Review Summary: A killer return to form after the mediocre "Angry Machines", and also to begin the new millennium.
This is my favorite post-2000 Dio album—despite loving "Killing the Dragon" and "Master of the Moon". This is a killer return to form after the...well, to put it nicely, utter trash that was "Angry Machines", "This is Your Life" notwithstanding.
Below, I outline my views on each song, and allow you to draw your own conclusions on what you think of the songs, perhaps with my views taken into account.
"Discovery" - A rather creepy introduction to the album with either an alien or a robot(?) stating that "We have examined the manuscript..." and basically saying that it does not compute. Dio finishes the track with a haunting whisper: "Magica." Interesting.
"Magica Theme" - A rather lovely little instrumental, that heads a little past the 1 minute mark. Not much else to say, really. Reminiscent of a slower version of Iron Maiden's "The Ides Of March".
"Lord of the Last Day" - This is where it really starts to heat up. The first 'proper song' on the album, it starts out with a thunderous, lumbering riff, full of darkness. In case you couldn't tell, I like this song. Dio begins singing, starting with "I love the night....so many shadows...", in a odd tone somewhat reminiscent of "Jesus, Mary, & The Holy Ghost". Really good song.
"Fever Dreams" - Continuing the style of staccato, thunderous riffs, this track is almost as good as its predecessor. On this song, Dio goes for his more traditional style: melodic and less nasal. The song really gets awesome when Dio's voice soars over the line "...And the voices begin to sing: Come home!!". Amazing.
"Turn To Stone" - This song is somewhat inferior to the previous two, but good nonetheless. The chorus is probably the strong point of the song. Not a whole lot that I have to say here.
"Feed My Head" - This is a return to form after "Turn To Stone". "All is lost, hope is dead, feed my mind, fill my head. Hope is gone, the spell's been said, fill my mind, FEED MY HEAD". The chorus that I just typed is one of my favorites from this album.
"Eriel" - A very fun epic from Dio, with some "orchestral" strings and horns at the end, and a solo violin outro. As a violinist, I appreciate that.
"Chalis" - This one is kind of odd. It almost....kind of just reminds me of something Dio would have written for Rainbow back in the day. It reminds me of a more metal "Starstruck" or "Sensitive to Light". Still decent, but definitely not my favorite on the album.
"As Long As It's Not About Love" - I am a sucker for Dio ballads, whether they're with Rainbow, Sabbath, or whatever. I just love the gentler side of Dio's voice. It seems like a lot of people dislike this song, but I personally (respectfully) think that's stupid. Ballads are cool too, people.
"Losing My Insanity" - Very interesting song. Begins with a lute-like intro, and morphs into something that I could imagine Rainbow playing with Dio. I really like this one. "Otherworld" - Meh. Not the best on the album. Probably the worst, if only because it's forgettable despite being ok in the technical department.
"Magica (Reprise)" - I actually really like the use of reprises in this album, and I don't quite understand why people don't use them more. This particular one takes the second track of the album, "Magica Theme", and adds some vocals. Also, the robotic voices—which have been recurring throughout the album—come back for the last time, and seemingly delete any trace of the story. Pretty good, and better for the robots.
"Lord of the Last Day (Reprise)" - A shortened version of the original, with some more vocal free-styling. Unnecessary? Yes. Indulgent? Definitely. Awesome anyway? Hell yes.
"Magica Story" - Not a song, but a spoken-word rendition of the story. Very helpful for the comprehension of the story. I like that.
Sadly, we never got to see Magica II, or Magica III, but I am sure they'd have rocked.
