1. "Darkest Hours" 4:11
2. "Under Flaming Skies" 3:52
3. "Infernal Maze" 5:33
4. "Fairness Justified" 4:21        play
5. "The Game Never Ends" 3:54       play
6. "Lifetime in a Moment" 6:39
7. "Move the Mountain" 5:34
8. "Event Horizon" 4:24
9. "Elysium" 18:07

Pesonnel:
* Timo Kotipelto – Vocals
* Matias Kupiainen – Guitar
* Jens Johansson – Keyboards
* Jörg Michael – Drums
* Lauri Porra – Bass

Released in 2011, Elysium was the second Stratovarius album released after the Finnish band's acrimonious split with founding guitarist Timo Tolkki (their driving force for ten-plus albums and twice that many years), and the fact that it promptly grabbed the number one spot on Finland's music charts pretty much answered all questions about the band's future viability. Familiarity is the key to this, of course, since Elysium‘s songs unsurprisingly dared not mess with the band's dramatic brand of technical, yet always accessible, power metal; so once the initial show of core fan support subsided (support that was perhaps intensified by the sobering news of drummer Jörg Michael's cancer diagnosis), there was no overlooking the creative stagnation at hand. Yes, Stratovarius' new material was, as always, impeccably arranged, recorded, and performed, and the individual songs spared no attention to checking off all the power metal essentials, whether exploding into controlled speed metal runs ("Infernal Maze," "Event Horizon") before wiping a tear during select power ballads ("Fairness Justified," "Move the Mountain") or flirting with commercially oriented simplicity one moment ("Darkest Hours," "Under Flaming Skies") and then indulging in prog-symphonic showboating the next ("The Game Never Ends," "Lifetime in a Moment," the title track) to satisfy their guitar institute-attending contingent. And with longtime frontman Timo Kotipelto's soaring vocals still virtually indistinguishable from those of every other singer in power metal (not to mention the Rob Halfords and Geoff Tates before them), what hope was there for Stratovarius to break new ground, harvest new supporters, etc.? Perhaps the point is moot in the hopelessly frozen-in-time and largely self-sufficient world of power metal, but one can still hope for change, right? Not here, anyway, which means that Stratovarius' biggest and blindest supporters will surely be absolutely satisfied, at least. ---Eduardo Rivadavia, AllMusic Review

Pamiętam, że w czasach gdy brakowało tego typu muzyki, gdy królował grunge a miłośnicy power metalu żyli wspomnieniami po strażniku siedmiu kluczy Helloween, muzyka Stratovarius była niczym jaskółka zwiastująca, że dobre czasy dla takiego grania jeszcze wrócą (co się potwierdziło po sukcesie Hammerfall). "Fourth Dimension", "Episode", "Visons" czy "Destiny" - kasety (tak, miałem to na kasetach) katowałem niemiłosiernie a Stratovarius był dla mnie zespołem wyjątkowym. Niestety wraz z boomem na melodyjny power metal, Finowie zaczęli... zjadać swój własny ogon. Kolejne płyty stały się do bólu przewidywalne, a melodie miałkie i nijakie. Do tego doszły psychiczne problemy Timo Tolkkiego, który w prasie wygadywał niewiarygodne głupoty, rozwiązywał i reaktywował zespół (przez pewien czas wokalistką zespołu została niejaka Miss K - lecz jak się potem okazało tak jak się szybko pojawiła tak i zniknęła). Koniec końców mr Tolkki powiedział pass, nagrywajcie sobie płyty pod szyldem Stratovarius, ale beze mnie i tym sposobem powstały pochodzący z roku 2009 "Polaris" i "Elysium" (2011).

