get some on the side" and "Humankind in innocence, a lie so thinly vield. Man born without soulsickness, this is the fairtale."
The Gift of Music begins as a slower ballad, but soon progresses into symphonic metal, and finally thrash metal. The lyrics speak of the beauty of music and its correspondance with creation. They also seem to be autobiographical, especially in the second verse. The first single, 30 Pieces of Silver, is a heavy song about forsaking God for praise, fame, or wealth, with lyrics like "When all the world is asking you to sell your soul and to deny the cross for silver and for gold, [is] the kiss of Judas or the bended knee - vainglory or humility - the ultimate goal?". Drown is a more melodic song about keeping the faith through hard times.
Altar to the Unknown God was an instant fan favorite, with it's heavy guitars, interesting riffs, and catchy chorus. The song is about Paul's speech to the Athenians, found in The Book of the Acts of the Apostles. Light of the World is a challenge - are we the light of the world? Are we carrying the torch? Are we representing Christ, or are we becoming increasingly secular. Do we "stand like a wall and resist the temptation to sell ourselves out for hollow acclimation....or are we failing to answer the call?" Musically, the song is poppier than the rest of the CD, but still definitely identifiable as Theocracy.
The title track begins with a piano and Matt softly singing, wondering why we blame God for things that are our fault. Then the song gets heavier and much faster, with the lyrics pointing out that we were explicitely warned about the consequences of sin, but we thought we knew better. In interviews, Matt said that the song serves as an answer to the question "If God is good, why does he allow bad things to happen?" And the ending of the song is beautifully humble - Matt, in a chorus, cries out to God:
"Please forgive us, for we've only made it worse
Even after You had warned us sin would only bring a curse
Guess we knew better, 'cause we went a different way
Now we're only sleeping in the bed we've made
All the glory and the power left this place
When we turned our backs upon You and chose to live in our disgrace
But You warned us, and You let us have our way
Now we're only drowning in the mess we've made"
All in all, this is one of the strongest Christian records I've ever heard, both lyrically and musically. Pick it up as soon as humanly possible, if you're a fan of hard rock or metal. There's no screaming, and Matt is one of the best vocalists of all time - his range is just short of unbelievable. Val Allen Wood and Jon Hinds are fantastic guitarists and compliment each other wonderfully. The rhythm section, coutesy of Jared Oldham on Bass and Shawn Benson on Drums is incredibly heavy, adding depth to the music. The orchestration is beautiful and moving.
The only reason I don't rate this a 5/5 is that, unlike other reviewers, I reserve such ratings for literally perfect records - and so far, there is no such thing. This is an objective review - the score isn't based on other albums.
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