With the release of their eighth studio album, Iconoclast - a conceptual album about the dehumanization of society by our ever-increasing reliance on technology - New Jersey metal masters Symphony X have once again delivered a collection of finely-crafted songs that raise the musical bar and then smash it to pieces.

       Since The Odyssey in 2002, Symphony X have become darker and edgier, and Iconoclast is their heaviest to date, but this is not to say that they’ve abandoned their trademark sound.  As the CD opens with the extravagant 11-minute title track, the elements we’ve all come to love about Symphony X are present: bombastic drumming, orchestral arrangements and strong choruses.  Guitarist Michael Romeo’s playing is as amazing as ever, coupling crushing riffs with searing solos that can peel paint from the walls, while keyboardist Michael Pinella weaves his signature melodic threads throughout the songs to tie it all together so beautifully.  On top of all this are powerhouse vocals of Russell Allen, one of metal’s finest singers, whose voice just seems to get better with age.

       While much of what’s always made Symphony X so great still remains, the music is definitely more accessible, delivering less neo-classical and more metallic punch and crunch. Each track is a blend of decadent progressive metal, chunky modern metal, and classic progressive rock that should please long-time fans as well as appeal to a broader audience.  The band blasts through the first six tracks (“Children of a Faceless God” is the standout for this listener) at an exhausting pace before slowing down ever so slightly with the beautiful “When All Is Lost.”  The second half of the CD is even more intense, steamrolling into the incredible “The Lords of Chaos” before culminating in “Reign in Madness.”

      Overall, Iconoclast shows how a band can truly progress while staying true to themselves and their fans.