Is Resistance By IQ really that good?

IQ have trodden a well worn formula for a long time and as Barney mentions it would be a mistake to veer that far away from it. I'm enjoying it immensely and it will probably be my prog album of the year although that's from only about the 30 odd that I've managed to listen to. Neil Durant has added some interesting stuff on the programming side and kept some freshness in the sound from my ears point of view. The band are playing as well as I've heard. I must admit I never made the connection to Awaken for any of the tracks although I hear a much more symphonic style than before and a band that is totally comfortable in its skin.

Roj wrote: I've been with IQ right from the start and have to say I'm pretty disappointed with this. I find a great deal of it to be extremely same-y.  The Great Spirit Way is an exception - that's an outstanding piece of music and one I'd place in my IQ Top 10 almost immediately.  A Missile is ok and the last track on disc one, easily the best on that disc, raises things a notch.  The final piece on disc two is almost Awaken revisited.  I love Awaken, my favourite piece of music of all time.  I have no objection to adopting the style of bands past, but pretty much lifting the piece?  No, I really struggle with that. The length of the entire thing is not an issue for me, only that the relative lack of inspiring moments in that entire length is a disappointment.  Are they starting to miss Martin Orford's creativity?  I suspect so.

I've been with IQ right from the start and have to say I'm pretty disappointed with this.

AFlowerKingCrimson wrote: Who is flokis?

The Flower Kings...

Who is flokis?

If anything sounds straight off of we can’t dance

progaardvark wrote: I finally got around to listening to this. Being a 2-CD album, it's quite a challenge to maintain high quality over 108 minutes of music. I don't think this quite succeeds at that. The first three tracks on disc 1 are fantastic. It seems to slip for me with Alampandria, comes back with a nice return on Shallow Bay, but If Anything causes it to slip again for me. For Another Lifetime ends disc 1 on a good note, but it feels like it drags on a bit. A solid four stars for disc 1. Disc 2 is my favorite of the two discs. If they had released disc 2 all by itself, I think I would consider it the best album IQ ever made. At least at the moment. With repeated listens I might change my mind (as we all do). So overall, I think I would give it 4.5. I enjoyed disc 2 so much that I would round it up instead of down. I understand Nicholls' vocals can be an acquired taste for some. They are rather monotonic, but that style of singing clicks with IQ's music for some reason. I can't imagine the post-1980s IQ without Nicholls. It just wouldn't be the same. I think this album might be the best singing he's done for the band. Cook's drumming was also impressive. My guess is the PA rating will probably eventually land somewhere between 3.90 and 4.15 in another two years or so. I could be wrong.

 

M27Barney wrote: ^ so presumably you think that the IQ band members are all Thomas Dolby clones? I have added the suggestion into my purchasing list. However I have the new Opeth to listen to as well...but I suppose Mikael Akerfeldt isn't a proper musician either...

M27Barney wrote: dauinghorn wrote: I can't understand why this is rated so high... It's "Hi-Fi" music overfilled with FX sounds, uninventive chord progressions and a lot of autotune on the vocals. If this is Prog rock today, count me out. Depends what you want? Are you an avant garde officionado? If so I suggest listening to random farmyard effects CDs played simultaneously whilst living next to a busy railway station or motorway...also auto tune your saucepan and use a slightly heavier spoon to rattle it...

It's ok. I prefer Road of Bones, Frequency, and Dark Matter. It sounds really good, well produced and played, but lacks in memorable songs.