The Dungeons Are Calling

The Dungeons Are Calling is an EP by the American heavy metal band Savatage, released in 1985 on Combat Records. Though the EP was not released until 1985, most of the songs featured on it and the debut album, Sirens, had been in the band set list since 1979, and are part of the Live in Clearwater and City Beneath the Surface EPs. The Dungeons Are Calling is a loosely based concept album and the title track, contrary to popular belief, is not about Hell or torture, but about the horrors of drug use. The song used many metaphors, which have been sometimes misunderstood.[2]

The Dungeons Are Calling
EP by
Savatage
Released15 April 1985[1]
RecordedJanuary 1983
StudioMorrisound Studios, Tampa, Florida
GenreHeavy metal
Length24:54
LabelCombat
ProducerDan Johnson
Savatage chronology
Sirens
(1983)		 The Dungeons Are Calling
(1985)		 Power of the Night
(1985)
1994 CD edition cover

The tracks on this EP were recorded the same day as the tracks for the Sirens album. The two were meant to be a full-length debut but were divided due to limited space for songs on vinyl. The two were released together in 2011 for the first time "as they were meant to be" (Jon Oliva).

The cover is a picture of a human skull with a homemade syringe, a reference to the title track of the album.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal10/10[4]
Rock Hard9.5/10[5]

In 2005, The Dungeons Are Calling was ranked number 349 in Rock Hard magazine's book The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time.[6]

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."The Dungeons Are Calling"Jon Oliva, Criss Oliva, Keith Collins4:55
2."By the Grace of the Witch"J. Oliva, C. Oliva3:16
3."Visions"J. Oliva, C. Oliva3:05
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
4."Midas Knight"J. Oliva, C. Oliva, Collins4:24
5."City Beneath the Surface"J. Oliva, C. Oliva5:49
6."The Whip"J. Oliva3:31
Bonus tracks (1994 CD reissue)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Fighting for Your Love" (demo)J. Oliva, C. Oliva3:20
8."Sirens" (live)J. Oliva, C. Oliva3:21
Bonus tracks (2002 Metal Blade reissue)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Metalhead" (demo)J. Oliva, C. Oliva4:46
8."Before I Hang" (demo)J. Oliva, C. Oliva4:12
9."Stranger in the Dark" (demo)J. Oliva, C. Oliva5:01
99."Piper Rap" (hidden track) 1:41
Bonus track (2011 EarMusic reissue)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
16."In the Dream" (acoustic version)J. Oliva, C. Oliva3:34

Personnel
Savatage
Production
  • Danny Johnson – producer
  • Jim Morris – engineer
  • Mike Fuller – mastering
  • Eddy Schreyer – re–mastering
  • Robert Zemsky – management

Charts
Chart performance for The Dungeons Are Calling
Chart (2021) Peak
position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[7] 15

References
  1. "New Releases" (PDF). FMQB. 29 March 1985. p. 31. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  2. "Savatage FAQ - section 2 - the albums - part 1". Savatage official website. Retrieved 2013-04-16.
  3. Orens, Geoff. "Savatage - The Dungeons Are Calling review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2013-04-16.
  4. Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. pp. 312–313. ISBN 978-1894959315.
  5. Lerch, Uwe (1984). "Review Album: Savatage - The Dungeons Are Calling". Rock Hard (in German). No. 12. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  6. Best of Rock & Metal - Die 500 stärksten Scheiben aller Zeiten (in German). Rock Hard. 2005. p. 70. ISBN 3-89880-517-4.
  7. "Offiziellecharts.de – Savatage – The Dungeons Are Calling" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
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