“At least the title is somewhat self-descriptive”Over the last couple of years I've seen my interest in power metal simultaneously strengthen and bow and break. Without going into a band-by-band analysis, it's hard to explain why this band's work remains viable and another band's doesn't. There have been serious surprises and there has been more than enough writing on the wall. Still, the one thing I didn't see coming was my growing disinterest in Edguy. As with any lingering feeling, it didn't happen overnight and it didn't just happen with the last album (which would have been more than enough to justify it) but was growing even if I didn't want to admit it. So, if this paragraph is any indication, I've come to accept Edguy isn't the band I loved only a few years back. I've grown and they've grown (into what I haven’t a clue) so the very least I can do is be honest about it.
The problem with Edguy is ironically alluded to with the title of this album, Age of the Joker. First let's start with the word "Joker." Edguy has always been known for their wacky antics, and you don't have to look too far, especially on newer albums and singles, to see this in action. For years I found this quality endearing, but once tracks like "Lavatory Love Machine" (groan) started making their debut the hesitation to dive in head first with the insanity started to build. This feeling magically disappeared when Rocket Ride was the hot thing but it managed to boomerang back a few years after its release when I discovered that album wasn't all I thought it was. I knew I had grown tired of Edguy's humor the minute I heard "Sex Fire Religion" on Tinnitus Sanctus.
This brings us to "Age." The sad fact is Edguy's humor doesn't age well. Can anyone really listen to "Save Us Now" on Mandrake and not get the immediate urge to change the track? Alien drum bunnies may have been funny in 2001 but all it is now is a less-than-impressive filler track on an overstated "breakthrough album." Yet this is only one take on why the word "age" is so important when it comes to Edguy. Age has a lot to do with this new "rock" sound Edguy has cultivated since Tinnitus Sanctus. Now, I'm not going to say that power metal style the band adhered to before was the most fertile valley when it comes to music, but Edguy was good enough – and smart enough - to make it their own. This fails to be case with this new, aforementioned style that only serves to make the material sound dated before it is even released. In other words, Edguy's material sounds a lot older that it should, which is just ludicrous considering this is still a relatively young band. Age of the Joker is something I'd expect to come at the end of their career, not at what should be the apex. Still, looking at the pictures of the band in the booklet, I can't even be sure these are the same guys that drew my attention ten years ago.
That said, I am willing to extend a hand to Age of the Joker in the name of diplomacy. I can't say I'm in love with this album but it deserves some props for a variety of reasons. The most obvious is this is much better than the train wreck that was Tinnitus Sanctus. Second, this is a grower album. It's the kind of album you definitely need to listen to more than once for it to make its impact and reveal everything within. Do I think there is a preverbal goldmine in here? No. I don't think the album will ever prove it’s worth more than the seven out of ten I'm giving it, but it certainly isn't a cellar dweller either. The real hitch of such a situation is the album lacks a real hook; there is never a moment where I'm absolutely dying to hear a given song when I'm away from the album, something that wasn't a problem when a track like "King of Fools" made its debut.
CONCLUSION:
Is Age of the Joker the beginning of reconciliation been a band and a listener or merely a small reprieve before the rift between the two becomes insurmountable? I wish I had the answer. Still, the album has been the first measurable glimmer of hope between the two for a long time and as shaky as the truths is I'm willing to take the gamble. I've dismissed bands for less than that; let's hope Edguy makes the most of the opportunity.
Overall Score: 7/10
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