HEXAMERON

There are mostly some fine moments here, the disc kicking off on a tremendous pace such as when Hackett brothers (also John on flute) show up with their usual brio on the highly movie soundtrackish opener "Singularity" . Second strong chapter: "Dancing on the Waters" starts out swirling in lush atmospherics, featuring the semi-legendary guitarist Geoff Whitehorn and Magnus' wakemanesque piano work. But if you enjoy (as I do) some fanfare bombast (the choir mellotron fade out) and operatic wailing, then Clare Brigstocke's soprano voice will enthrall you. "Marduk" is where the first questioning creeps in, sounding more like Alan Parsons Project than anything else, Tony Patterson's voice is way less convincing throughout (a rather laughable Gabriel imitation, should have left the mike to Clare !) and some wimpy synthesizer soloing that recalls Monterrey Jack rather than Moog. A few pretty decent Whitehorn guitar leads save this from oblivion, as the 9 minutes labor on. "Sophia's Song" is an overtly direct Celtic reference, with some resonating Gaelic vocal work from Siobhan McCarthy, remindful of Maggie Reilly's work with Oldfield, as well as a dash of languid violin that turns this into a lovely piece that has more than just merit, it's a majestic highlight! John Hackett's delicate flute leads the highly bucolic "Double Helix", a medieval interlude that pleases. Here is the second difficulty: "Brother Sun Sister Moon" possesses a main melody that is impressive but on the fence of being another Alan Parsons template. There is a poppy veneer that makes it somehow a tad corny. It does not happen often that I get into a conundrum, unable to make a direct simple assessment of a song but this is one of those slippery prog soap bars I just can't come to grips with! Is it great? No, Is it lousy? No. Then what in blazing Mellotrons is it? Perhaps it has to do with some half baking tendencies (that seem to also occasionally occur with Steve Hackett!) mainly due to those programmed drums that give everything a tinny tone that is remindful of a Buggles title , "the Age of Plastic". Get a real drummer, mate. With "Seven Hands of Time" we dive straight into Hackettish splendor, a monster instrumental (with more of the crappy tin drums) but with Steve unleashing a typical crushingly gorgeous solo, sandwiched between rich "temporal effects". The rousing finale "The Power of Reason" is another Hackett brothers extravaganza, loaded with dignified interventions: Clare is back to her wailing, gigantic group choir work, a couple of alluring Steve ventures, some ravishing piano work, sultry flute from John and an overall sense of prog mastery. Frankly, it's the 2 tough cuts described earlier that prevent this from penta-stardom. Ditch the PC and get some tom toms! 4 hacketts