DIMENSIONAUT

Okay. I'm ready to review this album. Hopefully. Simon Collins, son of Phil Collins, has formed a progressive rock band named Sound of Contact. Their debut album, "Dimensionaut", has been played an awful lot this past few weeks or so in my house. This album is somewhat difficult to process; not because it is so complex, but because it is not.

Simon is certainly influenced by his father's music. I hear quite a bit of Genesis in the progressive side of this album, but I also hear Phil's solo career in the poppier side. In fact, Simon sounds a lot like his father vocally. Yet, there is more than that. There is a little neo- prog here, some heavy prog moments (especially the excellent drums), and a lot of space rock. The guitars are rather Gimour-like, the drums remind me of something from the band DeeExpus, and the spacey synth is something fairly original. All of these elements speak right to me: The combination is awesome. I also have enjoyed the philosophical storyline that discusses a space/time traveler that is searching for a way to expand the human experience. If I'm correct, I think he finds that expansion is right here and now on Earth.

"Dimensionaut" has really surprised me. I wasn't sure what to expect from Simon Collins, but his band has crafted a pretty great album here. There are some solid, and even exceptional, prog songs here. "Cosmic Distance Ladder" is an excellent instrumental track with some amazing moments. "I Am Dimensionaut" is an exceptional prog rock song that is easily one of the top 10 songs I've heard this year: The instrumental passage in the second half is extraordinary. There are some much poppier songs, though. "Pale Blue Dot", "Remote View", and "Only Breathing Out" are semi-radio friendly. Yet, then "Beyond Illumination" gives us some extra spacey synth and a reggae beat. Lastly, "Mobius Slip" gives us an 18-minute epic with some of the high points of the album. You see, this album is all over the place in style and structure. Yet, somehow it all works. It all fits together perfectly.

Like I said, this is a difficult album to rate. Some of the songs have a healthy dose of pop, and I have to squint just a little in order to enjoy them. On the other hand, the prog rock focused tracks are excellent, and the entire album fits together as an interesting, unique, and well-composed whole. I think this will end up being one of my favorites of 2013. Is this a masterpiece? No. Is it an exceptional and a must-hear album? Absolutely. I expect Sound of Contact to release an instant classic someday. As it stands, this is a strong 4 stars, and I think that is appropriate for this excellent album. To be honest, this is almost a 5----almost.

EDIT: I'm raising this to a 5 star album. It gets better and better after say, the 30th listen. If you get any album to that many listens, it deserves 5 stars. Amazing debut album. It will be on my top 10 list of 2013 for sure.

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