Episode is the fifth studio album by power metal band Stratovarius, released on 22 April 1996 through Noise Records. It is the first Stratovarius album to feature keyboardist Jens Johansson and drummer Jörg Michael, both of whom would form part of the band's most stable line-up for a decade. The album reached No. 21 on the Finnish albums chart and remained on that chart for six weeks.
The album blends heavy, fast-paced songs like "Father Time" with slower tracks and features the memorable "Sibelius String Orchestra" for added atmospheric depth. It is viewed as a high point for the band and features more complex song writing.
Critical reception The album has received high praise and is considered a classic of melodic speed metal, praised for its intricate instrumental work, Timo Kotipelto's powerful vocals, and the incorporation of classical elements like string orchestras. Antti J. Ravelin writing for AllMusic wrote “Episode is indeed a big step for Stratovarius. It's the album on which they finally reached the sound that would last for years. Larry Griffin writing for Metalcrypt gave the album a perfect score calming “with a lot of innovation that the genre hadn't seen since the glory days of Queensryche and Crimson Glory in the 80s and a songwriting talent great enough to shatter a supernova. This is Stratovarius' best album by far, with even the weaker songs having merit to them and generally being extremely well written.
Track listing
Personnel
Timo Kotipelto – lead vocals Timo Tolkki – guitar, background vocals, arrangement (except track 12), engineering, mixing, production Jens Johansson – keyboards Jörg Michael – drums Jari Kainulainen – bass guitar Pasi Puolakka – flute Sibelius String Orchestra – strings Sibelius Choir – choir Pop/Jazz Conservatory Choir – choir Reijo Harvonen – conducting, arrangement (track 12) Kimmo Blom – background vocals Richard Johnson – background vocals Marko Vaara – background vocals Richard Johnson – vocal consultation, lyrical consultation Timo Oksala – engineering Rene Siren – engineering Erol Sakir – tape operation Mikko Karmila – mixing Mika Jussila – mastering
Charts Chart (1996) PeakpositionJapanese Albums (Oricon) 20
References
External links Episode at stratovarius.com