By: William Clark
What screams Christmas even more than drinking eggnog half asleep by the fireplace as the family opens their presents at 5 AM?
Two words: Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
This rock collective has become as much a part of the holidays as any other tradition, and even when the band isn’t touring across the globe, their music remains permanently enrolled on the airwaves.
In fact, it’s these musical juggernauts’ emphasis on explosive guitar arpeggios, compelling vocal harmonies, blistering string arrangements and protruding percussion which allows their renditions of “Carol of the Bells” and “Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24” to retain their allure throughout the year.
While the hard rock and metal overtones of this band allow the vast majority of their music to still reach welcome ears in the heat of the summer, it is around the month of December that their catalog truly comes to life, as the full house who recently paid witness to during Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s two show residency at The Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, can attest.
As part of their 2014 Winter Tour, the members of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra performed their classic 1998 rock opera The Christmas Attic in its entirety, minus the children’s choir-led “Christmas Canon”, which was appropriately dropped, as it would have too heavily clashed with the rest of the effort’s heavier edge.
Remaining as authentic to the original storyline as possible, the band incorporated the use of stage-spanning props, blazing pyrotechnics, vivid video animations and rising platforms to transport the Central Floridian audience into an entirely different world.
It wasn’t too difficult to get swept into the performance, especially after witnessing half of the lineup emerge from a massive trunk before tearing into a more recent song, the suspenseful “Time and Distance”.
The onstage musicians, some who descend from Savatage and Journey prominence, seemed to be the size of toys when compared to their larger-than-life surroundings.
Guitarists Angus Clark and Al Pitrelli, who are well recognized for their contributions to Alice Cooper and Rock of Ages, could be found tackling the chord progressions to “Winter Palace”, while stunning pyro and lighting setups towered around and above them.
Trans-Siberian Orchestra have similarly never had much difficulty compiling a choice collection of vocal talent, however, the cast that appeared during their first Orlando performance of the evening was nothing short of formidable.
Nathan James accomplished the seemingly impossible task of combining a New York City jazz groove with the “Hallelujah” refrain, before concluding with a quick snippet of Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir”, and a lung busting primal scream on “Three Kings And I (What Really Happened)”.
Aptly introduced as having someone who stops time when she sings, Chloe Lowery brought many an audience member to tears with her compelling take on “Music Box Blues”, while Jeff Scott Soto of Ygnwie Malmsteen and Journey fame reintroduced a rampaging heavy metal attitude through top notch renditions of “Sparks” from 2009’s Night Castle and the power ballad “Find Our Way Home”.
Co-founder Paul O’Neill joined the band for their encore set, first manning an electric-acoustic guitar for the lighthearted “Someday” alongside Gabriela Guncikova, before tearing into the high voltage rocker “Night Conceives”.
After an impressive piano duel, the audience watched as dragons climbed across tower walls during the crunching “Reqiuem (The Fifth)”, complete with crashing percussion by John O’Reily from Rainbow.
After a ferocious assault on the senses in the form of “Christmas Eve (Sarajevo 12/24)”, the members of Trans-Siberian Orchestra took a final bow, concluding what had been a more than memorable performance. That evening, this veteran band reassured their status as not only a holiday tradition, but a full-fledged hard rock and heavy metal outfit.
GALLERY
About William S. Clark IV: William is the Editor-In-Chief with Music Enthusiast Magazine, where aside from his contributions as a senior writer and photographer with Guitar International he provides the latest in all things related to the rock and metal communities.
