FRIEND OF ALL CREATURES

The project of former SPOCK'S BEARD members Ted Leonard, Dave Meros, and Jimmy Keegan and John Boegehold has become quite the favorite around these parts. This is their fifth album release since their 2019 self-titled debut.

1. "Future Perfect World" (9:38) well-constructed, evenly-tempered prog feeling somewhere between Guy Manning's DAMANEK project and the folkier side of the end of BIG BIG TRAIN's Dave Longdon era. There are even a few memorable "hooks" --like the Andrew Lloyd-Weber-like vocal call-and-response of the seventh minute. And the music feels mature, not a mess of clichés being thrown at the audience nor the over-the-top bombast: just solid progressive rock music. (18.25/20)

2. "Another Holy Grail" (12:20) another very even-keeled prog song that seems to indicate a level of self-love, self-satisfaction, and self-esteem that no longer requires external validation for the music that they create. I am reminded in this song of Johannes Luley's first project with which he lept into the eyes and ears of prog lovers: MOTH VELLUM. Within the music of the first five minutes of this piece there is the continued feeling that we're listening to the overture/introduction to a rock opera being staged in a theatre in the West End. Then Ted Leonard enters and the music (with "orchestra" support!) definitely settles into full support of the introductory vocal. In the eighth minute the band tries to ramp things up as Ted wraps up the first round of his vocal storytelling but it's really more for the support of some kind choreographed dance or set movement on the stage. When Ted returns it is within a vacuum of simple piano-supported music (just like a stage musical!) but then the band (and "orchestra") returns and Ted and the instrumental tangents alternate for a bit before everybody gets on board a steady-moving train at the end of the ninth minute. The almost-exciting, invigorating ride lasts through to the end of the song, which is nice, and ends up being just the ride, not the story, which is also nice (since I don't process lyrics well). As the music to a stage musical, this is quite good. As a prog song I'm not quite as won over. (22.5/25)

3. "Down the Darkest Road" (4:34) a song that has a nice instrumental sound palette (with some nice violin play in the middle) and some finely-crafted synthesized "orchestra" work, but its lack of development makes it feel as if it is an interlude filling space between songs (which would make sense if this album were, in fact, intended as a kind of theatric rock opera). (8.875/10)

4. "In My Dying Days" (4:42) a fairly simple classic rock ballad song that chugs along without much proggyness. Even the choruses don't offer much to change this feeling, it's not until the bridges and brief instrumental passages that we hear anything interesting (which happens to be mostly violin). (8.66667/10)

5. "The Seventh Sleeper" (8:11) very pleasant, laid back music with nice melodies and chord progressions over which the musicians have ample time and space in which to deliver some well-thought out and well-executed solos. Being a fan of the folk-side of Big Big Train I can definitely see the similarities here. Plus, I love Ted's theatric and athletic vocal performance--especially in the seventh and eighth minutes (the song's peak stretch). (13.75/15)

6. "Days We'll Remember" (3:54) an unfortunate opening prepares us for something that plods and drags along, though the instrumental palette is nice (rolling bass, acoustic guitars). There's a lot of STYX hear--especially in the chorus--which, if I remember correctly, is one of my criticisms of the old Beard sounds. A nice classic rock radio-friendly AOR song from the late 1970s or 1980s. (8.75/10)

7. "Words of Love Evermore" (8:41) this one does open with a different and interesting sound palette: one that sounds quite unlike the typical NeoProg fare. But then the power chords and straight time rhythm track step forward and take us into fairly typical NeoProg fare. The band clears out at the end of the second to make room for the entry of Ted Leonard's vocal--which brings us even more into the realm of simplistic AOR STYX. Nothing in the instrumental section of the fourth minute offers anything exciting, innovative, or exciting (despite some nice melodies). Though there is a little thickening of slightly more aggressive instrumental play in the final third, it still remains an almost-devotional sounding song. (Were the Beard always Christian-oriented? Even after Neal Morse left them?) (17.5/20)

Total Time 52:02

I cannot help but admit that I have a bias against this band (and this album) before I even sit down to listen to their music: I have never liked the cliché-filled, prog-by-numbers, NeoProg of Spock's Beard. In fact, I've always found their music cringe-worthy for the kitschy stereotypic sounds and structures they came up with (with or without Neal Morse). After seeing all of the high praise for this new album I decided to at least give this one a listen. However, I also decided to try to approach the listening of this album with a different, more "ignorant" attitude so that I might just take it for the music without any personal leanings (if that's even possible). These four guys have a history of having quite an affinity and talent for creating long, interesting, multi-part suites or "epics" and this album will do nothing but solidify that legendary status. On the other hand, the short songs here are so weak--so shamelessly simplistic--that it feels like a slap in the face to other prog artists to call them "prog."

B+/4.5 stars; an excellent album for any and all prog lovers despite the "Jeckyll and Hyde" quality difference between the longer songs and the shorter ones.

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