ALBUM REVIEW: The Force Within – Cristiano Filippini’s Flames Of Heaven

Symphonic power metal, throughout the years, has become synonymous with sweeping orchestral structures and grandiose tales of epic adventures. You’d be forgiven for assuming that from that sales pitch that it’d be a staple of mainstream metal, however it’s a genre often buried under the carpet of concealment, the guilty pleasure of the heavy metal purist. AVANTASIA, KAMELOT and NIGHTWISH have all broken free of the barriers the codes and conventions of symphonic power metal had chained them too, the latter graduating to headline Bloodstock Festival and sell-out Wembley Arena. As 2020’s curtain begins to fall, a potential fourth addition to that list makes its presence known at a time where escapism is a necessity. Enter CRISTIANO FILIPPINI’S FLAMES OF HEAVEN. 

Born as the brainchild of Italian symphonic composer Cristiano Filippini, The Force Within is a commanding and all-conquering debut that stakes its claim as a symphonic power metal masterpiece. Created as a big-ticket bucket-list item, Filippini has assembled an all-star cast to bring FLAMES OF HEAVEN to life, including guitarist Michele Vioni [VIVALDI METAL PROJECT; BLAZE BAYLEY], drummer Paolo Caridi [GEOFF TATE, DAVID ELLEFSON], bassist Giorgio Terenziani [ARTHEMIS], and vocalist Marco Pastorino [TEMPERANCE]. Rather than opt for a who’s who guide a la AVANTASIA, Filippini has bought his rock opera to life with some of modern metal’s most technically adept personalities – and boy does it pay off.

The symphonic instrumental introduction The Force Within is a scene-setting suspense builder that burns the fire and bubbles the cauldron, as glittering keyboards collide with power chord riffs before dropping you head-first into the opener and album highlight We Fight For Eternity. Harkening back to the glory days of Metal Opera-era AVANTASIA, epic orchestral arrangements alleviate above an underworld of mind-bendingly nuanced keyboard structures that have you gliding across the skies of the world unfolding. 

From here, The Force Within is not for the faint-hearted. No tracks, bar the instrumental bookends, fall under five and a half minutes, traversing the traditional thematic and sonic terrains of symphonic power metal. In a time where streaming services settle scores between artists through who’s higher up on a playlist, it’s a bold move to bring out an album has cohesive and demanding as this, and yet it works – it’s only on rare moments such as the drawn-out drearisome The Angel & The Faith and the love metal anthem of the album Always With You that The Force Within falters, and that’s mostly to do with the pacing petering out for a second.

In Filippini’s search for the perfect model of symphonic power metal, he opts for substance over style, creating sonic soundscapes for Pastorino to deliver his powerhouse narration, which whilst adding nothing new to the genre, in turn creates what can in some ways be described as a ‘best of’ – as if he’s sifted through decades worth of records and synthesised them into a singular magnum opus. Against The Hellfire is 80’s synth-pop personified across a spectrum of power metal pastiche, Finding Yourself boasts a heartbreakingly beautiful solo that’ll send you on your way to your next conquest, and Far Away puts harmonies at the heart of its journey. 

In a year that’s left us physically and mentally locked down, look no further than Cristiano Filippini’s FLAMES OF HEAVEN for your daily dose of escapism. Simply put, The Force Within is the symphonic power metal masterpiece we’ve been waiting for. 

Rating: 9/10

The Force Within is out now via Limb Music.

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