FROM SILENCE TO SOMEWHERE

Though many sounds and riffs from old classic prog songs continue to pop up in their music, their self-proclaimed more collaborative, whole-band approach to song composition has really paid off in terms of rendering a distinctively fresh collection of songs. The musicianship is, as usual, extraordinary, but what strikes me more on this album is the remarkable diversity in musical and vocal instrumentation choices and styles. Like a Mike Oldfield album, I found myself sitting on the edge, waiting for whatever new and amazingly unexpected shift the music would take: from Yes-like to mediæval to psychedelic to folk. Plus, in several places they were able to pull off one of the better incorporations of the GENTLE GIANT style that I've ever heard from a 21st Century artist.

1. "From Silence to Somewhere" (20:59) an interesting and unpredictable run through some older sounds and styles, shifting, as noted above, quite surprisingly and refreshingly from quite different dynamic ranges. These guys can really play! (9.25/10)

2. "Rendered in Shades of Green" (2:05) a pretty little treated piano solo with mellotron, synth strings, and tuned percussives mixed in for the second half. (9.25/10)

3. "Fermented Hours" (10:10) opens with the sounds and freneticism of Yes's "Sound Chaser" (which it seems to be inspired by--though it sounds a lot like "L6 Bealtine" from their last album, Rites at Dawn). The awesome organ work in the second quarter behind the more folksie vocals make for a nice section. The second half continues with the awesome organ work beneath some very Yes-like vocal and instrumental passages. I like the theatric shouts in the final minute just before the song crescendos and fades. (9/10)

4. "Foxlight" (13:19) opens acoustically (with 'tron): flutes, guitars, bass clarinet, glockenspiel, before vocal section begins its play over the top. Very delicate and beautiful! Then at 3:42 the delicacy ends and a loud, bombastic sequence of chords opens--though harpsichord support helps to balance it out. The vocal section starts out nice but then gets a little washed out by too many instruments soloing at the same time as the singing. A Spanish acoustic guitar chord sequence beneath the busy rock weave at 5:45 is nice but ends up fizzling out and letting the heavy cacophony resume its dominance. At 7:11 we get a reprieve and return to more acoustic, almost DOORS and GENTLE GIANT-like, instrumental section. I love this! I must say, the presence of the harpsichord is quite refreshing and welcomed. A kind of "Cinema Show" dream-sequence takes over at 8:40 over which some beautiful harmonized group vocals and flute play make their show. At 10:07 we get a true mediæval/GENTLE GIANT section. The singer's voice even sounds a bit like an older Kerry Minnear. Great section! Horns (or, really, kazoos)! Probably my favorite on the album. Definitely my favorite song, overall. (9.5/10)

Five stars; a masterpiece of progressive rock music.

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