BATTLE SCARS

Being an old proghead, I had never listened to anything from Galahad except an album much earlier in their career (can't recall which one). I remember that it didn't rate very high on the Excit-O-Meter at the time so I didn't purchase anything more by the band until Battle Scars. While not all the songs are massive euphoric revelations, there are some amazing moments.

My experience has been the longer a prog band has been around the less creative and groundbreaking their songs are; they become repetitive and worn out. This album blows that theory out the window. I would rate this their best album for freshness and originality.

"Battle Scars" is a great starter with the extensive rich symphonic opener and hard driving tempo. "Reach For The Sun" is a great rocker. "Bitter & Twisted", "Beyond The Barbed Wire", "Seize The Day" & "Sleepers 2012" are all very good entries. But hold the press, I haven't touched on the highlight.

The song that simply blew me away is "Singularity." I was mesmerized by the almost hypnotic rich sound and dramatic chorus. Baker's patches are perfectly melded throughout. Keyworth's guitar is gritty and strong where it is warranted but no solos stick out through this song. That is one reason the song is so incredible; its structure, tempo and overall sound are flawless. It gets my OH EM GEE rating (5 out of 5).

The production is clear and solid. Bass and treble are well balanced and it has a brilliant sound. Guitar wise, I prefer a combination of solid rhythm and lead playing. Keyworth's rhythm playing is excellent but he lacks in a lead role. Galleon is another band where the emphasis was more geared to keyboard and rhythm guitar but their album "Engines Of Creation" broke with that with the guitar becoming more prominent with some ripping great solos. As a rhythm player Keyworth is great and his effects most certainly define his sound. It works well here.

In all this album is a must have for proggers. They have a few other Galahad albums that are good but they do not have as many great songs on one album?? in my humble opinion.