DO NOTHING TILL YOU HEAR FROM ME

It is not easy to describe the music of The Mute Gods to someone who is not familiar with progressive rock but this lesser known contemporary act is comprised of ex-Kajagoogoo bassist and (current or ex-) member of Steven Wilson and Steve Hackett's live bands Nick Beggs, together with drummer extraordinaire Marco Minnemann and Roger King, again member of Hackett's live band. While coming from the progressive tradition, The Mute Gods' music offers very playful and often surprising twists that come as a breath of fresh air in a somewhat stale environment of always looking back towards the past for inspiration. The band's debut album delivers a very intelligent crossover of styles that range from pop rock, to pastoral progressive rock as well as some more avant-garde moments mixed up with an art rock approach that should have been triggered by the band members' involvement in the live bands of the aforementioned Steves.

The album is composed and arranged by Beggs who plays the bass, keyboards, guitars and covers all the vocals, with strong contributions from Minnemann and King, who despite their usual instrumental duties, take up the guitar, too. The result is an eclectic art rock sound that punches you with abundancy and pristine production, while the playing and songwriting become central to the musical presentation on 'Do Nothing till You Hear from Me'. This album features some excellent entries like the poppy 'Praying to a Mute God', the melancholic and introspective piece 'Night School for Idiots' as well as the manic, choppy and fiendish 'Feed the Troll'. There is a tremulant punky feel on 'Your Dark Ideas' and soon after that the listener stumbles upon the cathartic track 'Swimming Horses', with its embracing, massive sound and masterful bass lines. The closing track 'Father Daughter' is also a delightful ballad that stands as one of the more memorable songs on here. And while you might hear some less compelling moments here and there, the album remains absolutely brilliant and should be on the radar of art rock enthusiasts.

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