SLEEPING IN TRAFFIC - PART TWO

With "Sleeping In the Traffic Part 2", Beardfish renews the feat of Part One and offers us a new masterpiece. That said, the band does not present us with a sequel, nor a copy / paste of Part One, but something innovative. First of all, the general tone hardens. We will observe this trend until "The Void". Then, the presence of Robert Hansen's bass becomes truly essential. Is it possible to imagine creating a piece like "The Hunter" without its unique style? I doubt. (There are also many bass covers of Beardfish songs from on YouTube, which shows how special this style is.) And finally, this album contains a very long song of over 35 minutes. Which was a challenge since usually these only occupy a maximum of 15.

Although this title track is not unanimous among reviewer (far from it!), My story is different. I took a liking to recent prog (don't laugh, the 2000s are recent for me!) Thanks to the release of this record. I had tried two or three approaches to Beardfish without having felt any click. And I kept finding the modern prog of the time (Spock's Beard, Flower Kings) too sung and rather boring. One day in 2008, YouTube offering me the track "Sleeping In the Traffic Part 2", I then tried a new test, without much enthusiasm. "Without a doubt, another Stoilterie where I will die of boredom before the tenth minute!" I said to myself. Well, I never would have imagined what happened to me! I found myself literally stuck and only picked up on the last notes of "Sunrise Again", which the person who had downloaded the track, had the good taste to stick at the end. Suffice to say how much this song was for me a real revelation! I loved this festival of violence and calm, change of tempo and emotions (thanks for example, to the accordion by Rikard). A real saga. There you go, even though in hindsight, "Sleeping In the Traffic Part 2" is no longer my favorite album from this band, I would always keep it in my heart for that reason. All proportions kept, a bit like the discovery of Close To The Edge.