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How many albums has Luca Turilli released under the Rhapsody name (Rhapsody, Rhapsody of Fire, Luca Turilli's Rhapsody, etc.) that sound like 2012's Ascending to Infinity? Since the band's inception, they've put out 10 albums, from 1997's Legendary Tales to this new one, so that makes it...10. Mastermind Turilli continues to score his Tolkien/Dungeons & Dragons/Renaissance world view with the crunchy guitars, orchestral keyboards and operatic vocals and choruses that define Italian Symphonic Power Metal. As you would expect, every note is in its proper place, the choruses are catchy (singer Alessandro Conti hits the requisite high notes with ease), the solos are technical and you end up feeling like you are watching one of those classic silent films in a theater with a live orchestra.

I like this type of Metal out of hand, so I'm not finding much to dislike about Ascending to Infinity. Many will say this is Turilli rehashing old ideas and, if I'd bothered to listen to some of his work since Symphony of Enchanted Lands, I might agree. Since I haven't, I'm going to say that Ascending to Infinity is a very enjoyable slab of Symphonic Power Metal that doesn't innovate but is very well done. If you are on the side of the aisle that feels this stuff is pompous and pretentious, just move along. There is nothing for you here. If, on the other hand, you are on the side of grandiose and majestic (the 15 minute closer, "Of Michael the Archangel and Lucifer's Fall," is just as big as its title would imply), this is a safe purchase.