The Redemption of William Black (Infinite Entanglement Part III)

There’s always been something endearingly DIY and cool about Blaze Bayley – even when his albums got a bit baggy or had some filler cuts, there was always something real about the guy. No posturing or bullshit. Part of it’s his voice – his stuffy, thick bellowing isn’t fit for your American Idols or whatever, and he can’t go real high and he doesn’t do much aside from the one thing. It’s an unadorned, working-man’s kind of vocal performance, and I mean that in the best way possible. I like the honesty of it all. He has a shitload of charisma, too, and that helps.

This is the third and final part of his William Black trilogy, and my favorite thing he ever did. Part of it is the music, as his backing band on this, the entirety of the band Absolva who I’ve never heard, just chugs out some great classic Maidenish power metal. It’s pretty simple stuff, but unlike some of his old albums, the songwriting is crisp and trimmed down, with the shorter runtimes and the brisk, melodic nature of the music making it go down easy. The riffs hit like a sack of hammers and everything gets done just right, with a lot of galloping mixed up with a few ballads here and there. It’s meat and potatoes stuff. Sometimes you’re in the mood for that. Maybe the production could be heavier, but I like the easy, lighter sound of this - makes it all flow better I think.

But the reason this album works the best is just Bayley’s ambition – it’s the most eclectic thing he did in this trilogy anyway, and the melodies trade off between epic climes and strident, rocking streetwise attitude. It’s a colorful listen because of the way the songs are set up. Despite the simplicity of the writing, he knows when to change it up – listen to the nifty opening of “Immortal One,” the catharsis of the climax of “18 Days” or the urgent, powerhouse verse-and-chorus combo of “Already Won.” This is pretty inventive stuff for an album that stays firmly in the realm of no-nonsense trad metal.

Other songs like “Are You Here,” the driving “Prayers Of Light” or the complete riff-monster “The First True Sign” just deliver on all levels, with hooks you’ll never forget. Pretty much every track on this thing is catchier than sin and they’ll never come out of your head. It’s his most varied and complete work and the songs all flow together really well – even the closing 9-minute epic works due to a suitably evocative chorus hook to tie it all off with a bow. If you’re into anything Blaze has done you have to get this one.

In true trilogy fashion, the third chapter of Blaze Bayley’s Infinite Entanglement saga is easily the most epic. The tempos are more mixed, the melodies sound bright and triumphant, and a greater emphasis on dialogue and sound effects results in an even more cinematic feel overall. The style isn’t too drastic a departure from the previous two installments’ power-tinged heavy metal, but there’s a clear sense of the album building up to some sort of climactic resolution.

But it’s hard to tell what the climactic resolution even is when the story has somehow gotten even more convoluted. Endure and Survive raised the stakes by throwing curveballs about our protagonist’s backstory, but The Redemption of William Black goes even further with the reveal of a eugenic masterplan complete with Revelations-style prophecies. Such elements don’t derail the music, but it’s hard to follow when the actual lyrics are almost entirely written in the first person. I’m sure the story is fleshed out in the tie-in media Blaze has planned for the trilogy, but I would settle for a song by song commentary.

Fortunately, the more conclusive outlook doesn’t get in the way of the preestablished songwriting method, as filler interludes and lengthy monologues remain elusive. While “Prayers of Light” can be pandering at times, its catchy hooks did make it a wise choice for the album’s lead single. From there, “The First True Sign” and “18 Days” make the most of the album’s narrative intensity and “Human Eyes” makes for another one of Blaze’s stirring ballads, particularly in its beginning. I also find “Already Won” to be the type of strong mid-tempo rocker that hasn’t been seen in the Blaze catalogue for quite some time.

Overall, The Redemption of William Black is a solid end to a solid trilogy. A much clearer narrative would’ve resulted in a more satisfactory conclusion but people who’ve just been listening to these albums for the music won’t find anything too drastically different on here than its predecessors. The first installment remains the strongest, but fans shouldn’t be disappointed by this album or Endure and Survive either. It’ll be interesting to see where Blaze Bayley goes from here. With all the work he’s put into this trilogy, I wouldn’t judge too harshly if he decided to rest on his laurels for a while.

