My envy goes in the direction of our Dutch friend Rainier. Why? He's going to see the phenomenon Trans-Siberian Orchestra in a not too distant future (January 2014 to be more specific). I'd love to see the show. Yes, it borders on cheese, but I can't help it; a lot of this cheese sinks right in. Not all of it, mind you, but a lot of it.
'Tales of Winter' is not new music from the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, but rather a collection, a baiter you might say, for those potential new TSO rock opera fans in Europe who'd want to come a have a look at the show. If you're new to TSO, this is a fine place to begin a new and long-lasting friendship with an odd creature in the rock/metal zoo, a bastard child of one of the finest metal bands to have walked this planet, Savatage, their producer Paul O'Neill and their shared love for classical music.
I'm not a fan of each and every piece of this collection (Old City Bar, Music Box Blues, Epiphany don't do it for me), but there are also personal favourites like Sarajevo 12/24, Believe (old Savatage song, for those who aren't aware), Dreams of Fireflies to drop a few names. Generally, I like the tunes where TSO just give it full throttle on the classical references and fire away with everything they've got. That's when they're most brilliant, and give me a hard time sitting still.
If you're an old fan of TSO, this collection won't make a lick of a difference unless you're a true collector, but if you're curious what the fuss is all about, then by all means, hit the Add to Basket button and swing the credit card asap.
