Inappropriate reviews

I just read a review of the album saying that "Nine Feet Underground" wrecks the album... HELLO, IS IT PROG YOU WHERE TALKING ABOUT????? Because "Nine Feet Underground", is one of the best prog epic i've eard in my life !!!!! Only 3 other epic beats that one IMO and they are, "Close To The Edge" and "The Gates of Delirium" by Yes and "Supper's Ready" by Genesis.

So, this album is everything i like about prog music, a incredibly amazingly beautiful cover, a great song as a opener, "Golf girl" with a mellotron solo, cool ! A wonderful, beautiful and groovy 7+ min song, "Winter wine". Then you have, "Love to Love You (And Tonight Pigs Will Fly)" very good song too, even if it is a more simple song. Next is the groovy title track with a very good keyboards solo, "In the Land of Grey and Pink" and in the end, the piece of resistance, "Nine Feet Underground" with amazing keyboards solos all over the track. By the way, i can listen to "Nine Feet Underground" in loop all night long without being board, there is so mutch incredible keyboards solo in that song that for me, it is impossible to get tired of earing a song like "Nine Feet Underground" :)

5 stars, essential: a masterpiece of progressive music. If you don't own that album, shame on you, you are missing one hell of a musical trip !!! ;)

Posted Tuesday, May 30, 2006, 02:47 EST | Permanent link

Are Gentle Giant “giants” during this day? Are we, the listeners, the melomaniacs, the people who desire more, much more and so much more,the ears of both subjectivity and straightness, becoming giants through this day?Both questions get no for an answer.

They have loosened badly,not to the extreme of mockerism, as to the extreme of unpardonable creational deficits (for such a brand as Gentle Giant) and to the extreme of unmaterialized (anymore) heights.Future tense is the point of magnitude at this unfortunately reached level.Signals of “this” were long before flamed;right now it has become a mere fact and a perspective end point.They are burning out rapidly.In just two years, Gentle Giant will come to final words.And these final words are of a standard too cruel.Experiencing this final word will only make the real fans wonder “where were th’old good special times”…(I don’t even want to think of people considering “this” the real Gentle Giant,ouch!).And “Giant For A Day” perpetuates the too cruel standard message of the closing act “drawing curtains” of Gentle Giant;actually it does it even more than the other similar manifests of the late ‘70s.I do remember appreciating “The Missing Piece” more.Plus I also think of “Civilian” as a quite succesful (!) album.Anyway, we deal with what we have.There is a Fading Trilogy (a term I also used for Focus’ burning out period) of Gentle Giant,sadly to say,and “Giant For A Day” is a big part of that (if not the biggest).Makes room more for downgradings and deppreciations than for worthyness or applauses.Don’t get me wrong,as I’m not really trashing the concept,it’s not “puke”y,it’s just unreal for the Gentle Giant character,it’s mellow un-artifact material.When you come face to face with “Giant For A Day”,it’s best to both discredit any true colour quality and to treat it as frivolious as you can (frivolious meaning to treat it lightly, just listening to it and after that…end!)

Weathers on vocals?!

“The Missing Piece” > “Giant For A Day” < “Civilian”. Both “>” and “<” point towards a strong negative factor.What has to suffer deeply in here is basically some of the major facts that made Gentle Giant giants and important aspects (if not the most inportant) that (usually) corelate with Gentle Giant.No complexity.Zero complexity.This is not just unacceptable,but almost unbearable.No spark.Zero autenticity.Sour interpretation really.A moderate presentation in something that makes simplicity ambiguous.No mindscaping.Zero soundblasting.Low vision,earthly movements.Too natural becomes unperfectioned. Style.No salt and no pepper.Zero artish maneuvers.I listened to “Giant For A Day” about three-four times and everytime concerning all aspects of construction,expression and impression it starts from a point and it lowers piece by piece.I can’t even describe the lowest point that is reached.”Words from the wise” goes acceptable and even makes a decent Gentle Giant impression for me.And as cheesy as it presents itself,”Thank You” did managed to put a smile arch on my face (there’s an armonic figuration there that touches a sensible chord to me).But in the rest,nothing.Every context or sense loosens and loses itself into this amalgam of unclear voices.About the rest, they go so plain,I can barely keep one piece in mind after it’s over.It’s hardly even an album of momento.And this is not a great effect,nor a beautiful (heck,I’m talking about beautiful connotations?! Here?!) experience,nor a positive sign.”Giant For A Day” interprets a very light rock (if not pseudo-rock),going from standard (a point of direction given by the previous “Missing Piece”) to mellow (a new point implemented here) and,in some cases,to irritating (“Little Brown Bag- aargh!).Only for listening,it could survive;but for Gentle Giant materia(l), a clear no and a skip recommended.

Confronted with a simply glorious past, but also with a predictable-by now-burning out point of Gentle Giant,it’s merely a bruise and a short moment of sadness and acute nostalgia panic accent;still regretable.Personally,I wish no Gentle Giant project would reach the “for completists only” tag.But c’est la vie.Gentle Giant were giants for not just a day,but for whole years,still that was “another day”.Once more,either aboid it completely or treat it distantly as to not endanger yourselves in experiening a “loud depression” from this “Giant For A Day”…better off…

Posted Tuesday, May 30, 2006, 00:47 EST | Permanent link