Szczerze? Wszystkiego się po Stratovarius spodziewałem, ale nie tak dobrej płyty. "Elysium" brzmi dobrze już od pierwszych dźwięków "Darkest Hours", przebojowego, z fajnym bridge'm i masakrycznie melodyjnym refrenem. Ja nie zanotowałem tu słabszych utworów. Tu patos łączy się z lekkością i DOBRYMI melodiami. To był mój zarzut numer jeden w stosunku do tego zespołu. Przez dobrych kilka lat, kolejne płyty wypełniały kompozycje może i ambitne pod względem aranżacyjnym, pełne smaczków itd, ale ze słabymi melodiami. Ten krążek to niby oklepane patenty, ale słucha się tego po prostu wybornie. Od patetycznego podniosłego wstępu w "Under Flaming Skies" po galopujący "Event Horizon" słychać, że stary, dobry Stratovarius powrócił. Nie mogę nie wspomnieć o zamykającym płytę, tytułowym "Elysium". Utwór ten to ponad osiemnaście minut kwintesencji stylu zespołu. Taki Startovarius w pigułce - są zwolnienia, galopady, do tego patos i charakterystyczne klawiszowe szaleństwa... niesamowita sprawa,,, a i Timo Kotipelto śpiewa wyjątkowo (jego głos a właściwie jego możliwości nie starzeją się od lat!!). To najlepszy taki podniosły, power metalowy, kilkunastominutowy kolos jakiego dane mi było słyszeć od czasów.... wspominanych "Keeperów" Helloween? To już tyle lat...

...stare czasy nie wrócą, ale dobrze, ze zespoły, które powstały lata temu (początki Startovarius datowane są na rok 1984 a więc zapewne wielu naszych czytelników nie było wtedy jeszcze na Świecie) mają się dobrze...:-) ---Piotr Michalski, rockarea.eu

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01. Hunting High And Low 04:09 
02. Millennium 04:09 
03. Mother Gaia 08:18 
04. Phoenix 06:13 
05. Glory Of The World 04:53 
06. A Million Light Years Away 05:19 
07. Freedom 05:04 
08. Infinity 09:22 
09. Celestial Dream 02:29

Bass – Jari Kainulainen
Conductor [Choir And Orchestra] – Riku Niemi (tracks: 3, 8, 9)
Drums – Jörg Michael
Guitar, Producer – Timo Tolkki
Keyboards – Jens Johansson
Vocals – Timo Kotipelto 

For anyone wishing that power metal albums would just get to the point, popping Infinite into your CD player is the way to go, seeing as it starts off with two of the most energetic and immediately satisfying songs from Stratovarius's discography. Purely for the singles 'Hunting High and Low' and 'A Million Light Years Away', as well as the buoyant and powerful 'Millenium', I would say Infinite is a necessary purchase for all fans of power metal, unless your idea of the genre extends to Sabaton and no further.

Coming hot on the heels of the excellent Destiny, Stratovarius took their brand of exciting, optimistic power metal into the realms of big production and bigger budgets, as the shining quality of the recording is quick to attest. By this point in their career, usually more classically power metal and less speed metal than their German peers like Helloween and Gamma Ray, the Finns were pushing the orchestral side of things and loading up their songs with bombast in a manner that would be familiar to Rhapsody of Fire if only there were more flutes and lyrics about dragons. The keyboards of Jens Johansson play a large but not overwhelming role in the shaping of some of the songs, diddling along like a second guitar on the more energetic likes of 'Phoenix', while adding "epic" (remember those scare quotes, I'm coming back to them in a minute) atmospheres, choirs, and strings to some of the slower songs and instrumental sections. I'm not sure if this period of Stratovarius has a direct comparison in the rest of the European power metal scene, since their fast songs tend to sound quite distinctive, while the more progressive pieces are often fairly soft, such as 'Mother Gaia', which sounds like a really long ballad.

Happily for everyone, Timo Tolkki was still doing well in both mind and left hand, which always gave Stratovarius a huge advantage. He actually has more opportunity to play fast and aggressively here than he did on Destiny, which tended towards the epic and mid-paced for at least half its length, plus the fact that there were really quite a lot of ballads on that album. Here, we actually have five fast-paced songs, which is really quite a big deal, and he produces decent riffs on all of them, even if a few blur together because of Jörg Michael's furious blastbeats. Then there are the melodies and solos that Tolkki really lets rip in a song like 'Glory of the World': the beginning of his main solo just sounds out of this world and when the rest of the band come back in behind him, Stratovarius really become a force of nature. The power of the production does a big favour to everybody else too, with the drums punching strongly though not overwhelming everything, the bass warm and audible, keyboards grand but not overstated, and the other Timo (Kotipelto) in excellent voice, maybe as good as he's ever been.

