I've decided after a long hiatus to try to revive my progressive rock music blog. Over the past several years I've struggled to keep up with it since I got married and then returned back to school. Life was fairly busy for a while, but I've missed writing and thought it would be the perfect time to get back into it. I just wanted to kind of re-introduce myself and what the purpose of this blog is. I'll begin by saying that I'm not a very critical person, and I don't enjoy writing negative things. What I like to do is write about the things that I love, so my purpose with this blog is to share music that I'm passionate about. So, don't expect any negative reviews- if I happen to not like an album, I prefer not to listen to it much and would therefore prefer not to write about it as well. But I'm hoping if anybody reads this, that they are maybe inspired by my reviews to check out some new music they might not have otherwise looked into.
I'm still not completely sure all the things that I want to do in this blog- I'm still deciding how ambitious I want to be. But, what I do know for sure is that I will be posting reviews of new albums that I come across that I love and that are within the Progressive Rock realm. I want to try to catch up on all the 2018 albums that I've really enjoyed and then by the end of the year, have a wrap-up post that highlights all my favorite music of the year.
I have decided on a simple 5 star rating system as well to give some idea of how I feel about each album. In summary:
1 Star: A bad album that is unlistenable to me
2 Stars: A mediocre album that may have a couple decent tracks or moments, but overall is meandering and uninteresting
3 Stars: A good album that is may be uneven in spots but has some highlights and is an enjoyable listen
4 Stars: A fantastic album that is solid from start to finish
5 Stars: A masterpiece; on the short-list of my favorite all-time albums
As I'm sure you could gather from my previous statement, there will most likely never be 1 or 2 star albums featured on this blog. I will mostly focus on the 3-star and above albums. I plan on a 5-star album to be a very rare thing, only reserved for the most special albums.
So, I hope that anyone who might visit here finds something to enjoy and that you find my reviews interesting. I'll try my best to keep up with writing about all the latest and greatest albums I come across in the Progressive Rock world. Below is my first review after coming back for the excellent new Spock's Beard album, Noise Floor. Hopefully this gives you some idea of what to expect. Thanks, and have fun listening!
Friday, June 8, 2018
Spock's Beard- Noise Floor
From that solid opening, the band continues to really shine throughout the album. The musicianship is strong throughout, which is no surprise considering all those involved. The songs are really well thought out and are a joy to listen to. The band was clearly focusing on a more melodic approach to songwriting, which I think really makes for an enjoyable listen where every song is catchy in its own way and never outstays its welcome. "Somebody's Home" is a gem of a song, making use of the acoustic guitar interplay that the band is known for, but instead of being showy and needlessly complex, the focus is on the song and the emotional message in the words. It is a sweet song that really shines with beautiful strings and Ted Leonard giving a great impassioned vocal performance. It is certainly a highlight of the record.
"Have We All Gone Crazy Yet" is a personal favorite of mine, and I'm sure will be a personal favorite for many long-term fans of the band. This is where some of the band's fun, quirky style comes into play in spectacular fashion. What drew me to the band in the first place is that first and foremost, the music is fun. I listen to music mostly to experience joy and excitement, and I feel that Spock's Beard embodies this. This track bounces around with some wonderful interplay from all the instruments, with some jazziness and twists and turns that keep the listener guessing as the track progresses. This is excellent prog to my ears. "So This Is Life" comes as a bit of a breather and is a great mash-up of The Beatles and Pink Floyd. I appreciate what the Beard are doing here, and this track sounds different from the tracks surrounding it, and frankly from most of the music in the Spock's Beard catalog. But this gives it a certain freshness and makes the track that much more interesting.
The final three tracks of the main album are all fantastic pieces of music that close the album strongly. "One So Wise" is another joyous expression of music from the band that calls back to some of the strongest pieces of the last couple Spock's Beard albums (both of the Ted Leonard era albums, Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep and The Oblivion Particle). It is anthemic and has a Kansas vibe to it, especially Ted's incredible vocals. I love the bass-line and how the song moves along so seamlessly with some great keyboard work by Ryo Okumoto. This is modern Spock's at their finest. But, speaking of Ryo, he isn't done shining yet, as "Box Of Spiders" is purely a showcase of his talents as a writer and musician. This is maybe my favorite Spock's Beard instrumental ever. Up to this point, the focus has been on more melodic, catchy songs, but this is where the band just goes full on prog and the results are glorious. This piece goes through so many changes in time signatures, styles, and sounds. This is just an incredible work of crazy, progressive, complex and intricate art. I love this track. The album closes ironically with "Beginnings" which hearkens back to the classic Spock's Beard sound of the Neal Morse era of the band more than any of the other tracks, with some interesting vocal interplay between Alan Morse, Nick D'Virgilio and Ted Leonard. It is majestic and grandiose, which is a fantastic way to end an incredible album.
There is also a bonus disc called "From The Cutting Room Floor" with some additional tracks that are a great accompaniment to the album. I think there is some wisdom in separating out these tracks from the main disc. These tracks, although also great songs, don't quite fit in as much with the rest of the songs, and find a great home here on what can be considered a fantastic little EP. "Days We'll Remember" is a nostalgic ballad that has a strong sense of melody and a great sing-along chorus. "Bulletproof" is perhaps my favorite of the bonus disc songs with a very positive feel and some great pop sensibilities. Things slow down just slightly for the very pleasant "Vault" that is very influenced by Ted Leonard, sounding even like his other band, Enchant, at times and has a fantastic build up. This disc closes with the fabulous instrumental "Armegeddon Nervous" which moves along at a quick pace and allows for the band to shine one last time with some great instrumental interplay.
"Noise Floor" is a remarkable achievement for a band that is on their 13th album. I am always so impressed with the band and how they adapt as they go through each lineup change. This time they lost Jimmy Keegan, but they were able to bring back Nick D'Virgilio in the studio to cover the drum parts. But, the band are still going strong and I hope above all other hopes that the band keeps going and keeps evolving. Everybody shines on this album, from the musicianship to the song writing and arranging, this is a beautiful album full of amazing compositions. I'm so impressed with the band and heartily recommend this album to all prog music lovers. They are indeed firing on all cylinders and I can't wait to hear more in the future. This album will be on heavy rotation for me for quite some time.
Rating: 4 Stars.
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