Unia Review
November 3, 2024
Album of the day #8. Sonata Arctica - Unia
Sonata Arctica is a band whose music can be divided into 3 areas: stereotypical power metal, complex and sometimes very confusing prog metal, and pure recycling metal where you can read almost all SA records from the last 15 years, except for the excellent comeback album, "Clear Cold Beyond". 2007's "Unia" belongs to the middle group's most questionable release, which puts your head on the wheel (in a good and bad way) with every listen.
Even though the previous album "Reckoning Night" was a bit more versatile, "Unia" was a jump into the deep end. The song material is unfortunately extremely uneven, and while there are masterpieces like "Caleb" and "It Won't Fade", there are also frankly quite terrible pieces. The production has been successful and of course the band still works at a high quality level. But the whole is not convincing and "Unia" has not become the band's best after many listens.
It's still not a bad album, and it's worth giving the piece a chance. Fortunately, the band improved their approach to prog-power and the next album "The Days Of Grays" is definitely the best of the band and the whole genre.
Climax: It Won't Fade, Caleb
Anticlimax: My Dream's..., The Worlds Forgotten..., Fly With The Black Swan
Sonata Arctica is a band whose music can be divided into 3 areas: stereotypical power metal, complex and sometimes very confusing prog metal, and pure recycling metal where you can read almost all SA records from the last 15 years, except for the excellent comeback album, "Clear Cold Beyond". 2007's "Unia" belongs to the middle group's most questionable release, which puts your head on the wheel (in a good and bad way) with every listen.
Even though the previous album "Reckoning Night" was a bit more versatile, "Unia" was a jump into the deep end. The song material is unfortunately extremely uneven, and while there are masterpieces like "Caleb" and "It Won't Fade", there are also frankly quite terrible pieces. The production has been successful and of course the band still works at a high quality level. But the whole is not convincing and "Unia" has not become the band's best after many listens.
It's still not a bad album, and it's worth giving the piece a chance. Fortunately, the band improved their approach to prog-power and the next album "The Days Of Grays" is definitely the best of the band and the whole genre.
Climax: It Won't Fade, Caleb
Anticlimax: My Dream's..., The Worlds Forgotten..., Fly With The Black Swan
Track listing (Songs)
| title | rating | votes | video | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | In Black and White | 5:04 | 87 | 12 | Audio |
| 2. | Paid in Full | 4:24 | 90.8 | 14 | Audio Music Video |
| 3. | For the Sake of Revenge | 3:23 | 86 | 12 | Audio |
| 4. | It Won't Fade | 5:59 | 95 | 12 | Audio |
| 5. | Under Your Tree | 5:14 | 88.5 | 12 | Audio |
| 6. | Caleb | 6:17 | 94.5 | 13 | Audio |
| 7. | The Vice | 4:09 | 80.5 | 12 | Audio |
| 8. | My Dream's But a Drop of Fuel for a Nightmare | 6:13 | 77.2 | 11 | Audio |
| 9. | The Harvest | 4:19 | 87.3 | 13 | Audio |
| 10. | The Worlds Forgotten, the Words Forbidden | 2:57 | 73 | 12 | Audio |
| 11. | Fly with the Black Swan | 5:08 | 80.5 | 12 | Audio |
| 12. | Good Enough Is Good Enough | 5:32 | 85 | 12 | Audio |
Line-up (members)
- Tony Kakko : Vocals
- Tommy Portimo : Drums
- Jani Liimatainen : Guitars
- Marko Paasikoski : Bass
- Henrik Klingenberg : Keyboards
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