AGAINST REASON

"Was it worth waiting for ???"

"Was Rome built or perfected in a day ???"

These are of course RHETORIC-al questions !!! (Please excuse my extremely bad humour.....)

And of course 'AGAINST REASON' IS truly the sublime chunk of ultimate, epochal, trouser- tenting, neo-prog minstrelsy that we all hoped (and knew) it would be.

In fact the opening track exceeds expectation. 'STARING AT THE SUN' is one of those songs that is so good that it defies belief that humans actually created it !!!! It's a pop song, it's a heavy metal anthem and it's both classic rock and neo-prog nirvana rolled into one holy grail-type opus. I bet when the band wrote this they knew they'd hit the jackpot. Cleverly, they gave the track away with 'Classic Rock Magazine' and on the F2 website, knowing it would seriously whet the appetite of anyone with any sort of musical taste. Hopefully this clever marketing ploy created the sales levels that this band deserve. This is a song with totally universal appeal (if you don't believe me play it to your better half - they will like it - trust me !!!)

These guys are professional musicians who have to operate on a semi-pro basis, partly due to the niche-market popularity of prog-rock and partly due to the difficulty of the current day music market. So when I talk about marketing ploys they are only hoping to break even and still be able to give us fans what we want....I am not talking about profits...

The band are of course fronted by vocalist , raconteur and ace showman Mark Colton. Often (deservedly) compared to Fish, who was probably an inspirational mentor, Mark has now established himself as a big fish in the prog-rock pond in his own right. Commanding and yet amiable on stage, he is sublimely-intonated and inspirationally motivated in the studio. Since he got together with Tim and Jim, CREDO have definitely become the jaw-droppingly good band he always knew they were going to be....their name is defined as 'a statement of belief' in the dictionary and I believe it sub-conciously originated from the band's own perpetual and totally warranted self-belief in their endless possibilities as a united and progressive musical unit. Tim Birrell delivers 'PRS thru Mesa-Boogie' guitar licks that ache with passion and melody. Mike Varty conjures up harmonies and atmosphere like only a keyboard-ial and compositional Gandalfian wizard could. Bassist Jim Murdoch vibes with Tim like he was his long-lost brother (well he probably is !!!) and then batons down the hatches solidly with drummer Martin Meads.

How do you follow a track like 'STARING AT THE SUN' ? The obvious and correct answer is : with the remaining tracks of 'AGAINST REASON' !!! Initially the dark subject matter of 'CARDINAL SIN' yields to the ultra-melodic soundscapes of 'INTIMATE STRANGERS'. Whilst melodically the former track might entice fans of Pallas, there is something of the latter track that to me evokes Wishbone Ash at their very, very best. The melody on the latter track is in fact so strong, that to me it creates a similar vibe to that magical feeling you get when you meet someone really, really special for that magical first time.....

The title track then kicks in with an incredible air of mystery and suspense ....before 'INSANE' rocks you into prog overdrive and hooks you line and sinker with a commercial and anthemic chorus, just like 'STARING AT THE SUN' did a few tracks beforehand......

'REASON TO LIVE' then brings melody to the fore again before 'CONSPIRACY' raises all of those questions that none of us can answer, even though we all know we wish we could.........

'GHOSTS OF YESTERDAY' closes the album. This is a very contemporary song for everything that all of us feel today. Probably the ultimate CREDO track ???......and if Carlsberg made a classic rock track this of course would be it............Or would it in fact be 'STARING AT THE SUN' ???? My friends, this (for once) is not a RHETORIC-al question....I think you guys and gals will answer this question for yourselves in the future, when you listen to this superb album and decide for yourselves ....................................

If you like melody, if you like neo-prog, if you like Classic Rock : buy this album !!! ...it is 'AGAINST REASON' that you will ever regret your purchase....

Share this CREDO review

Social review comments () BETA

---

---

Review related links

• Send comments to prog_head1
• Report this review (#596958)
• Buy CREDO music online with PA partners
• Show all CREDO MP3/Stream
• Go to CREDO page for videos, full discography with ratings, reviews and much more
• Go to Against Reason page for more details, where to buy and ratings/reviews
• Search the Forum for CREDO related discussions