As for songs, I've mentioned that preponderence towards speed that marks all of the shorter numbers, while the longer songs tend to include more varied material. I guess 'A Million Light Years Away' is the catchiest song here, since it features a memorable keyboard hook and one of the most powerful choruses, using its mid-pace to stick in the mind, but it's the likes of 'Millenium', 'Freedom', and 'Glory of the World' that leave the general impression of the album's character. All use that typical fast power metal beat and hold back little in the way of subtlety, roaring out group vocals, orchestral tags, and blazing leads at will. With so many of this kind of song, it sometimes feels slightly predictable, though most of them are exciting enough that it doesn't matter, and rarely too cheesy to be palatable. 'Glory of the World' certainly takes the prize for lead shenanigans and 'Millenium' does the job for sheer exuberance and heaviness, while 'Freedom' and 'Phoenix' feel slightly underwhelming by comparison, perhaps because of some surplus length. The two long epics are rather different, since 'Mother Gaia' is soft and gentle and 'Infinity' simply throws everything at one song (especially hugely overblown choirs and keys), though most of it sticks, even if the song structure is quite a mess. The strangest thing to relate is that the only thing resembling a ballad is 'Mother Gaia', since the acoustic 'Celestial Dream' feels more like an outro to 'Infinity' than a fully fleshed-out song.

I'm not sure what problem some have found with Infinite, because I really enjoy the more direct approach and even the paint-splattered experiment of 'Infinity'. Perhaps a little generic at this point in their career, Stratovarius were still making exciting music that could endear them to several different sectors of the metal audience and proving that power metal at its best still means being powerful. ---gasmask_colostomy, metal-archives.com

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01. Why Are We Here 04:44 
02. It's A Mystery 04:05 
03. Neon Light Child 05:09 
04. Hunting High And Low (Demo Version) 04:20 
05. Millenium (Demo Version) 04:10 
06. Phoenix (Live) 06:33 
07. Infinity (Live) 09:17]

Jens Johansson - Keyboards
Timo Kotipelto - Vocals
Timo Tolkki - Guitars, Vocals
Jari Kainulainen - Bass
Jörg Michael - Drums 

Nice extras, but it's not all gravy...Stratovarius recently issued two new re-releases to spark interest in the band. The first, Infinite, was the last great CD by the band with ex-guitarist and founder, Timo Tolki. I found it interesting that the band would be re-issuing this CD now that Tolki is out of the band. There is no doubt that this was their last great record, starting off with a bang in the anthem Hunting High and Low, and continuing to pummel with solid tracks like A Million Light Years Away and Infinity. I could go on, but I wanted to get into the portion of this CD that might prompt a fan to buy this again; this deluxe edition includes the original CD as well as another one full of bonus tracks, demos, and a couple of live cuts.

Getting into the meat of this thing, there are 7 bonus tracks [on this extra CD] that I was most interested in because you sometimes find songs that are stronger than some of the actual original tracks. The first bonus track, Why are We Here, is a mid tempo rocker full of melody and killer riffage. It's classic Stratovaius, and sounds like it could have been written during the Destiny sessions. A killer tune which could have fit well on the original album easily. The next two tracks are okay, but you can see why they didn't make the original cut. Not bad, but nothing to knock your socks off either. Overall, the demos are pretty cool to hear, but nothing that special . The live tracks sound great, however, and once you hear these tracks, you hear how much Tolki is missed. ---therighttorock.com

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1. "Deep Unknown"
2. "Falling Star"
3. "King of Nothing"
4. "Blind"
5. "Winter Skies"
6. "Forever Is Today"
7. "Higher We Go"
8. "Somehow Precious"
9. "Emancipation suite: I Dusk"
10. "Emancipation suite: II Dawn"
11. "When Mountains Fall"
12. "Deep Unknown (Mikko Raita Vinyl Mix"

Bass – Lauri Porra
Drums – Jörg Michael
Guitar – Matias Kupiainen
Keyboards – Jens Johansson
Vocals – Timo Kotipelto
Backing Vocals – Alexi Parviainen, Jens Johansson, Lauri Porra, Hepa Waara,
 Matias Kupiainen, Timo Kotipelto, Tipe Johnson, Tony Kakko

In 2009 the legendary band Stratovarius rose from its ashes like a phoenix presenting us an all new album Polaris which is the first one they have made without Timo Tolkki who pretty much made Stratovarius into what it came to be. Now how did the band manage to make one of the best records of 2009 after someone who almost fully composed and produced all their previous releases left the band?

