THE GREAT DIVIDE

I enjoyed Spock's Beard's latest album "Brief Nocturnes And Dreamless Sleep" immensely. So immensely that I began looking for albums with singer Ted Leonard, and his previous band, Enchant. It turns out that Enchant had been dormant for over ten years before the release of this album.

The music is very similar to Spock's Beard, some symphonic tendencies mixed with heavy prog. And the musicianship is excellent. The performances are excellent, as is the production.

But here's the problem. When I'm listening to the album, I find it enjoyable. It's just the type of prog that gets me going. But once it is finished, nothing stays with me. I've played it a few dozen times, and before I play the disk, I just cannot recall anything from any of the songs. My wife tells me that she thinks all of the songs sound the same. And unless I'm concentrating on the album, most of them do have a similar sound.

I think if they had added some of the humor and whimsy of the Beard's album it would have lifted this one much higher. But perhaps the presence of Neal Morse (in limited capacity) on the SB release was what lifted it higher.

Oh well. I like it, I just don't love it.