Challenging all those who long ago dismissed them as second-rate and painfully cheesy Teutonic power-thrashers, Rage inaugurate their 18th studio album, Speak of the Dead, with an ambitious, 25-minute song suite subtitled "Lingua Mortis." OK. Get ready for this, though: it's actually very entertaining! Part symphonic orchestration, part Spanish guitar austerity, part organ-driven progressive rock in the style of '70s legends Kansas and, obviously, part heavy metal at its most over-the-top dramatic (and, sure, just a little cheesy, in true Rage tradition), the magnum opus' multiple compositional dimensions are, at the very least, unexpected, and at most, a whole new avenue of expression for the group - who knew…
It was in the year 1985, when the foundation was laid for the career of a band which is, almost 35 years later, as active as on the very first day. Certainly, the talk is of Rage that have started out as Avenger, before the band name was changed. Now the three albums between 2001 and 2003 of the Metal Legend from Herne, Germany, are being re-released on three double CDs in a box set, including bonus CDs containing numerous demo versions that also include previously unreleased songs. Especially interesting for all fans is the digitally re-mastered version of the album "Welcome To The Other Side".