Highlights:
“The First True Sign”
“Human Eyes”
“Prayers of Light”
“18 Days”
“Already Won”

Originally published at http://indymetalvault.com

Even more than the first two installments of the Infinite Entanglement trilogy, The Redemption of William Black is a tsunami of blistering guitars and infectious vocal melodies. The baritone soars above and below and punches through the galloping stampede, and literally attacks the music. It is crushing and addictive. It destroys!

Song after song, this album is relentless, explosive and it will slay you. And it is original. The more you hear it the better it gets, and when you start to learn the lyrics and decipher the story behind this impossible machine, you will be possessed. The frantic guitar solos sound like they emerge from an explosion or a crashing tidal wave. The vocals punch you in the face.

Then there is "18 Days". Gulp. A harrowing and beautiful duet between William Black and his wife as he is called back to war. This song will give you chills. Your hair will stand up on the back of your neck. Your vision may start to blur as a film of salty wetness begins to form over the fleshy part of your eyes. They will find you the next day, on the floor, curled up in a state of catharsis.

The Shamanic chanting and spoken interludes also bring a spiritual element to the science fiction, and illuminate another mysterious layer of meaning. Even without understanding the flow of the story, you will be catapulted on an epic aural journey. I can't say enough good good stuff about this album. So I should probably just shut up now so that you can listen to it. You are probably tempted to drop your laptop and run to the CD store to buy it. Don't do that; there are no CD stores anymore. It's a laundromat now. Buy it online.

The Redemption of William Black is the last part in the Infinite Entanglement trilogy. Finally. I have followed Blaze Bayley's career for many years and the sympathetic, resilient and passionate singer hasn't often received the credit he would have deserved for his early solo efforts. Now, he gets massive praise for a trilogy that is ultimately underwhelming and doesn't deserve the attention it gets. Many people praise the trilogy's concept but it feels copied from numerous science-fiction novels, movies and games. A lot of people underline the heavy metal musicianship but aside of a few narrative part and occasional acoustic guitar half-ballads, the three records offer old-fashioned heavy metal by the numbers that wouldn't have stood a chance to survive among competitors in the eighties. Most people praise Blaze Bayley's passionate vocal performance but his efforts often sound strained, out of tone and nasal. This third part is the weakest of the trilogy but even the first two releases were only slightly above average.

Blaze Bayley's has always shined in his most emotional songs that often had a gloomier tone fitting his lower vocal register. This album doesn't focus on emotions but a conceptual story which is already a bad choice for a singer that usually convinces with more personal lyrics. The songs are also often uplifting upper mid-tempo heavy metal tracks that are too fast for Blaze Bayley to follow them vocally and unfold his charismatic vocal chops. The idea to write shorter songs is usually a good idea but in this case, it doesn't work out because the tracks are challenging Blaze Bayley's vocals too much, often lacking song writing development and generally rushing by way too quickly. If you find tracks like the dull ''Redeemer'' with its endlessly repeated chorus, the awkward stop-and-go musicianship in ''Are You Here?'' that exposes Blaze Bayley's lacking vocal skills, the strained vocal efforts in ''The First True Sign'' or the rushed spoken word efforts in ''18 Days'' exciting, you should let a doctor check your hearing. Those songs are painful to sit through.

There are only a few positive elements to point out. The production of the first part was terrible with loud bass guitars and nasal vocal takes, the second part had a lackluster rhythm section but this third installment finally has a mostly decent production with a clear guitar tone, a slightly more organic rhythm section and a good use of radio play samples. Only the vocals still sound too loud in the mixture. Overall, the production is of a slightly above average quality but it's the best that Blaze Bayley has offered us in a while. A few tracks are at least good such as the melodic and epic closer ''Eagle Spirit'' that finally gives Blaze Bayley the chance to vary his vocal skills and convince in the mid-paced and slower parts. A few other songs have a few convincing passages in form of exciting guitar solos in ''Immortal One'', smooth female guest vocals in ''18 Days'' or the harmonious acoustic guitars in ''Life Goes On'' but as soon as Blaze Bayley starts to sing or the tracks speed up, all initial potential is wasted.

Another constant in the underwhelming trilogy is the laughable series of cover artworks. This one looks like the faceless protagonist's armpits are smelling so badly that he actually lifts off. This might be an unintentional climax after the protagonist's initial problems with his nose followed by his digestive issues.

