Despite the fact that Magic Kingdom has been making bombastic music that appears to be tailor-made for concept albums for over twenty-five years, their sixth album ‘Blaze of Rage’ is actually their first stab at an album-length story. Guitarist, composer, and band leader Dushan Petrossi shares his insights on the writing and recording of the album.

“The key difference between this album and the ones that came before is that this time, I wrote a concept around the story”, Petrossi explains. “Hence, every song and every titled needed to follow the story and the timeline of the story. Every song can be seen as an episode in the story up until the twelfth and final song. It’s ‘Metallic Tragedy’, chapter 3. The two previous chapters can be found on the previous albums ‘Metallic Tragedy’ (2004) and ‘Symphony of War’ (2010).

Originally, the idea for the album was to have a very long, sixty-minute song. When I started the writing process, ‘The Great Rebellion’ was the first song I wrote, and all the rest followed. Ultimately, we did end up cutting the songs into different parts, so that radio stations can play it.

Nevertheless, it is essentially a concept album without breaks, which means I didn’t really pay attention to the lengths of the songs. I just wanted something diverse with a lot of different moods and atmospheres. A true legendary and epic story, translated into music.”

A Very Personal Vision

Given that Magic Kingdom’s symphonic brand of power metal has a tendency to get quite dense and busy in its arrangements, Petrossi’s guitar somehow never is buried or too loud. “The guitar is never in the way; all I write starts on the guitar or – rarely – on the keyboards”, he clears up. “Then I add all the orchestral arrangements. My guitar is always the base and the foundation of the songs. Except when it comes to the instrumental orchestral parts, of course, like the intro of ‘The Great Retribution’.

Because of this, I basically know where to raise or lower the volumes later in the mixing progress, to get a perfect balance between all the instruments, depending on what the songs demand. And then, it’s a matter of equalizing the frequencies to make sure the listeners will be able to hear everything properly.

I write everything in my studio: music, lyrics, vocal melodies, and all arrangements. Then I send the demos with my vocals to the singer, so he can replicate it with his voice. I have always worked this way for the last twenty-five years, in both my bands (Magic Kingdom and Iron Mask). I have a very personal vision of how the whole style must sound, and the direction it has to take. Most of the time, I start a song on the guitar, but it can be on keyboards, or even a bass riff or a drum rhythm that I like.

I am like a painter who does a drawing by himself. It’s my art, my passion, and my bands. And it’s much more efficient and faster this way, I must say. I am convinced that one day, I can collaborate with other people, and write music together. It could be fun as well. Even if, knowing the way musicians work, it could sometimes take forever to finish, haha!”

Wild and Energetic

While ‘Blaze of Rage’ is relatively light on guitar solos for an album of its style, it does contain some of the most aggressive riffs Petrossi has ever recorded for a Magic Kingdom album. “I always liked to use a thrashy riff here and there in my songs”, he says. “But this time around, I also just wanted to have a song that was full-on thrashy from start to finish. ‘Unsacred War Alliance’ is that song. I have always liked this kind of music, and I played eighties-style thrash, death, and black metal earlier in my career. It’s very wild and energetic, and it totally fits a war song on an epic concept album.”

Since Petrossi always had this style of music in his back pocket, he did not have to overhaul his equipment compared to earlier Magic Kingdom albums, or even what he uses when recording with Iron Mask. “It’s pretty much the same gear for both bands”, he stats. “Except this time I did want a bit more of a bite, so I used an Engl Fireball 25. I’m endorsed by Engl. They make great amps, and I really wanted a heavier sound for the rhythm parts. As you know, there are a lot of thrashy parts, blast beats sometimes, and a more aggressive style of metal in some parts.

I’m really happy with the general guitar tone. Guitar-wise, I used my Fender Strats, but also my Ibanez RG for the more aggressive stuff. I didn’t use any effects nor pedals; it was just my guitar straight into the amp.”

The Light and the Night

In a way, the most guitar-driven moments on ‘Blaze of Rage’ aren’t in the electric guitar riffs, but in the acoustic pieces. “I used my Takamine electro-acoustic guitar straight into my RME audio interface and Cubase”, Petrossi explains. “No micings. I usually start with the rhythm guitars – one left, one right, pretty common. Then the melodies come, also on acoustic guitar.

This was a lot of work, because I wanted counterparts instead of identical parts. I wanted something that fits together, but not playing the same thing, like when you record a wall of electric guitars to make it sound big. It had to sound big, but playing different instrumentations and arrangements.

Then I re-used the song to make an ending ballad, and replace the melodic lines on top of the rhythm by the voices of the singers singing the same melody. It was a cool idea to end this album full of rage with something quiet and softer, to return to the peace of mind and the non-violent era of the story.”

Despite not using any microphones for ‘Blaze of Rage’, Petrossi isn’t against recording acoustic guitars that way. “It all depends on the songs”, he states. “A perfect acoustic tone can’t be done with any electric instruments, and vice versa. It is important to use the right tonal frequencies for the right feeling, and what you’re looking for in a song.

Of course, I prefer to play the electric guitar, since I am not a classical musician, but an acoustic guitar has a lot of feeling right out of the fingers, without any cheating or effects. Just a bit of reverb, and it’s perfect. You need the light and the night to make a perfect world.”

A Surprise

Given the fact that Magic Kingdom’s lead singer Michael Vescera is from the United States, while the rest of the band is situated in the Brussels area in Belgium makes for quite the logistic challenge when it comes to playing live. However, it’s not a challenge Petrossi is avoiding.

“We already have a few gigs booked in Belgium next year”, he says. “Alcatraz Festival is already confirmed for the 9^th of August on the Main Stage, and Gullegem Fest, where will headline on April 12^th. Both shows are in the Kortrijk region, so don’t hesitate to buy a ticket and come see us, haha! We might even play the full story… Who knows? It’s a surprise!”