Metal Majesty reviews...

Merçeauroix · Admin Joined: 06 May 2007 Posts: 205 Location: The Moon

I've been reading some pages with reviews, and I must admit I was a little surprised (but mostly dissapointed) to read how stupid they are.

i.e. this one here

http://www.metal-observer.com/articles.php?lid=1&sid=1&id=7045

METAL MAJESTY – you think about a mix of MANOWAR and RHAPSODY, heavy guitars, epic melodies, big choirs... OK, now take away the heavy guitars, the big choirs and any kind of MANODY and RHAPSOWAR, so basically any kind of “Metal” and replace them by heaviest QUEEN influences.

The creator of “This Is Not A Drill“ is Aldous Byron Valensia Clarkson, better known as Valensia, originally from the Netherlands, now living in Spain. Yes, the gentleman, who had sold more than one million units with the single “Gaia” a few years ago. I have never heard that song, so that I cannot really say anything about it, but after the “Queen Tribute“ and now METAL MAJESTY I could imagine that we could also detect a certain QUEEN influence.

Well, after the “consumption” of “This Is Not A Drill“ I ask the question: How far does influence go and where does it turn into pure copism? I ask this, because Valensia takes harmonies and elements of QUEEN and packs them into his own songs, trying to sell them as own compositions. “Try”, because in my opinion they sound so extremely QUEEN that I cannot assess this as homage, but the try to copy.

Yes, the man can sing, no question, but the songs never reach the big role model of QUEEN and if a song stands out as better, it will be stomped down by a “composition” that at times cannot be described. I love QUEEN and still am mourning that we will never be able t behold their magic again because of the death of Freddie Mercury, but why should I listen to a not even third class copy, if I can listen to the original? And more than 70 minutes on top of that… (Online October 20, 2004)

This guy is not really into Queen, you can easily tell... I'm a musician myself and I've been a Queen fan for more than 7 bloody years, I've listened to EVERY damn Queen song and when I first listened to This Is NOT a Drill, I've never thought about it as a Queen copy.

I mean, there's an influence but only when Valensia sings... and it's pretty AMAZING to see how close he gets to Mr Mercury himself, sometimes you can't really tell. But it's still him, and there's no doubt about it. When it comes to the music per se, it doesn't really sound like Queen to me. The solos don't sound anything like Brian May... if you want some Brian May-esque solos, you can listen to the solos of the first V album. Those really sound like Brian BUT THERE'S A HUGE DIFFERENCE:

Those solos sound like if they had been composed, arranged and performed by Brian himself, but doesn't sound like a rip-off. They have the same style. Catch up with someone else's style is something very hard to do, sometimes it's WAY TOO hard. Copying is easy, but make others believe that the one who's playing is actually Brian... not an easy task, I'll tell you.

Valensia sounds like Freddie, because he wants to! When he doesn't want to, he sounds like himself (i.e. Gaia, The Sun, Never Eyes). He'll always sound a little like Freddie, because their voices are alike.

If I could sing like Freddie, I'd be bloody proud of it! But Valensia doesn't sound like someone trying to copy Freddie, he sounds like Freddie himself. If you want a copy, at least this is not a crappy one, this is the best you could ever get.

So, besides the fact that you sometimes believe Freddie's still alive and singing, songs like Grim Reaper, The Extra Terrestrial, The Moon, Love Will Make You Bleed... DO NOT sound like Queen songs.

I can't get how someone can't tell the difference.

I love that album (This is NOT a Drill), I think it's bloody great. And to me, it always sounded like Valensia going hard rock.

What do you think? Is it fair that MM gets such hard reviews?
_________________

Mother Nature, sow the seeds
Mother Nation bleeds

EVH · Posted: Mon May 07, 2007 7:46 pm Post subject:

Well, my friend, the world's full of stupid people who only says bulls**t...

Obviously, it isn't fair, this guy is deaf!!!

I had read that review before, and as a MM Fan, I was dissapointed too, so I wanted another opinion from somebody else, and I started to introduce Metal Majesty to my friends.

Some people liked it, some people not, and of course they found that Valensia sings like Freddie, but no-one said that Metal Majesty sounds like or is a copy of Queen.

Well, I found this here:

http://www.lionmusic.com/artists/Valensia.htm

It's a "Track by Track review" in Valensia's own words:

Metal Majesty - 2005

We Rocked
A track I wrote in 1988! Could have been on my debut album.. back in those days it still was called "We Rock", but I changed the lyrics and it's title.

