An exceptional creation.
A great album from a great band. Nothing more, and nothing less.
Pendragon are one of the most important bands to emerge from the UK prog revival in the 1980's, and this album, released in 2001, marked a return after a five-year hiatus following the excellent The Masquerade Overture, and it continued many of the themes explored in that album.
Nick Barrett and Clive Nolan entered the new decade with a piece of work that absolutely oozes class, and drips with symphonic layers, and nods to their beginnings.
Standout track, for me, is the epic All Over Now (Dance Of The Veils Part Two), but, to be honest, this another album released by the band that really must be appreciated as a whole work, rather than exploring mere individual tracks.
Barrett commands centre stage on this, with his guitar work absolutely singing, but also with lyrics and vocals dripping with bitterness. He exudes an almost punk like attitude in both the intent and delivery of the stories he tells, and therein lies a very important aspect of this, and other, works by the band. It should appeal not just to progheads such as myself, although we are, of course, deeply satisfied with strong neo tracks such as Not Of This World (Not Of This World Part One), with its swirling keyboards and screaming guitars very reminiscent of the 80's revival itself, but also to a brand new generation of rock fans wholly without many of the prejudices inherent in the mainstream music press.
For all its nods to glories past, this has the feel of a modern rock album, and gives us some very strong hints as to the direction the band would continue to explore in subsequent albums.
Clive Nolan is essential on this. Although you could argue that Barrett is at the centre of proceedings, it is Nolan's keyboards which provide a hugely important and symphonic backdrop to proceedings. I don't think personally he has ever played better. Witness his quite exceptional work on Green Eyed Angel (Not Of This World Part Three).
I should also here provide special praise to the marvellous rhythm section of Smith and Gee, the latter especially shining with some pounding bass work throughout.
Neo prog can sometimes be a bit of a misnomer. For this is a symphonic work of prog from start to finish, and one that also has some extremely knowing post rock and punk sensibilities.
Previous reviews for this album have veered between very high and very low ratings. Comparisons have abounded between this and the two albums it sandwiches, both of which are exceptional works.
However, this album deserves to be considered in its own right. You will very rarely hear a group of musicians play as tightly and as well as this, with some massive sounds pouring out of your speakers, but also with some extremely delicate interplay and vocals. For no better a combination of all, witness the epic track A Man Of Nomadic Traits. This also features some exquisite backing vocals by Tina Riley.
Highly recommended for all readers who lost track of this great band in the new decade, but also those fans who, like me, really enjoy hearing the great bands move onto more ambitious and greater things.
I agree with my initial assessment of this album. There is some good stuff here, but most certainly not in the top range of Marillion albums
An album that is one of the more controversial amongst the band's incredibly loyal fanbase, this was the first release of the 21st Century, and was, on the back of Marillion.Com, a further attempt to move the band away from the stereotypical “neo prog” label and to break back into commercial success. At the time, Steve Hogarth, especially, was popping up in interviews everywhere to inform the population that Marillion were no longer a prog rock band and should now be compared to bands such as Radiohead. Thankfully, he no longer does this, now that prog is no longer a dirty word, but it should be made clear that they are no Radiohead, either.
This album, with its playful title nod to the rather obsessive nature of fans such as myself, was recorded on a pre-paid basis by said fans. This review, however, is of the single CD generally available at record shops.
What we have here is what the band have usually always been very good at. Attempting to progress beyond what they produced before and move on, whilst still appeasing fans like myself who demand exceptional musicianship and thoughtful music.
It starts off on a high, with Between You And Me, a rollicking opener which has, rightly, remained a live favourite ever since. Great vocals, great riffs, and great rhythm section. Six and a half minutes of fun, even better on the live LPs.
Quartz is a nine-minute epic which, to my ears, is very disjointed. When it's good, particularly in the quieter "It's So Hard" passages, it's very good, but, otherwise, it doesn't seam together well at all and sounds a bit of a mess. It doesn't help that the production isn't particularly good, either. There are, however, some great guitar breaks from Rothery and, especially, strong funky bass lead by Trewavas, so it's not a total disaster.
My favourite track is the clear "let's get back into the charts, boys" commercial single, Map Of The World. It wasn't a smash hit, by any means, but it certainly is very typical of what this band, in whatever incarnation, do very well, marrying progressive rock with commercial instincts, and the story, of a girl dreaming of escaping a drab, poor, life to travel and see the world, is marvellous, and the band execute it extremely well indeed. This is one of the best tracks the band have performed and released, and one of the most obscure in terms of recognition. Rothery's guitar solo in the mid-section is one of his finest, and you are tapping your toes relentlessly throughout.
