far gone is sonata arctica's speedy power metal (with the exception of 'flag in the ground'). in short, sonata arctica's sixth album release is more like 'unia' than anything else and they have become more of a progressive metal band by the looks of this album. the lyrics still carry familiar themes of tony, featuring on this album wolves, relationships, stalkers, witch hunts, death, and the x-files. the theme of gray versus color also runs throughout the album, unifying it in a way. tony kakko has gotten extremely crafty at creating addicting and progressive vocal harmonies, and are without a doubt the best part of the album. tommy's drumwork is less progressive than it was in 'unia' but is not anything like his old 'ecliptica' drumming. marko on bass sticks out more as in 'unia'. elias on guitar is a bit of a disappointment. i don't know if he just didn't try hard enough or if tony didn't want as much wankery on guitar, but, in any case, there is little impressive guitar work to be found. elias makes a great rhythmm guitarist with heavy, off tempo palm mutes, but there are hardly any solos, i think only two. henkka, too, has only two solos. what strikes me as odd, though, is that there were plenty of opportunities during instrumental breaks were solos could and should have been placed.
the best moments of 'days of grays' are those that sound like blends of 'unia' and 'reckoning night' (e.g. the last amazing grays). the best songs are, in my opinion, last amazing grays, flag in the ground, the dead skin, juliet, the truth is out there, in the dark, and everything fades to gray. the others are good, but do not attach themselves to you as much. in an interview henkka said the days of grays would be less progressive but darker and heavier than 'unia'. that statement is absolutely correct, and it is exactly how i would summarize the 'days of grays'.
2.deathaura- a song about a witch hunt. it's the longest on 'days of grays' and is one of the fastest and most like 'reckoning night' on the album.
3.last amazing grays- simply a great song, but if only it had a solo!
4.flag in the ground- see the previous review on 'last amazing grays'
5.breathing- a good ballad, with astounding lyrics
6.zeroes- a fun song with a dirty keyboard solo and lyrics about corruption in business and politics
7.the dead skin- a great song, the chorus' vocal melody is amazing
8.juliet- the conclusion of the stalker caleb. a good song, perhaps as good as 'caleb'
9.no dream can heal a broken heart- the second song to have johanna kurkela on it
10.as if the world wasn't ending- the weakest song of the album? tony sings well on it, though
11.the truth is out there- a great song about dana scully's alien abduction
12. everything fades to gray- tony's singing makes this simple song wonderful
13.in the dark- an amazing song. it has a great song structure and progression. the chorus is ridiculously '80s.
the 2nd orchestral disc is a nice addition. 'days of grays' is by far the most symphonic sonata album, so it's nice to hear a full arrangement of almost all the songs.
'days of grays' at first doesn't make sense and my first reaction to many of the songs was disappointment. however, keep listening for a couple of days and soon you'll be humming the lyrics, waiting to get back to your computer/car to listen to 'days of grays' more.
