VOYAGE OF THE ACOLYTE

As i said, i'll be reviewing Steve Hackett, but probably only this album for now because i plan to review so many more things so i'll break my rule of reviewing everything from an artist before moving on.

The first Genesis member solo project, not only that, but it was in-between Genesis albums and it was made by most Genesis members except for Tony Banks, the mellotron role was taken by the Hackett brothers and that (maybe) got more time to Tony so he could write almost the entirety of A Trick of the Tail.

1.- Ace of Wands 10/10 I listen to this instrumental everyday, i just love it. It has inspired me on many things, i tend to think while listening to this music piece, imagining new worlds and ideas. It starts strong, gets slower when it needs to be, then it goes all jam, really energetic and finally epic, its amazing, it shows the skills of every Genesis member (aside from Tony Banks, the only Genesis member not present in this album) and it just works, probably the best solo instrumental never done by Genesis.

2.- Hand of the Priestess (Part 1) 10/10 The first time i heard this i started crying, its so beautyful, like it reflects innocence in its purest form, no wonder why Koji Kondo used a piece from this theme as the theme for Princess Zelda from the videogame series The Legend of Zelda. This instrumental also has like some suspicious sounding guitar notes in the background that pop from time to time, giving advice for whats to come in the next theme...

3.- A Tower Struck Down 10/10 I really like the atmosphere and the odd time signature used through the song, i could discount a point because i think that this theme could've been a little more weird, like there are parts where it repeats a little bit, aside from that, my favorite part is the "cough" for some reason. The ending of this theme is perfect and segues really well to the next piece...

4.- Hands of the Priestess (Part 2) 10/10 So after all that nightmare it appears that light has returned again, this reprise of the first part its even more pretty and i really love it, even though its really short, its a curcial piece for this 3 song suite that should be listen completely and in its entirety its a solid 10.

5.- The Hermit 8/10 The first 1/3 of the album has been pretty solid so far, mainly because it was all instrumental, while i think that this song is really well crafted, it feels really simple, like it doesn't transport me like the rest of the album has done so far, this song has much simpler instrumentation but for what it tries to convey it does it really well. It is also a really short song.

6.- Star of Sirius 6/10 Really peaceful guitar and vocals, while the mellotron its filled with mistery (an strong suit for that instrument), it reminds me of another videogame music but i can't remember wich (maybe it was some Paper Mario idk). Then the song goes all faster and adventurous and that's when i expected a Tony Banks solo for some reason, but instead it gets back into peaceful/misterious and reprises Hands of the Priestess, wich is beautyful and makes me forget about the solo for a while. And that's the thing with this song, it gives me the impression that its gonna do more, there's a moment where the guitar enters, does an small solo, then reprises Ace of Wands and the song goes back to that moving part that doesn't actually move me that much while reprising parts from Ace of Wands again. So in the end, it repeats itself and doesn't feel as developed as the rest of the album so far.

7.- The Lovers 8/10 I don't know what was this 1:50 instrumental that felt like 10 seconds, this should've been part of Star of Sirius, if it was, that song would be a 7/10, i liked how it made me felt, like the story ended and there they are, the silhouettes of the lovers grabbed by the hand at the edge of some cliff.

8.- Shadow of the Hierophant 9/10 Strikes really hard after the last song, i really love the voice and the sense of holyness that this theme gives, really peaceful and then the mellotron explodes with pure energy, simply beautyful, gets a little repetitive but then it changes, the evil is dissapearing and the good enters at last, the guitar has some notes from Ace of Wands, then that part with the Xylophone nails the strike, nothing more innocent than that instrument, but something its surging on the back, one of my favorite instrument parts, gives a soundtrack vibe, the fight isn't over and it'll continue going on for eternity.

So, in the end, is this the best album that Genesis never made? I don't think so, but its the best prog album that a Genesis solo member has done (Unless Ant proves me wrong with The Geese and the Ghost) with an score of 89/100, but i'll give it 5 stars anyways, the first 1/3 and the last song are a must to hear, The Hermit with The Lovers could make a nice complement to the overall greatness but i just really can't get into Star of Sirius, it bores me.

Well, i've updated the reviews for Abacab and Still, but right now i don't know what else to update, i'll maybe review some Genesis Side-B's, but more importantly, my next big reviews will be some Yes albums, i've been listening to a lot of Yes lately (along with Genesis) and i really feel the need to review like 6 albums from them.

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