When I Meet God runs at over nine minutes long and is far better and joined together than Quartz. It is the type of track they do best. Thoughtful, melodic, emotional, and musically very tight indeed. Hogarth is on supreme form, Kelly has rarely sounded better creating a lush synth backdrop, and Rothery is almost shouting in his understated support. Fans of great bass playing should also listen carefully to the melodic lead that Trewavas creates on this, whilst Mosley makes up the best rhythm section in the business. A delight from start to finish, this is worth two stars on its own.
The Fruit Of The Wild Rose was the band's attempt to reinvent themselves as a jazz improvisation quintet. It doesn't work and, thankfully, no further attempts were made. This track, I'm afraid, has throwaway screaming at you.
We get back on track with Separated Out. The musical theme returns to that of the opening track, and it races along at a fair old pace, with some tremendous riffs and a great vocal performance by Hogarth dedicating the track to all of us Marillion anoraks. Cheers! The film vocal interludes are, to me, a bit annoying, but overall, this is great fun.
Two epic tracks close the album. This Is The 21st Century is the longest track on the album, at over eleven minutes long. Lyrically interesting as an attempt to prove to the masses that Marillion are a modern band, as, indeed, with the funding exercise, they most certainly were, proving themselves true trailblazers. There are some delicate, intricate, and experimental guitar pieces from Steven Rothery, and the entire piece is understated and almost trancey, certainly with the excellent instrumental passage closing the track, but still undeniably Marillion. A very enjoyable track which demonstrates the true progressive nature of the band, never afraid to try something different.
If My Heart Were A Ball, It Would Roll Uphill closes the album, and is similar in many ways to Quartz, in that it is decent, but disjointed, and really could have done with being four minutes shorter. The experimental riffs, and Ian Mosley's hammering drum performance (probably the heaviest in his Marillion career), make this a very interesting track, but, ultimately, not amongst their finest.
Marillion have, for very nearly 30 years now, been my favourite band, but a review must be honest in its critique and rating. This is a good album, but no more. Completionists, like me, will, of course, must own this album. For all others, it is decent enough, but not, in my opinion, particularly representative of the now extensive catalogue of work, and certainly not a good place to start with the Hogarth era if you are not familiar with it.
Masterpieces, though, were to follow!
A 2001 release, this is a solid album, without, I think, being exceptional.
We all expect a special epic to open proceedings with, and Last Minute on Earth does not disappoint. Aside from a strange opening, the vocals on this by Hasse Froberg are really pleasing, and the whole track has the precise symphonic feel that I love so much about the band. A grandiose attempt spoiled a little bit by a rather aimless conclusion, as if the band simply HAD to fill up 60 seconds with endless jamming.
World Without a Heart is a lovely four-and-a-half-minute track, with a fragile vocal by Stolt and some gentle slide guitar and backing from other departments. It should not be forgotten that this band do also do ballads very well, and this is a very enjoyable one.
Road to Sanctuary is the longest track on the album, at almost 14 minutes. I love the keyboard led focus of this track, it is very much moulded within the classic symphonic tradition, and certainly the letters ELP are written all over the opening passage to this one. Just short of four minutes in, the track reverts to more traditional TFK territory, before a very quiet acoustic guitar & flute led passage. Really nice musicianship is present here. There are many mood changes within this track, too many really to detail in a limited time review, but I really do enjoy the quieter passages, which I think feature some of Stolt's finest acoustic guitar work. This epic finishes not with a huge bang, but with a gentle downplay. It's not any the worst for that.
The title track is up next. Very slow intro section, described by many as Bolero inspired, and I can see where they are coming from, there is a fantastic guitar solo to come, with soaring melodies. Nice to hear mellotron come to the track at four minutes in, before other keys take over for the remainder accompanied by a low and deep bass line from Reingold. This is a competent instrumental rather than a standout epic by the band.
City of Angels is the next epic clocking in at just over 12 minutes long. This starts off in the most sunny and upbeat manner possible, a fantastic opening. There are some nice vocal harmonies, and the listener is very much reminded of Fragile era Yes again. Retro symphonic prog at its most obvious, there are some nice passages, but I don't find it consistent and joined up enough to hold the attention much.
Elaine is another ballad, with some exceptional work by Reingold on bass especially. I like Stolt's vocals on this, even if some of the lyrics are rather cheesy.
I like the heavy organ on the intro to Thru The Walls, but, again, this is not a particularly coherent track, and struggles to hold the attention.
Sword of God gets things back on track, with the music bursting into a heavy set of riffs, following on from a deceptively choral opening. I like this one - heavy, moody, and rocking.
