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STYXStyxProg Related2.83 | 159 ratings |
From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website
daveconn
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Prog Reviewer |
Before The Grand Illusion, there was the grandiloquent confusion of "Movement For The
Common Man," which throws at the listener in order of succession: hard rock, a
tinkertoy drum solo, spoken dialogue from the streets of Chicago, an excerpt of Aaron
Copland's "Fanfare For The Common Man" and, finally, a dreamy prog ballad ("Mother
Nature's Son") in the hopes that something will stick. I agree that it's a movement,
but I wouldn't stick around to find out what kind. Beyond that, Styx' debut isn't bad
at all, playing rock with obvious proggy overtones, as Dennis DeYoung dips into the
well of the current vanguard (Genesis, Jethro Tull, ELP) and adds filigree to what
might otherwise be filler. Strangely, their first album doesn't contain a lot of
band-written material. Whether tracks like "Right Away" and "After You Leave Me" were
holdovers from earlier incarnations of the band or not is unclear, but Styx does a
good job of stamping them with their own personality (strong harmonies, prog
sensibility and swagger). While nothing on here has the enduring power of a "Lady,"
Styx (the album) is no less fruitful that Rush's first album. "Best Thing" is handily
the best thing on here, "What Has Come Between Us" another winner (fyi, both were
chosen for Wooden Nickel's Best of Styx). Does it all bode well for the future of
Styx? Well, no, they sound like the second coming of Uriah Heep here (and I'm not
sure anyone invited the first Heep). In the cabinet marked eponymous prog debuts, Yes
and ELP got out of the gate quickly, Rush opted to travel by way of zeppelin and Styx
occasionally stalls as it learns to shift between prog and rock.
daveconn |
2/5 |
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