EGGS & DOGS: YOU ARE

I'm glad that this album, "You Are" by Eggs & Dogs has been added in with Tomas Bodin's solo albums. While it may be more accurate in some ways to consider this a band effort as opposed to a solo effort, it is still the second entry in the trilogy begun with Tomas Bodin's wonderful "I AM".

And there is also the small matter of enabling the reviews and ratings to start coming in without having to wait for another band to be added to Progarchives.

"You Are" is a somewhat different animal than "I AM". "I AM" certainly had it's symphonic moments, but it also had it's hard-rock, Deep-Purple-esque and rock opera moments. In contrast, "You Are" retains some percentage of symphonic elements as well as rock opera vibe, but this time replaces the hard rock with a more Beatles and Queen vibe.

The key here is that, to my ears, the focus is more on the songs. The symphonic (and even near-fusion) sections then grow naturally out of the songs and add interest in key spots. The lyrics are some of the better and more interesting ones I've heard lately and really drew me in - which I did not expect because I am not a big lyric person. "I AM", on the other hand, seemed a little more open-ended and grandiose. You never knew just quite how far the music was going to take you (and it does take you far). "You Are" has at least one foot grounded in great songs.

The playing on this album is stellar as anyone familiar with The Flower Kings and their related projects would expect. The drumming of Marcus Lilliequist never fails to amaze me. He can keep it simple or he can throw in some twisted fill that will make you wonder where "1" is...then will jump right back onto the groove with ease...then he can thrill you with powerful embellishments in the more symphonic sections. Michael Stolt is no slouch on the bass and, similarly to Marcus, keeps it very tasty with lots of forays into more technical embellishments. Jocke Marsh is also amazing on the guitar and plays some very nice solos. Michael Stolt's vocals are not difficult to take in the least - if you happen to be one that was put off by the vocals on "I AM" you need not worry. Michael sounds great, very soulful. And of course it goes without saying that Mr. Bodin's keyboard playing is always the right chord, the right texture...the entire band always serves the songs.

So the rock opera continues...the story/lyrics deepen...the focus is more on songs. A very solid release and perhaps a good jumping in point for the trilogy if "I AM" didn't resonate with you.