First of all, Polaris contains lots of positive surprises and reaches the quality of past Stratovarius classics. The performance is great as ever and the new guitarist Matias Kupianen really shows he has what it takes to replace a legend. There are no complaints to be made about the overall performance of the band even if it isn't their best.

Songwriting methods were new but the songs remind the old Stratovarius even if there are new and fresh spices added to the classical style of the band]. This time around the whole group contributed to the songwriting and they managed it well. The different type of songs made by different members of the band really work out as a whole and the album is quite balanced. The only thing one could complain about is some sloppy vocal melodies but Timo Kotipelto saves the day with his good performance making even the less good parts sound quite good.

The album has a good amount of variety and that is why choosing some few highlights of the album is difficult. However, the most memorable moments of this album are the songs "Forever is Today" and "Deep Unknown" which mix the old and new Stratovarius in a perfect way. Even production is very good. The sound is crystal clear and even if it lacks some kick it sure fits the style of this album well.

Overall the new Stratovarius managed to make a good power metal album that instantly lifts the listener into a very positive mood. Even if Polaris doesn't reach the high quality of the golden years of Stratovarius in the late 90s it sure is a worthy addition to their large discography. ---Mayhem, metalstorm.net

Czy Stratovarius może istnieć bez Timo Tolkkiego, człowieka, który przez dwadzieścia lat decydował o muzyce zespołu, był jego duszą i mózgiem? A jednak! Słuchając nagranego w odświeżonym składzie albumu Polaris nie czuć spadku jakości. Nie czuć też jakiejś zmiany tożsamości zespołu. Pewnie znacznie bardziej odczuwalna byłaby w tym momencie zmiana wokalisty. Tymczasem za komponowanie wzięli się: nowy basista Lauri Porra (pięć utworów), klawiszowiec Jens Johansson (trzy) oraz - w duecie - nowy gitarzysta Matias Kupiainen z Timo Kotipelto (trzy utwory) i wyszło to bardzo przyzwoicie.

Pierwsza połowa płyty sprawia wrażenie, jakby funkcję lidera przejął Johansson, klawisze wydają się odgrywać większą rolę niż dawniej, jednak od połowy albumu i utworu Forever Is Today słychać większą aktywność młodego gitarzysty. Kompozycje utrzymują tradycyjne tendencje, jak to w przypadku Stratovarius wszystkiego jest po trochu: powermetalowych galopad na dwie stopy z patetycznymi refrenami (Blind, Forever Is Today), charakterystycznej dla zespołu przebojowości (Falling Star) czy ballad (When Mountains Fall, Winter Skies).

Moim faworytem jest pierwszy na setliście Deep Unknown, dynamiczny, nieco agresywny, gdzie nieco przybrudzony gitarowy riff, ładnie uzupełnia się z pulsującymi klawiszami Johanssona. Na pewno wymienić trzeba też szybki, przebojowy Higher We Go. A w pierwszej części Emancipation Suite, zaczynającej się od ciężkiego, monumentalnego riffu i klimatów trochę a'la Rainbow w końcówce dałem porwać się pełnym pasji popisom klawiszowca i gitarzysty. Wymienić warto by też Somehow Precious, balladę z narastającym ciężarem i dramaturgią.

Uwaga skupia się też na popisach nowego gitarzysty. Martias Kupianien pokazuje, że potrafi bardzo szybko przebierać palcami na gryfie i podobnie jak Timo Tolkki lubuje się w neoklasycznych klimatach. Trudno jednak po tej jednej płycie powiedzieć, czy to właśnie on, wzorem swego poprzednika jest w stanie pociągnąć Stratovarius do dalszych sukcesów. Tutaj otrzymał dość mocne wsparcie kolegów. A znane jest już kilka przypadków w historii rocka, że po odejściu starego lidera reszta zespołu umiała się wyjątkowo sprężyć, by pokazać światu, że da sobie radę.

Ogromny szacunek należy się Timo Tolkkiemu, bo to on tak naprawdę stworzył Stratovarius i doprowadził go do sukcesów. Niemniej jego odejście chyba wyszło grupie na dobre, bo o ile jednak poziom poprzednich płyt regularnie spadał w dół, tutaj słychać powrót na właściwy kurs. ---Marcin Budyn, rockers.com.pl

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