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

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

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 ...

, released in October 1985 through

Metal Blade Records Metal Blade Records is an American independent record label founded by Brian Slagel in 1982. The US office for Metal Blade is located in Agoura Hills, California. It also has offices in Germany, Japan, Canada, and the UK. The label is distr ...

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

Night on Bröcken Night on Bröcken is the first studio album by the American progressive metal band Fates Warning, released on September 9, 1984 through Metal Blade Records. The title of the album is apparently a reference to the Brocken, a mountain in Saxony-A ...

'' (1984) in 1992, followed by a

remaster Remaster refers to changing the quality of the sound or of the image, or both, of previously created recordings, either audiophonic, cinematic, or videographic. The terms digital remastering and digitally remastered are also used. Mastering A ...

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 music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

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

Metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typi ...

fans may enjoy this more than ''

'', especially 'Pirates of the Underground' and 'The Apparition', but there is very little, if anything, for the

progressive Progressive may refer to: Politics * Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform ** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context * Progressive realism, an American foreign policy pa ...

fan." Trey Spencer at

Sputnikmusic Sputnikmusic is an American music community website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites. The format of the website is unusual in that it includes both professional and amateur c ...

gave the album a similarly lukewarm review, deeming it "for die-hard fans only". Some criticism was directed at

John Arch John Arch (born John Maurice Archambault; May 15, 1959) is an American singer most well known for his work with the progressive metal band Fates Warning. Fates Warning Arch co-wrote the majority of the band's songs with guitarist Jim Matheo ...

'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 repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompan ...

and production. For new fans of Fates Warning, Spencer instead recommended their 1986 follow-up ''

Awaken the Guardian ''Awaken the Guardian'' is the third studio album by American progressive metal band Fates Warning, released in 1986 through Metal Blade Records. The album was the band and their label's first to enter the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200, reaching No. 191 ...

'' 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 Mercyful Fate is a Danish heavy metal band from Copenhagen, formed in 1981 by vocalist King Diamond and guitarist Hank Shermann. Influenced by progressive rock and hard rock, and with lyrics dealing with Satan and the occult, 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

– 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 use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

*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