Blessing of a Smile quietens down proceedings again, this is a lovely instrumental, with exceptional combinations of bass guitar, sax, and keyboards. Very pleasing, very gentle, this is the band at their best.
I'm not quite sure what the point of Red Alert was, in all honesty. This is a one-minute instrumental revisiting some of the earlier passages, and I for one would have preferred them to have extended this into a longer track in order to develop it properly. As it is, a one-minute noodle does nothing at all.
The album closes with Serious Dreamers. An excellent way to close the album, this rescues the album a little bit from meandering here and there. Some great vocals set to a good bluesy feel, nine minutes of sheer pleasure.
This band do not do bad albums, and, as with most of their work, there are soaring highs and moments when you are in the company of genius. Equally, there are infuriating moments, and there are a couple more on this one that some other albums.
Some fantastic moments, but the school report would state capable of so much more.
Mostly Autumn – The Last Bright Light
This is the album that marked the progress of a band from an underground, cult outfit (i.e., one that not many people had heard of) to one noticed very much by the rock press and playing to substantially larger venues. It is also the album that convinced me that they would be at the vanguard of the new wave of progressive bands emerging in the UK and wider afield.
Bryan Josh is by his own admission, not the most tuneful of vocalists. However, what he lacks in formal training he makes up for in raw emotion and passion, and readers should also definitely check out the later MA and his solo LP to see evidence of huge improvement. But the one thing that makes him stand out from a large crowd is his absolute mastery of the guitar. He is simply magnificent and combines thoughtful acoustic work with stunning bursts of electric solos.
However, the vocal draw for me must be Heather Findlay. She has a stunning range and can also belt out a stormer as well. I will also give a special mention to Angela Goldthorpe, who provides excellent backing vocals and has the finest flute heard in prog since the halcyon days of Anderson & Gabriel. It is nice to see such a lovely instrument employed to good effect on this LP. To hear the flute solo on Which Wood? is to simply reminisce in days gone by.
Highlights are many on this, but the first track that made me sit up and take real notice was Half The Mountain, a Josh vocal containing quite an outstanding guitar solo. From this, it is easy to see why Ritchie Blackmore was such an early patron of Josh and the band.
The Last Bright Light contains everything, including Gregorian chants. My favourite, however, is the Findlay vocal and composition Shrinking Violet, which recounts her deep-rooted troubles in formative years, and it is an excellent and powerful lyric and track. The end passage, when her chants combine with a hugely powerful Josh guitar solo simply takes the breath away.
There are many influences on this LP. There is heavy rock a la Rainbow/Deep Purple, folk rock a la Jethro Tull, very large Celtic sounds, and, of course, the obvious Pink Floyd references, most clear on the final track, Mother Nature. There is on this a cracking passage where Josh & Findlay belt out the Sometimes... sequence before the music descends into a very obvious Floyd Wish You Were Here era inspired closing passage. That is not said to denigrate the track - it is lush and Josh and Jennings play beautifully.
If you are after a blend of harder rock, Celtic tinged music, folk, and Floyd, combined with some of the best female vocals in the genre and exceptional guitar work, then this LP is for you.
It's hard to believe that this, the last studio LP made by what is probably the most popular band in prog, is now eight years old. If it is, indeed, to be their swansong, it is certainly a fine way to go out.
Howe had got his way by having Sherwood kicked out, and certainly unlamented by this reviewer, Khurushev had left, and Wakeman was still having one of his, by now, regular stints of not talking to the band, so they were left without a keyboardist and decided to take symphonic prog to its natural level by replacing keyboards with a full-blown symphonic orchestra. The results are very pleasing.
The title track kicks things off and is really a natural follow on from the excellent commercial stuff done on The Ladder.
Spirit of Survival features a magnificent Squire bass line, whilst Don't Go features Anderson using a megaphone. I'm not sure why, but it is not unpleasant.
Give Love Each Day starts off as pure classical music, and it is fantastic, with a lovely brass piece accompanying strings to the backdrop of a simple Squire bass. The main Yes piece features a fantastic Anderson vocal. Certainly, The Ladder and this LP resurrected my faith in my favourite vocalist - he once again sings with passion, and this whole piece really is fantastic as he and Squire hold together a great harmony, with all band members playing at the top of their game.
Can You Imagine is a great surprise for me. This is a left over from the brief song writing project Squire & White undertook with Jimmy Page, XYZ, and you just marvel at the incredible tone of Squire's vocals. The orchestra accompanies very well, with a nice piano backdrop to the song. An incredible performance, with Anderson very nicely playing the background vocal harmony for once.
