John Arch

Solo effort from former Fates Warning vocalist.

A TWIST OF FATE (2003) METAL BLADE

Relentless
Cheyenne

Line-up:

John Arch - Vocals

Jim Matheos - Guitars, Keyboards

Mike Portnoy - Drums

Joey Vera - Bass

Additional musician:

Andy Happel - Violins and Cello on 2

One of the defining voices of the prog metal scene returns after a 16 year hiatus! John Arch left Fates Warning in 1987, just after the release of their critically acclaimed 'Awaken The Guardian' album. He was the bands original vocalist, and helped create the unique sound they had in the beginning. After the split he first auditioned to be the new Dream Theater vocalist, after Charlie Dominici was given his walking papers. That, as we all know, didn't pan out. So John went into a self-imposed musical hibernation. Then in 2002 Jim Matheos (Fates Warning) and Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater) was working together on their OSI side project, and Jim decided to call John to see if he wanted to be their singer. John turned him down, because he felt out of touch with music, and he wasn't even sure what he could add to such a project. But it didn't take long before he regretted turning his former band mate, and friend down, so he called Jim back to ask if they could find something else to sink their teeth into. The result is the 2 song EP, named 'A Twist Of Fate'. Although EP might not be the right term, and the playing time on this thing is close to 30 minutes!. Yes, both songs are well over 10 minutes long. So it's no surprise that we are talking progressive heavy metal here. If you look at the line-up, you will get a solid feel on what the music herein sounds like. With epic length tracks you know there are going to be twists and turns, time changes, bridges, soft parts, acoustic parts, heavier parts, you name it, this album's got it! The musicianship is outstanding, just as you'd expect from the better known names in this genre. And on top we have John Arch's voice wailing once more. He has his own signature and style, and there aren't many other singers out there that can match this man's vocal acrobatics. It's a total pleasure to listen to him create different atmospheres, conjuring up vivid images in my head. Both of these songs takes you on a musical journey, with mesmerizing melodies, and hypnotic vocals. The liner notes inside the booklet fills you in on John's thoughts and ideas around the sionfs. In fact, he shares his story from the end of his stint with Fates Warning, and up to the recording if 'A Twist Of Fate'. I really hope this is not the last we get to hear from this golden voice, because even though this EP is long, it still leaves me wanting more.