Spock's Beard

Spock's Beard

Written by: ASH on 06/02/2007 20:10:56

Ladies and gentlemen, progressionists and everyone interested, hurry hurry, I give you an extravaganza of entangling sounds, an impressive display of creativity and definite earcookies for the fans of the whole genre. But enough superlatives for now, the musical veteran ensemble Spock's Beard has released their newest addition to their already large array of compositions, despite the fact that they are out with a self-titled album, commonly seen by debut artists. The reason why we get to discover such an awkward idea, bassist Dave Meros explains, is that it would be cool to finally create a self-titled album, since none of their previous nine releases were self-titled.

The album itself consists of fourteen presumeably lengthy tracks, with the exception of the third track "Is This Love?", so wouldn't it be obvious to foresee some seemingly neverending guitar solos? Wrong. The neverending feature of Spock's Beard clearly has to be their way of mastering their instrumental variations, as you inevitably are introduced to in "On A Perfect Day", the first track, which undoubtedly indicates the musical experience of the band. Even though some tracks, like "Skeletons At The Feast" and "The Slow Crash Landing Man" could become too much of the good, the majority of the album's tracks tend to be refreshing and innovative. I admit to have had my fears at first, when I saw that the album included the 17 minute "As Far As The Mind Can See" split up into four seperate parts, each with their own respectful title. Nevertheless, the whole flurry of different instruments thrown at me actually stirred a quite positive impression on me. You just have to think in 'progressive mindset' all the time, in order to fully understand why these four musical veterans play so goddamn much and change their style and phase within mere minutes. With so much horn and so many string quartets, it's a prerequisite that you are well-prepared for a track that could seem to take forever.

Ultimately, "Spock's Beard" has delivered what they promised. An album that "offers 78 minutes of captivating melodies, amazing twists and cleverly constructed songs". Add "with a few longdrawn exceptions" and you really have what you have learnt to expect from the band. Fans of progressive rock won't be disappointed, but if you are the more energetic type, you would probably long for just a little more power, since some moments of "Spock's Beard" could feel too...sweet and dandy. All in all, the Californian quartet know exactly what they are doing, allowing them to create a composition that gives you a promising introduction and a worthy goodbye. So why not take a detour to Roskilde some day close to July, and let everyone get a taste of your sound?

7

Download: On A Perfect Day, Skeletons At The Feast
For the fans of: Genesis
Listen: Myspace

Release Date 20.11.2006
InsideOut Music
Provided by Target ApS

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