We Agree starts off with a nice acoustic guitar, with a pulsating bass line and orchestra accompanying Anderson. The track then becomes more expansive before ending more thoughtfully again - I like this track a great deal.
Soft as a Dove is the shortest track on the LP, and is basically a pleasant quiet Anderson & Howe collaboration. It harks back to the days of yore, with Anderson reflecting upon his own personal journey, rather than bigging up LA gangs as on the Keystudio tracks.
Dreamtime is the first of the ten minutes plus epics, and has many different moods and tempos, but never feels like anything less than a coherent whole piece of music. White especially comes up with some fantastic percussion, and the orchestra, especially strings & brass, make you wonder why we ever had keyboards in the first place.
In The Presence of is the second epic, and I think it is excellent, and was even better live. It starts off with Anderson solely accompanied by a piano, before Squire plays the most exquisite bass line. We are once again worshipping the Sun - oh happy days! It really is literally like going back in time to the '70's. Howe and Squire combine superbly. Again, the track consists of many pieces melded into a whole, the trick they first learned to such great effect on The Yes Album. The Standing on Sacred Ground section is simply awesome. The only word I can think of to describe this track is majestic. Guitar, strings, voice, slide guitar combine to create an incredible piece of music.
Time is Time ends proceedings, and if this really is to be the last ever studio track we hear from Yes, it is a fantastic way to finish. The acoustic live version on Tsongas is also superb.
There are, I know, a great many people who gave up on Yes after the '80s or '90s. I would urge them to return to the fold and get this LP, most certainly the most effective traditional Yes LP since Going for the One, even if it doesn't feature Wakeman. In fact, the orchestra really do make up for his absence, and Howe, most certainly, was being truthful when he declared that this was the music that Yes absolutely had to make.
An excellent addition to any Yes or prog collection.
Strictly speaking, this album was released in 1996 & 1997 as the studio parts for Keys to Ascension 1 & 2. Keystudio is merely the rather unnecessary release of the studio recordings the band made to complement the live pieces. It was, of course, the great coming together of the classic Yes line-up of Anderson, Howe, Squire, Wakeman, and White. All of us who had been fans for donkeys’ years slavered when we purchased the original Keys albums, and we were certainly rewarded with exceptional live performances of the classic tracks from the seventies. However, would the studio tracks pass muster?
I am sorry, but I think that a lot of the previous reviews of this album have suffered from the fact that it was this line-up recording the tracks, because to my ears, this really isn't a very good album at all. I listened to it today for the first time in some while, and I believe if you hardly ever listen to an LP, then it really cannot be that good. It is not a patch on Talk and pales into comparison with The Ladder which was to follow two albums later.
The band certainly tried to return to their grandiose roots. The shortest track on the album is Sign Language at 3.28 minutes. It is also, by the way, by far the best. The other tracks range from six minutes to the official epic 19.15 minutes.
The trouble with it is that a lot of the longer tracks sound as if they have been thrown together simply to make them lengthy epics, without any coherent theme or purpose.
I will discuss the tracks in the order they appeared on the Keys LPs.
Be The One starts the LP off nicely, with some lovely Howe acoustic guitar work. Howe is by far the best performing member of the band on this LP.
That, That Is is exceptionally long at 19.15 minutes and would appear to be about LA gangs, childhood abuse, and those sorts of typical Yes subjects...Not!! I find it a messy and incoherent attempt at relevance, and there is no melodic theme against Squire's strong bass backdrop. The lyrics meander. Even when at 16 minutes, the track gives a lovely Howe accompaniment to Squire's great bass line, the noodling by Wakeman somewhat spoils it - it feels far too jazzy.
Mind Drive clocks in at 18.39 minutes and gets off to a fantastic start with Howe's beautiful acoustic lead and Wakeman's gentle backdrop. As the opening passage moves on, we are reminded of just what a fine bass player Squire is. The main section is led by Squire's dark, brooding bass guitar. It is four minutes until we hear Anderson, but the almost staccato delivery of the lyrics is very unsatisfactory. The Bring You sequence is lovely, but the remainder is all, again, a bit of a mess.
Foot Prints is another in excess of 19 minutes, and starts well. The references to the revolution put me in mind very much of Tormato, but the track again descends into what can only be described as a jazzy session piece, with absolutely no coherence again.
Bring me to the Power is a far gentler piece, better for it, and has a lovely Howe backdrop. However, Anderson again seems to ramble rather than sing in the flowing manner all classic fans of his and the band enjoy.
Children of Light has another very strong bassline, the piano at the start is very nice, but then Anderson starts again, and this time, it's almost as if he feels he must turn into a rap vocalist in order to be relevant. It sounds horrible, and that is not an easy thing to write from such a big fan of his. However, the closing sequence of Howes slide guitar with Wakeman's gentle keyboard backing is exquisite.
