QUEEN II

My favorite Queen album, though I can certainly understand some of the points raised by ANATO fans for that being their fave. This to me is their most progressive album, and unlike most of their other works, these songs tend to flow nicely into each other rather than being standalone singles. I also really appreciate the different songwriting perspectives taken--primarily May on the first side and Mercury on the second. Even great bands like Queen were able to pull off true collaborations (like Pink Floyd) only rarely. Here are the highlights:

Procession, Father to Son, White Queen. This to me is a mini-epic, and while they are distinct songs, they flow extremely well together and are jam-packed with awesome guitar harmonies, power chords, choir overdubs, and great melodies. May really emphasizes the ROCK in progressive rock, and obviously this band was more than talented enough to pull off his ideas.

Some Day One Day. A dreamy song that really works. The interplay of multiple guitar melodies sounds awesome, and nice vocals from May as well!

Ogre Battle, Fairy Feller's Master Stroke, Nevermore, The March of the Black Queen. This side is where Mercury really cranks up the progginess. Most of it is entertaining and fairly rocking, though some goofy parts are definitely over-the-top for me. Queen are obviously less reserved about their lyrics by now as well: Mercury singing "I'll be your bad boy" makes me laugh every time. The lyrical content of ogres and fairies really doesn't create much imagery for me because the goofiness of some of the songs makes it hard for me to take seriously, though it's always nice to hear music about something other than romantic relationships.

Overall a very solid album--no real down points. If you're only familiar with Queen's later albums, be warned that this will be quite different (though I think in a good way). Much better produced and a bit tighter (both songwriting and playing) than their debut. I prefer May's work, though I'm always entertained with the entire piece.