On a more serious note, this record and the trilogy as a whole is only interesting for fans of old-fashioned heavy metal, those interested in conceptual science-fiction stories and the few faithful collectors and followers of Blaze Bayley's career. If you have discovered Blaze Bayley through these three records and think they are great, please give his first three solo albums a chance and I hope you will realize how much more profound they are than what the artist has offered us over the past two years. Somewhere in these three albums, there might be just enough material for one decent full length effort but as it is, this trilogy clearly offers quantity over quality. To be honest, this album only has one good song and as painful as it is to criticize an artist I genuinely admire, I must be honest and say that this album is somewhere between below average and bad. For his next record, Blaze Bayley should hire a vocal coach and focus on his slower and lower register. It's time to let William Black go and for Blaze Bayley to redeem himself with a more focused effort.

The journey has been interesting, to say the least, as we have followed Blaze Bayley and his William Black on their journey through the solar winds and into legend. The Redemption Of William Black is the third and final installment in the Infinite Entanglement trilogy, begun with Infinite Entanglement (2016) and continued with Endure And Survive (2017).

The middle part was darker, a little slower and more ominous, going out on a note of impending betrayal and murder. Conversely, this concluding part is light and airy, to showcase Black’s final realization that he can stand, strike back and survive - allegorical of course to Bayley himself, who has always been open with the many hardships and his depressions through his previous music. The trilogy has been made with heavy metal outfit Absolva as his backing band, with guitarist Chris Appleton helping greatly in both direction and songwriting.

The album holds some very short tracks, with two not reaching three minutes, and another two just above. These short melodic tracks feel longer than they are, to the credit of the stellar songwriting; simple and efficient, no part overstaying its due and utterly devoid of filler material (of which there was some on the second album). It’s Maiden-esque, obviously with lots of Absolva and their modern take on traditional metal in it; airy, approachable and confident in equal measure.

Appleton’s beautiful guitars litter the album to great effect, as he strews simple and catchy melodies and glowing, stylistic riffs to bridge the journey from darkness and back into light. And if the album starts out on a high note with some truly remarkable tracks, that’s still nothing compared to the album’s second half. Starting with the soaring 'Prayers Of Light' that hearkens back to the most uplifting tracks of the first two parts, the album takes a massive turn upwards, with great melodic antics and a Blaze Bayley as high on life and independence as ever.

The Redemption Of William Black hosts no outright ballad, but several songs that start out slow and easy, growing into melodically rhythmic punchers. 'Human Eyes', 'Life Goes On' and obviously closing track 'Eagle Spirit', trilling the soft and growing into heavy, melodics soaring in the solar wind. Both of the previous parts had acoustic ballads featuring Bayley’s friend and former band-mate Thomas Zwijsen and his distinct flamenco style ('What Will Come' will stand as the trilogy’s outright masterpiece), and though he is absent, the album fares well without a ballad; the flow is superb, and with every song neatly growing into the next to continue the story the album feels shorter than it is (clocking in at exactly 47 minutes), yet no moment of it needs be drawn out; perhaps not perfect, but everything on here is exactly as it should be.

It cannot be overstated how this album is infused with hope and optimism, thanks to the perfect melodic touch delivered by Appleton’s leads. Even with the song title 'The Dark Side Of Black' you think you’re going to be treated to something dark and moody near the finale, but nope; another stellar track that brings about hints of the first in the trilogy, while still feeling fresh and new, as with the rest of the material on here. Bayley himself delivers with confidence in himself and his voice, not faltering for a moment as he brings the thunder in opening track 'Redeemer', emotive depth in 'Human Eyes' and the ultimate defiance in epic closer 'Eagle Spirit'. Stronger than ever, he has come a long way from the darkness of Maiden’s The X Factor (1995); here is the place he belongs.

Now, the first album in the trilogy remains unbeaten, but The Redemption Of William Black is not far behind. A feel good album to say the least, and a perfect closing of the trilogy, which in its entirety will likely be remembered as Bayley’s defining moment, his magnum opus.

Standout tracks: Prayers Of Light, 18 Days, The Dark Side Of Black, Eagle Spirit