THE MASQUERADE OVERTURE

I've been meaning to review Pendragon's latest, Men Who Climb Mountains, but as usual went back a bit to refresh... Why I want to pinch in my 2 cents is that the Masquerade Overture is my favorite. Every song is a winner here, though they do have a tendency to sound long-winded, patchy and overrepetetive in their melodic moments (but usually catchy as hell). But the real reason for my fondness is whereas some neo-prog bands strive to sound dark (Arena), or self-absorbed or wimpy (Marillion in both incarnations), Masquerade is filled with folksy and baroque fun. Its not all merry dance all the time of course, as we get our share of dramatic and lullaby-esque Genesis and Pink Floyd moments, but in the end I'm left with a bright and satisfied feeling.