Symphony X

A Progressive Metal band with Power Metal and neo-classical metal elements from New Jersey formed in 1993. Often compared to Dream Theater, they are considered one of the most important bands in progressive metal. They have become known partly thanks to their 24 minute symphonic/progressive metal rendition of Homer's The Odyssey.

Could probably use a better description.

Members:

• Vocals: "Sir" Russell Allen (1995-)
• Guitar: Michael Romeo (1994-)
• Bass: Michael Lepond (2000-)
• Keyboard: Michael Pinnella (1994-)
• Drums: Jason Rullo (1994-1998, 2000-)

Former Members:

• Vocals: Rod Tyler (1994)
• Bass: Thomas Miller (1994-2000)
• Drums: Thomas Walling (1998-2000)

Discography:

• Symphony X (1994)
• The Damnation Game (1995)
• The Divine Wings of Tragedy (1997)
• Twilight in Olympus (1998)
• Prelude to the Millennium (compilation, 1999)
• V: The New Mythology Suite (2000)
• Live on the Edge of Forever (live album, 2001)
• The Odyssey (2002)
• Paradise Lost (2007)
• Iconoclast (2011)

Symphony X provides examples of the following tropes:

• Altum Videtur: The title of the song "Revelation (Divus Pennae Ex Tragoedia)", whose subtitle and parts of its melody are based on The Divine Wings of Tragedy. They probably just looked up each word in an English-Latin dictionary, as it's not even proper grammar. (For the record, the grammatically correct phrase would be Pennae Divae Tragoediae.)
  • Several tracks on V: The New Mythology Suite have Latin lyrics.
• Arc Number: Five on V: The New Mythology Suite (hence the name).
• The Chosen One: The child (Ma'at) in the story of V: The New Mythology Suite.
• Chronological Album Title: V: The New Mythology Suite
• Concept Album: V: The New Mythology Suite, Iconoclast, and arguably Paradise Lost.
• Dark Is Evil: V: The New Mythology Suite uses this heavily.
• Determinator: Used quite often throughout their discography, given the Romanticist nature of their songs, but most notable on "Accolade II", with each verse and the chorus ending with lines show casing epic macho resolve.
• Darker and Edgier: Their music became much heavier throughout their discography. Compare some of their songs from The Divine Wings of Tragedy to their newer work, such as Paradise Lost and especially Iconoclast.
• Epic Rocking: "Divine Wings of Tragedy" is over 20 minutes long and "The Odyssey" is 24 minutes long.
• Fan Nickname: Russell is known as "Sir Russell Allen" by some fans.
  • Goes a bit beyond a Fan Nickname when on Star One's live album he's credited with the above name.
    • It was given to him by fans.
• Filk Song: Quite a few of their songs are based upon mythological tales or fantasy stories, like "Lady in the Snow", "The Divine Wings of Tragedy", "Through the Looking Glass", "The Odyssey", and naturally, the entire Paradise Lost album.
• Gratuitous Panning: When you own your own recording studio, why not?
• Heavy Mithril: They seem to have a liking for Greek Mythology as evidenced by Twilight in Olympus and the title track of The Odyssey. Iconoclast has sci-fi themes.
• Large Ham: Sir Russell Allen.
• Last of Her Kind: The child in V: The New Mythology Suite's story is the only survivor of Atlantis. Then she dies.
• Metal Scream: All over the place. Russell Allen is fond of them.
• Mohs Scale of Rock and Metal Hardness: For the most part, about a 7, but a step or two higher or lower isn't unheard of. Their later work can go up to an 8 or even a soft 9 at times.
• Neoclassical Punk Zydeco Rockabilly: Not evident with their first two albums, but after The Divine Wings of Tragedy, their catalogue showed a mixture of influences ranging from the standard progressive and metal fair to more obscure influences like thrash metal, symphonic, classical and even a bit of jazz.
• New Sound Album: Starting with Paradise Lost, they began to lose some of their neoclassical and progressive influences and took on a harder-edged metal sound.
  • One could even say that this started with The Odyssey", as their music got a bit heavier with this release in comparison to their previous works.
• One of Us: Russel Allan has admitted to something of a love for videogames.
• One Steve Limit: Thoroughly averted with three Michaels in the lineup.
• Precision F-Strike: "Dehumanized". "Hit the switch, you son of a bitch!"
• Rock Opera: V: The New Mythology Suite is about the fall of Atlantis.
• Shout-Out: Possible as Iconoclast appears to have Imperium Dreadnoughts on the back.
• Stage Names: Russel's nickname could count as he was credited under the nickname for a guest appearance on another band's live album.
• Truck Driver's Gear Change: Used quite notably at the end of "Through the Looking Glass"
• Title Drop: While it's typical for a song's title to appear in the lyrics, it crops up unexpectedly near the end of The Odyssey in a manner reminiscent of a Title Drop.