COMEDY OF ERRORS

From the depths of obscurity surfaces this gem of a neo-prog record, an eponymous album by a band called "Comedy of Errors". I personally like the style, reminiscent of early IQ and Marillion, and am somewhat of an aficionado of underrated and overlooked records. So needless to say, I was greatly interested in this particular piece of music when I found it here on ProgArchives.

The record itself can be divided into two parts, coming from two different record sessions. The differences between them, however, come not from the style and musical direction, but simply from sound quality. While the first five tracks have obviously been remastered, the second five apparently are translated from LP, instead from the master tracks. To some, this may diminish the experience. On the other hand, it further adds to the 'obscurity' factor - let's not forget that even in the remasters of "In the court of the crimson king" there is a significant amount of noise.

The music is memorable, the band being in good form and synchrony. The songs vary from pretty good to great, with "Emperor's Clothes", "Once in a While" and "The Student Prince, pt 1" standing out. The lyrics in most cases are quite literate, as the band's name would suggest. In particular, the opening track made quite an impression on me.

It's a pity this band never made it, as it is obvious here that with better production and some tweaks this would have stood next to "Script for a Jester's tear" and "The Wake". As it is, it's somewhere around Twelfth Night's "Fact and Fiction". Is this a good record showing much promise or a flawed masterpiece? You decide. For the obscurity factor, I chose the latter and gave it full score.