''The Spectre Within'' is the second studio album by

progressive metal Progressive metal (often shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal music, heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified electric guitar, guitar-driven sound of the former with t ...

band

Fates Warning Fates Warning is an American progressive metal band, formed in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1982 by vocalist John Arch, guitarists Jim Matheos and Victor Arduini, bassist Joe DiBiase, and drummer Steve Zimmerman. There have been numerous lineup ch ...

, released in October 1985 through

Metal Blade Records Metal Blade Records (often shortened to Metal Blade) is an American independent record label founded by Brian Slagel in 1982 based in the U.S. state of California. The label primarily focuses on heavy metal. History Metal Blade Records was ...

. It has been reissued three times: first as a double album together with ''

Night on Bröcken ''Night on Bröcken'' is the debut studio album by the American progressive metal band Fates Warning, released in September 1984 through Metal Blade Records. The title of the album is apparently a reference to the Brocken, a mountain in Saxony- ...

'' (1984) in 1992, followed by a

remaster A remaster is a change in the sound or image quality of previously created forms of media, whether Mastering (audio), audiophonic, Cinematography, cinematic, or Videography, videographic. The resulting product is said to be remastered. The term ...

ed edition in 1994, and again in 2002 with four bonus tracks as well as new cover art."The Spectre Within"
fateswarning.com. Retrieved 2015-03-18.

Critical reception

Robert Taylor at

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

awarded ''The Spectre Within'' two stars out of five, saying that "

Metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

fans may enjoy this more than ''

'', especially 'Pirates of the Underground' and 'The Apparition', but there is very little, if anything, for the progressive fan." Trey Spencer at Sputnikmusic gave the album a similarly lukewarm review, deeming it "for die-hard fans only". Some criticism was directed at John Arch's vocals, which were described as "slightly irritating due to the unchanging high-pitched nature of his voice", as well as the dated

riffs A riff is a short, repeated motif or figure in the melody or accompaniment of a musical composition. Riffs are most often found in rock music, punk, heavy metal music, Latin, funk, and jazz, although classical music is also sometimes based on ...

and production. For new fans of Fates Warning, Spencer instead recommended their 1986 follow-up '' Awaken the Guardian'' as a better starting point. In contrast, Jeff Wagner in his '' Mean Deviation'' (2010: 56) book wrote that ''The Spectre Within'' "set Fates Warning apart from just about everyone else in the metal underground, although parallels could be drawn to Danish band Mercyful Fate, an early influence on uitarist Jim Matheos">Jim_Matheos.html" ;"title="uitarist Jim Matheos">uitarist Jim Matheos. Wagner also stressed that the album was "darker and more complex than even Iron Maiden or Queensrÿche, and it handled its fantasy imagery intelligently, passing over the clichéd traps of wizards, dragons, and ham-fisted, second-rate riffs".

Track listing

Personnel

* John Arch – vocals, arrangement, producer *Victor Arduini – guitar, arrangement, producer *

Jim Matheos Jim Matheos (born November 22, 1962) is an American guitarist and the primary songwriter for the progressive metal band Fates Warning, in which he has been the only consistent member since the group's beginning. Matheos also plays in OSI alongs ...

– guitar, arrangement, producer *Jim Arch – keyboard, arrangement *Steve Zimmerman – drums, arrangement, producer *Joe DiBiase – bass, arrangement, producter Production *Brian Slagel – producer *

Bill Metoyer Bill Metoyer is an American record producer who has recorded with Slayer, Deliverance, Hirax, Morbid Angel, Trouble and Tourniquet. He has worked at Metal Blade Records for several years as house producer and currently works as A&R. He also w ...

–

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

*Carmine Rizzo – engineering *Brad Vance –

ing (reissue) *Third Image – artwork

References

External links

Fates Warning - Spectre Within
at Metal Reviews {{DEFAULTSORT:Spectre Within, The Fates Warning albums 1985 albums Metal Blade Records albums