The closer is Sign Language. The opening acoustic guitar and piano duet leads to a relaxing, fantastic keyboard composition by Wakeman, accompanied by a fine Howe solo. This track has what the others lack - it glides effortlessly from start to finish, feels, and sounds like a whole piece, rather than a bunch of different sessions thrown together in the hope of making an epic as with the others.
Absolutely for diehard fans and collectors only.
2001 saw an ever so subtle change in the Nonny-Non direction taken by Blackmore, in cahoots with his partner and now wife Candice Night, since leaving Deep Purple, in that this album, as witnessed immediately by the opener, a fine rocker, featuring blinding axe action, showed a willingness to blend his obvious love of the Renaissance influenced folk with his more immediate past as a rock icon, nay God.
There is, therefore, an immediacy and urgency in the guitar playing, and whole feel of the album's production, that is rather more intense than in the two predecessor albums (not that there was anything wrong with them. Quite the opposite). This is witnessed by another belter, featuring the type of Rainbow and Purple licks beloved of old, on I Still Remember.
The core of the album is, though, still that blend of classic folk and progressive tinged rock, and they do not disappoint on this level, either. There are a whole seventeen tracks here, so a discussion of each would take up far too much of mine and reader's time, but fine examples of the type of folksy tunes which bring a smile to me when listening, imagining a fine boozy winter's evening in a traditional tavern, are Home Again, which must have been a rage when performed live, and the quite exquisite, Celtic fused, gentle ballad Mid Winter's Night.
The longest track here is the title track, running in at over seven and a half minutes long, and it is a joy, commencing in a deeply pastoral vein, with the pace picking up with the traditional musicians joining forces with the drums and bass to create a fast paced, toe tapping fest, before Ritchie kicks in with a quite phenomenal electric guitar solo, before the close of a rousing vocal and instrumental choral singalong. Feel good music, if ever I heard any.
In amongst the more traditional BN songs, Storm being as good as an example as any with a fast paced Blackmore acoustic guitar lead in tandem with a thoughtful Night observatory vocal, there are a couple of very decent acoustic guitar solo tracks, my favourite of which is Praetorius (Courante) which has a lilting recorder as accompaniment, and the obligatory cover, in this case Dylan's The Times They Are A'Changin, which is okay without being anything special, and a stunning rendition of classic English flugal horn music on Waiting Just For You.
Therefore, there is quite a bit going on in this album, and certainly do not take any notice of those who try to fool you with the line that Blackmore "gave up doing rock" post Purple. It simply isn't true, and, in fact, there are a good many of us who would argue that what followed with albums such as this was, in fact, a damned sight more interesting, and certainly a great deal more fun.
An excellent addition to any music collection.
At the time of writing, I am looking forward to seeing this grand band live in Cardiff November 2022. This is where the journey started.
A suite in four movements, this is the debut album by impressive outfit, Magenta. You could not possibly accuse them of not being ambitious, because there are not many bands who would announce their intent to the world with such a sprawling conceptual piece such as this.
It is a double CD, and there are so many influences at play here, it is sometimes difficult to keep up. The bombastic start to Children Of The Sun is somewhat misleading, because the track actually soon settles down into something more akin to folk prog than symphonic bombast, and you will hear clear references and nods to bands such as Renaissance and works by Oldfield contained here.
The highlight, though, is the second epic on side one, White Witch. This is simply incredible, and huge credit must be given to Christina Murphy's vocals on this - she acts and plays the part as if she were born to it. I also loved the woodwind pieces on this epic, featuring some sublime flute and oboe.
If they had left it at CD1, I would have been extremely happy. However, I am afraid that, to these ears, the momentum is lost somewhat on CD2. It's not bad, far from it, but I found the two epics dealing with the future, Man The Machine and Genetesis, to be far less interesting stories than the two which preceded them on CD1 Certainly, the former contains very derivative passages which at one stage could almost be John Foxx or Tubeway Army, and there is also a long passage which is, to be honest, a direct rip off of an album by a certain band with a foxes head on the cover. The last epic, by the way, is more reminiscent of Yes than the obvious band from the name of the track, and it does at least redeem matters somewhat after the incoherent first epic.
Throughout, though, the musicianship is superlative, especially the guitar work by Reed, Fry, Shellard, and Edwards.
A new decade, and a new name in prog. All in all, a very satisfying debut from a band who deserve our respect and attention.
An excellent addition to any prog collection, and a must for those who enjoy Marillion, IQ, Pendragon, and Pallas, and see how a new force would take such influences forward.