HUNDRED YEAR FLOOD

Trent Gardner seems to have this thing for long songs. Every album, there is at least one song (at the very least) that has a 10+ minute long song. On nearly all his side projects, he writes really long songs. On Hundred Year Flood, he writes a 35 minute long long song. Wow. Taking up well over half of the album, the epic piece of music shows the band's intense musical stamina and songwriting ability. The album is a concept album about the Gardner brothers' older brother who died in Vietnam. Overall, the album provides a fantastic ride with great dynamics, really cool sounds and a great Magellan-esque sound.

I'd heard many good things about Magellan, one being a big influence of theirs was Dream Theater. I tried to find their best album, which was difficult, so I picked one at random, the Hundred Year Flood. Seeing as I have an affinity for long playing tracks, I was in love with the 35 minute long The Great Goodnight, and not only because of its exceptionally long play. It opens with a great vocal performance, which adds a nice variety. The entire song is great, with repeating elements that tie the song together nicely. The one negative part of this song is that, seeing as it is a personal album (dedicated to his brother who dies in Vietnam), the vocals are personal and sometimes do not fit the music very well. The lyrics break away from the typical virtuosity of progressive rock, despite that the music is absolutely wonderful. Overall, The Great Goodnight is one of the better 30+ minute tracks I've heard, and I've heard more than you would expect. Fantastic instrumental sections, great part changes, and a great linear structure make this a staple in a long track collection.

Next is an instrumental Family Jewels, which has an excellent flute solo introduction, with a keyboard section at the end. Overall, the song shows the band's more folky and earthy song, balancing the big track's massive grandeur.

As a great ending, Brother's Keeper tops the album off nicely. It was featured on their myspace at the time I discovered them. The song was one that helped me get into the band. It has great musical parts and better lyrics than The Great Goodnight; it's hard to tell if their actually personal, which is good. On my copy of the album, there is a one-minute space between a message from Trent telling his listeners who the album is dedicated.... I think the one minute is unnecessary, 20 seconds or so would have been more appropriate.

ALBUM OVERALL: Wow. This track features a massive 35 minute epic, tending to my huge affinity for lengthy tracks. The whole album is a beautiful display of music, featuring lush keyboard work, great guitar work, and some really great melodic and rhythmic work. Although the lyrics may seem a little off at times, they do have a really great message. Overall, this album is really great and I recommend it for new Magellan fans, as long as you are an experienced prog listener and can stomach a 35 minute long track! 4 stars.

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