Ready To Roar
This is one of the tracks I composed while recording. Written in the times Robby Valentine and I were at war. Nothing more creative than putting your anger into a song. These lyrics are quite funny, because it's basically the statement Robby wrote about what an evil person I was... He was right; I used his text for a song. It doesn't get more evil than this. But basically there was an underlying message, a private one. Saying it wasn't me who caused the trouble. There was a female involved. Valentine also wrote a song, a very nasty one, about me. That's true artistic creativity.

Love Will Make You Bleed
A new song, my first blues! I never thought I could sing bluesy, but it's not that bad at all. This song is heavily inspired on "Jellyroll" from Blue Murder. I have no idea why I wanted a song like that. I know I missed a track to get the 10 tracks. David doesn't even play drums. I edited his drums for "Hell Hounds On My Trail" into this song. It's the only editing on the album. I had to have one more song.

Hold On To The Night
This is another song I wrote in 1988 or 1989.. The chorus that is. A song in the vein of Whitesnake's "Crying In The Rain". Under normal circumstances I never would have recorded songs like that… it's too Whitesnake. But then again, if I listen to both songs, it is something else. It's always something else. I read some silly reporter saying: "Valensia's so incredible talented but he's just imitating Queen." Like an automatic sample reporters say this when they hear the name "Valensia". This time I could see it was nonsense, as I wasn't imitating Queen. And henceforth I know that MY style, the Valensia style, has been fucking original from the very start. You try finding a copy of my song "Tere", "Mayte" or a whole bunch of other songs I've written. There aren't any. People are slowly discovering it now. These songs you can rant at if you like. But hands off my Valensia songs. Nevertheless fun to do, "Hold On The Night".

Burying Heather
A very personal track about private stuff. I wanted to hire a violin section for this song until I saw their prices. Then I decided to play the violins all by myself. Not easy, this violin.

Hell Hounds On My Trail
Another song that has been lying around for ages. I wrote this when I was still in school. With a friend actually… I believe the verse isn't entirely mine.
The 'Still Of The Night' feel I love; I love the break in that song, creating atmosphere…and Whitesnake got that from Led Zeppelin…and at the end it's all differently. It would be nice if silly reporters would finally see that this is the way composing is done. I love the guitar sound of this song. The slide from the guitar when the song starts is very nice, very powerful. Where have those sounds gone.

Aurelia's Night
A lot of old material, when I come to think of it. No wonder I didn't have to write for this album. Again, this is a song which was written even before my debut album. The most complete song so far. I had everything written for it, even the lyrics. I didn't even change the guitar solo, which is still the way I played it when I was 16.

Alone, Unknown and On My Own
A new song; the last of the many. This song marked an era for me. The lyrics say so. When I wrote this song, I felt all was over and I had the desire to leave the music industry. And so I have left it. Wait… the chorus isn't new either... it's also from the old days, when I was 16 or so. The verse may be from 2002 or so… this is the way I always write.. I just glue things together. I love the second verse…the chords, melody and lyrics perfectly reflect the state of being I was in… "Lonely depression I just could not bare; I'm going to buy some friends and walk on air; I'm finished anyway so I just don't care." It's truly sad; an artist at the peak of his creativity and life, quits music business because there's nothing left to do. He rather retires than trying to maintain his career. I like that.

Zenith
A bullshit song. It's nice anyway because I wrote it – haha - but it's nothing… no lyrics, no special stuff. This was written to practice recording with the initial Metal Majesty band.

boygio · Mod Joined: 04 Jun 2007 Posts: 127

http://www.extramusic.it/disco/novitametal12.htm

an italian review, it tells that the album is very good!

deie_gaia · Mod Joined: 19 Jun 2007 Posts: 125

Metal Majesty is just awsome, and that stupid review is just... STUPID!!!
I don't think This Is Not A Drill is a Queen copy, because IT'S NOT A QUEEN COPY.

I'm and always will be fan of MM!!! Very Happy

boygio · Mod Joined: 04 Jun 2007 Posts: 127

deie_gaia · Mod Joined: 19 Jun 2007 Posts: 125

It seems we agree in everything, haha

Wink

boygio · Mod Joined: 04 Jun 2007 Posts: 127