ANTHOLOGY II (1993 - 2002)

This is the 2nd of the 5 album anthology series. In the 9 years between 1993 and 2002, the band released 9 albums. Of those, two are highly rated, 1993's "Lost in an Absinthe Dream" and 1997's, "Twist and Grout". Many other albums in this time range are not as highly rated due to the inclusion of songs more focused on rock than prog, yet still contribute several prog heavy pieces that justify their inclusion on this anthology (along with the clear departures from prog, the rock song, "Rape.com" and the heavy blues number, "Neighbor Blues"). The average time of these songs is around the 4 and a half minute mark making them more concise than the average song found on the previous Anthology I and upcoming Anthology III compilations.

As I've mentioned previously, I don't give compilation or best of albums 5 stars. That said, I feel this album is very strong from a prog standpoint, even though it includes a small number of songs that are firmly in the rock rather than prog sphere. In this case, I think that contrast contributes to the eclectic nature of the compilation so I'm rating this as a 4 star album.