We veterans of the early 80’s prog scene remember that when the likes of Marillion, IQ, and Twelfth Night started off there was not only a resounding fart from the trendy music press, but also accusations (most unfair) that the main protagonists had merely spliced together a bunch of Genesis, Yes, VDGG & etc. chords and plonked on some punk-like face paint to appear new. That movement became known as “neo-prog”, a label I personally dislike.

It is, therefore, somewhat ironical to said veterans that those bands are themselves massive influences on music being made in 2022 and alongside that the inevitable accusations of naked plagiarism.

The album Scissorgames by Ghost of the Machine is not naked plagiarism, but I think that the members of the band would readily admit to the influences on this album being worn on their sleeves.

It is the case that most of the reviews I have done which discuss such influences are not provided with glowing references. However, I have to say that I enjoy much of this album. Parts of it are superb and it is certainly one which will tickle the brain ivories of those of you who were there at the beginning.  

So, to a discussion. Five of the chaps responsible for this fare used to be with This Winter Machine. They left en masse and joined forces with vocalist Charlie Bramald, who shines throughout on this album. Why did they leave? I have no idea, but I might well contact them for an interview to find out.

There are over 28 minutes of the centrepiece, Scissors, the opener running in at over 17 minutes, and a reprise at the end over 10 minutes long. When I first listened to the opener, I really enjoyed it. Having now listened to it about twenty times over the past week, I love it. It really is a retro-prog rock track to fall in love with, but what sets it apart for me is that it is pretty much unlike anything else I have heard, certainly performed as well, in quite some time. Bramald is all over it. His voice is simply incredible, at turns forceful, at others delicate, but never anything less than fascinating and pushing along a slab of pomp prog wonderfully. In this, he is more than ably supported by his (far better known) new bandmates, Graham Garbett on guitars, Mark Hagan on keyboards, Stuart McAuley on bass, Moog, and Mellotron, Andy Milner on drums, and Scott Owens also on guitars. The track is split into distinct and separate movements, and it is nothing less than a prog rock tour de force. My feeling here as you listen to some massive synth chords, swirling guitar riffs, a clever rhythm section, is to simply sit back, close your eyes, and damned well enjoy what is at its core simply a hugely enjoyable suite of music.

The beginning of the closing segment of the suite is equally good, gorgeous with lilting guitars, a very fine understated bassline, thoughtful percussion, and keyboards which control all else. As with the opener, though, Bramald is at the heart of it all severing the strings and ending the puppet relationship. Five minutes out, there is a very strong bass guitar riff before the piano once again leads us. The beginning of the closing passage then takes us to traditional prog epic territory, with the tempo increasing and that epic feel surrounding the room from the speakers. The shame is that this has been done so often elsewhere, and my feeling is that perhaps this segment is about four minutes too long, and the suite might have been more effective as a single track without the derivative ending. However, given the pleasure this suite provides, this is a minor quibble.

So, to the remainder.

Mountain opens with some more huge synth chords, before the guitar and then the remainder of the band fill the room with a chugging riff. I tell you what this reminds me of – a couple of the louder tracks which featured on Martin Orford’s The Old Road, an album I still adore to this day. The Mountain reflected on in the track is clearly a personal emotional one, as opposed to a physical climb, and the song is a rollicking romp which is simply rather enjoyable. The guitar solo just short of five minutes in is exceptional and the bass & drums combine to drive the song along.

Just for Reference follows. A delicate piano opens proceedings before a classic Rothery-style guitar kicks in. The emotional lyrics and the musical style on this transported me back some 38 years. It is a very well-played and well-performed piece of music, but as a health warning I should state here that if your ideal of prog rock is the playing of 266 chords in 20 seconds in an impenetrable fashion, thinking that the second wave of prog was an abomination, this is not really the song, or indeed album, for you. To be fair, as the track develops, there is a fine burst of Celtic electric guitar and some pastoral keys, and the influences become less noticeable, and this is my favourite passage.

January’s Child has a fine guitar riff to open before swirling keys which are another throwback to a different era take over. The Child of January is, of course, full of grace according to the traditional rhyme, although recent scholarly articles have referred us plebians to the fact that they are more likely to be bloody miserable for most of their time on earth, and lyrically & musically I think that this track tends towards the latter viewpoint. As a piece of pomp rock, this is a decent track, and when the piano kicks in four minutes in, accompanied by a lovely vocal and evocative guitar and bass, you do sit up and take notice and really become quite immersed. There is a lyric which repeats “all the things we could have been”, which is repeated a few times, and this is actually a very good indicator of this band and album. I think that the successor album if we get one will be up there with the finest of modern rock, because there is much to commend to us in this album if you set aside prejudice and pre-conceived ideas, although certain passages do not help the band’s cause; witness those swirling synths returning seven minutes in.

Mercury Rising is split into two parts over just short of nine minutes. The opening (fine) guitar solo and accompanying keys scream out looming rock epic to you and then Hagen’s keyboard passage is very impressive before the superb guitars and piano interplay with the epic main segment kicking in with an expansive section both vocally and musically. I found the opening segment interesting, and whilst the main segment is not poor, I did find it less engaging and lyrically it is very much in the tradition of mythical prog rock started all those eons ago. Part Two reminds one very strongly of IQ. I love IQ, and this is a very well-played piece without being especially memorable. It is perhaps too close in its influences before the piece reasserts itself in the manner of the opening segment. Within this track, there are some very interesting ideas you feel are ready to burst out and hit us, and therefore I will continue to follow this project.

Dead to Me is the penultimate track. This track hits just about every button of those of us who adored our “new” prog rock in 1983 to 1984, callow youths celebrating the fact that we had some fresh intelligent music to buy instead of the dross which passed for music on Radio One (with the bold exception of Mr Vance on The Friday Rock Show). The vocals are moving, and the guitars emotional, and the rest of it ain’t half bad, either. Let me summarise this track thus. If you think Script for a Jester’s Tear is the ultimate prog rock album, this one is for you. If, like me, you feel that AHBID and FEAR are more representative of contemporary progressive music, this is an interesting curiosity.

Scissorgames is a good album. If you pop along to https://ghostofthemachineofficial.com/music and give it a listen, I think you will find a great deal to enjoy. The next one might well be rather excellent, because as us veterans of the scene appreciate; from humble beginnings, doth greatness ensue.