Usually people are under the impression that orchestral music and Rock or Metal music are two things that should never work together, as one usually ruins the other. Before, I would have agreed, but that wasn't until I actually heard some for the first time. Now I am in full support of the two belonging together, as both can make already otherwise amazing music even more kickass and possibly more epic too. Since I agreed with this formula, I have heard some pretty amazing music that combines Rock or Metal music with some haunting symphonic arrangements that are a joy to listen to, so is today's offering the same, or have I finally found one where the two don't belong together? Let us find out shall we?

The album I speak of is "The Harmonic Passage" from Italian Symphonic Power Metal band WINTERAGE and this is their first offering which has taken a few years to create since they formed in 2009 and when you look at all the individuals involved in this album, it's not hard to see why. I'd usually expect to see a large number of instruments like this in a video game or movie soundtrack, but for it to be done for a Metal album is quite ambitious; but has it paid off? I'm here to find out so off to the music we go.

As I mentioned earlier, I think personally that orchestral music and Rock or Metal were meant to work together, as the two seem to compliment each other and help to improve on the other's weaknesses, therefore making otherwise impossible compositions a masterpiece. The range of orchestral instruments, combined with the choirs and the actual band themselves, is truly astounding and I can't even keep count of how many are on here, so good luck trying to figure it out yourselves.

Fortunately though, the orchestral work is divided up evenly across the albums 13 tracks so there's no risk or danger of them all playing together on one track and making everything sound cluttered. The orchestral arrangements add a nice touch to the already symphonic melodies you expect from Power Metal, and for the most part, the two seem to compliment each other nicely, as they add a bit of epic ness to the melodies.

There's a good mixture of languages here in the lyrics, with the main two being English and Italian, giving the band a chance to show us what they can do when singing in their native language, but there is one unfortunate hitch in this album and that is, rather sadly, the vocals. Why? The vocal melodies are often buried underneath the music so making out what is actually being sung is very hard so I'd always have to refer to the albums booklet to read the lyrics every time. Even if the melodies were clear however, the performance to me, is very second rate, as the quality of the vocals is not only iffy but there's not a lot of oomph or punch on a few tracks, which is a real shame meaning that the only real enjoyable tracks are the albums instrumentals, as the Metal melodies combined with the wide range of orchestral instruments get a chance to shine and show us what they can do, as well as proving that they can work together beautifully.

Bottom line, "The Harmonic Passage" from WINTERAGE is alright, but it's not the album I'd hoped it would be, as on paper it does sound like an enticing and exciting prospect what with the wide range of orchestral instruments on this album, but the vocals really let the music down meaning that the only highlights are the albums instrumental tracks, which is a real shame, as I wanted to like this a lot but I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped I would do, as there is potential here but it hasn't been fully realized yet.<