SEVEN CHAMBERS

The first album to be released since their covers album from 2012, "Covered Mirror Vol.1". Sean Timms has been very prolific of late, releasing albums from his two main projects, Southern Empire and Unitopia this year. Sean and fellow founding member of Unitopia, Mark Trueack are joined by the amazing talents of Steve Unruh of Samurai of Prog and Resistor fame, Alphonso Johnson on bass and Chester Thompson on drums both from one of the great jazz fusion bands, 'Weather Report', also Steve Hackett, Santana and Frank Zappa and new guitarist John Greenwood who has a very unique career change from surgeon to musician. I urge anyone to check out his history as it is truly remarkable. He also has a new solo release called "Dark Blue" which is well worth purchasing and also produced by Sean.

So to the album itself, this is a two disc album containing seven songs. The first disc includes the first five songs and the second includes the remaining two. These two songs on the second disc are epic, "Helen" which is 19:14 and "The Uncertain" which 18:33 long. Unitopia does nothing small.

The premise of this album is interesting and familiar to me and as I'm sure to many others. It imparts that health gives way during our lives and those of our family and friends. We fall to injury, disease and aging. My mother became a paraplegic for 16 years of her life from cancer. For me personally I recently suffered an embolism and also was diagnosed a type 2 diabetic some years ago. As this album suggests, such things change your life and your outlook of it. I won't make this a comment on my life, I just wanted to support how I identify with the message. As to the music, what adjectives will I use to describe their mastery? "Brilliant", "remarkable" "wonderful"? All these and more. I suggest place them anywhere and often repeated.

Each song has an emotional resonance and expert playing. Sean Timms' composing and musicianship are skilfully apparent. I can't describe with any efficiency how creative this man is. He knows where to place the appropriate instrument at the right moment of the song. The song "Mania" is a good example of this. Showing the increasing frustration of a patient not knowing the results of the ongoing diagnoses the medical staff are working towards. The worry that builds with uncertainty. We hear the synthesiser that highlights the possible terrible mystery that could invade our health. The guitar that represents the anger, the symphonic piano representing our reasoning and the fear of losing our control through the fast-paced violin. This is how I hear it. Other listeners may hear differently. All emotions are portrayed over the seven songs.

Singer Mark Trueack takes us foremost into these emotions, with each change clearly translating every aspect of fear, despair, relief and acceptance. Steve Unruh is an orchestra in himself. You are better asking what can't he play rather than what can he play? He is a musical dynamo. With Alphonso Johnson and Chester Thompson, we have one of the great rhythm sections of our time. You need such musicians to precisely capture the ebbs and flows and ever-changing tones and time changes. And what a find with guitarist John Greenwood. I've enjoyed his playing on this and his solo album. Both his careers as surgeon and guitarist serves this album to perfection. His playing is heartfelt, his touch, both light and heavy, explores the depths of him and the subject of this music.

The second disc which is engaged by the epic tracks aren't epic in just length alone. They are epic in scope, in emotion, in composition and heart. There is a section in the last song, "The Uncertain" about halfway through which I call the 'Pastoral' moment. Steve's violin plays a lonely passage which soon builds to a symphonic wonder where the whole band unites and delivers an overwhelming swell. I describe this as a crescendo of wood crafted beauty. A strange description, I agree but I'm sticking with it. I found this album encompasses the very spirit we all face in such times of stress and uncertainty during major health issues. Every instrument plays its part in delivering this message with subtlety, grace and punch.

Seven Chambers.

Seven Songs.

Seven reasons to listen.