Hold onto your gauntlets, metal maniacs, because Crimson Glory's "Transcendence" ain't your run-of-the-mill headbanger fodder. This 1988 opus is a goddamn sonic cathedral, a towering testament to the band's ambition and their refusal to be pigeonholed into the hair metal pigeon coop.
Emerging from Florida's swamplands like a phoenix on steroids, Crimson Glory had already made a splash with their enigmatic masked personas and their self-titled debut's progressive metal leanings. But "Transcendence" was a whole other beast, a grandiose opera of metallic majesty that dared to reach for the heavens while keeping its boots firmly planted in the muck of heavy metal tradition.
The album is a whirlwind of soaring vocals, courtesy of the enigmatic Midnight, whose voice could melt steel and shatter glass with equal aplomb. Jon Drenning's guitar work is a revelation, a whirlwind of neoclassical shredding and bluesy swagger. Ben Jackson's rhythm guitar anchors the chaos, while Jeff Lords' basslines rumble like a tectonic shift and Dana Burnell's drumming pummels your eardrums with relentless fury.
Produced by Jim Morris and recorded at the legendary Morrisound Recording, the album's sound is massive, a wall of sonic fury that assaults your senses and leaves you breathless. Songs like "Red Sharks" and "Painted Skies" are anthems of defiance and rebellion, while ballads like "Lonely" and "In Dark Places" showcase the band's emotional depth and vulnerability.
But "Transcendence" wasn't without its controversies. Some critics accused the band of being overly pretentious and self-indulgent, while others hailed them as visionaries who were pushing the boundaries of metal. The band's refusal to conform to genre expectations only fueled the fire, making them both beloved and reviled in equal measure.
