What is it about the death of a living legend that brings people together?
Kobe Bryant died tragically in a helicopter crash on 01/26/2020 along with his 13 year old daughter and 7 other people on board.
Neil Peart died from an aggressive form of brain cancer on 01/07/2020. His then 19 year old daughter died in a car accident in August 1997 and his wife 10 months later from cancer.
"So?"
"And?"
"I don't watch basketball."
"I don't listen to prog rock."
"I never even heard of him!"
"How does this affect me?"
"Why should I care?"
First, some facts:
Kobe Bryant was an amazing basketball player. Among the best. During his time in the NBA with the L.A. Lakers, he earned many stats in the top 10 of the NBA. He is considered to be one of the best basketball players of all time.
Neil Peart was an amazing prog rock drummer. Among the best. During his time with Rush, he
recorded over a dozen albums and won numerous "best drummer" awards. He is considered to be one of the best drummers of all time.
Two gods among men. Beyond raw talent, relentless practice, and an obsession with perfection, what made these men tick? Both men traveled internationally at a young age, Kobe to Italy, Peart to England. Both would return home shortly, sans college education and launch their careers.
Swiftly rising to the top in their respective careers, expanding to numerous different areas, but both branched out to literary careers. Kobe Bryant wrote The Mamba Mentality: How I Play, the mamba referring to the snake which Bryant uses as a metaphor for his speed and precision on the court. Neil Peart wrote several works of fiction and non-fiction, from Ghost Rider: Travels on the Healing Road - an account of his experience riding his motorcycle across North America following the loss of his daughter and wife, to an expanded back story of Rush's last album Clockwork Angels with noted science fiction author Kevin J. Anderson.
Neither man was perfect, as you can research for yourself, but who among us is? This is about the good stuff.
Both men worked hard to become the best in the world at their jobs, to the point where millions of people looked up to them. They are the kind of people who are "always there" to point to, to think about, to talk about with friends or even strangers.
"Remember when Kobe went over 60 on the Knicks?"
"Remember that sick solo Neil Peart played at The Garden State Arts Center back in 97?"
Go ahead and google "Top 5 NBA players of all time" and "Top 5 drummers of all time" and look whose picture comes up first (as of this writing).
It goes without saying that it is sad to see a beloved icon or celebrity die. But there is something more that hits the core of you when that person is one of the best of all time; a hero - your hero.
That is why we should all care about Kobe and Neil.
If you are unfamiliar with Hibernal like I was, it is the brainchild of Mark R. Healy from Australia. Along with Rowan Salt, a cast of professional voice actors, actresses, and quality sound effects, each album by Hibernal is a science fiction (sf) short story mixed with some of the most chill post rock available. There is no singing and minimal song structure, only atmosphere and acting.
You might be thinking, "yeah, I'll pass," but that would be a mistake. The voice acting isn't your typical prog cheese in a can and the stories are great. Full disclosure, I've been an avid fan of sf since I was reading H.G. Wells and Michael Crichton in middle school. Mark writes good science fiction. His work is closer to the harder stories you might find in Analog SF magazine than your typical space opera junk sf.
In fact, Mark is a professional writer as well as musician. His books are available on Amazon and most of them are free if you have a Kindle Unlimited account. You can also get 2 free books from Mark R. Healy's website directly if you subscribe to his newsletter. [I'm not making money off of anything here, simply providing information and links for your convenience, dear reader! -FL]
If this style of music isn't your typical jam, I'd say give it a try anyway if just for the story. Each album is priced right and in fact, as of this writing, all 9 albums can be had in CD quality FLAC on Bandcamp (see link below) for less than $15.00 USD. For the well-initiated in modern prog, the closest thing I can compare it to musically would have to be Riverside's Eye of the Soundscape.
Let's talk about Beyond. I'm obviously not going to give away the story, but here are the first lines of the first track, The Emptiness, to whet your appetite:
It was meant to be a routine mission. A crew of two sent to investigate an anomaly in the Rigel system at the foot of Orion.
We'd done this kind of jump a hundred times before, maybe more.
But when we came out of the slingshot, we had no way of knowing what lay ahead; a force that was vast, incomprehensible. As ancient as the stars themselves.
And in the emptiness of space, it waited for us.
Rigel is the big bright blue star at the bottom right.
As you let that sink in, the drums kick in with a slow beat while rhythmic keyboards and electric guitar set the soundscape. Lifeless World has a more bass-driven rhythm with some nice reverb-heavy guitar tones. The guitar is more central in Deep Down, with some subtle bending and vibrato with tones punctuated here and there by a distorted keyboard. It'd be futile to give a track by track analysis. Suffice it to say that the musical atmosphere provides an appropriate background for the actors and the highly rhythmic nature of the music accentuates the time-sensitive nature of the story.
In all, Hibernal - Beyond is a fun listen. It's a bit more heavy on the electronics than I'd prefer - I specifically miss the acoustic and distorted guitars, but I think it makes sense to leave them out, given the cold, hostile environment of deep space where the story takes place. That being said, I can't complain too much about an album that had a pretty good sf short story with some atmospheric music that kept me entertained almost an hour and cost less than five bucks. Hibernal - Beyond is available in CD quality from Bandcamp and on Amazon Music HD.
Nobody knows their real names hidden by pseudonyms.
Nobody knows their origins.
Nobody knows when this album has been recorded.
Only two things are certain: first: this album is an incredible mixture of '70s hard rock, progressive rock with jazzy touches and a mystic atmosphere and second: the name is Mythology.
With an introduction like that, I'm interested. I had a bit of a difficult time researching Mythology, mainly because The Castle of Crossed Destinies is actually a 1973 novel by Italian author Italo Calvino. The novel is about a group of travelers who experience a traumatic event and go mute as a result. They meet up in a castle and resort to telling their tales each through a series of Tarot cards, which are printed in the book's margin. But who is the one narrating the description of the Tarot - is it the author, the character observer, or the reader? Full disclosure, I did not read the book, but I would like to because it sounds interesting!
I am not certain, but I would assume this album is based on the novel. This legendary recording obscurity can be streamed on Amazon Music HD, and that's exactly what I did before I did a little searching and found it available to own in CD quality FLAC on Qobuz.
The only other tidbit of information I was able to dig up about Mythology is the lineup:
Chad Samoth - drums Athos Sade - lead vocals Lady Sif - backing vocals Aton Dasha - guitar Dan Moses - keyboards Santo Asteda - bass guitar Dana Shettom - sax, mellotron
Let's get listening.
1) The Castle of Crossed Destinies
I'm not even one minute into this album and I'm hearing great drums, keyboards, and heavy guitars that blow me away. Follow all that up with some deep singing from Athos Sade that lies somewhere among the scoops and swoops of Ian Anderson, the over-the-top vibrato of Eddie Vedder, the tenacity of Jack Black, and the low growl of Jim Morrison. Welcome to classic prog rock, baby. "You can join us, but you have to lose yourself."
2) Missed Chances
Some lovely wordless vocals by Lady Sif with a piano start things off followed by a symphonic riff with synth horns that prepares the listener for the battle to come. The vocals are doubled an octave higher mostly through the track adding to the weirdness. After a bluesy guitar solo, a killer saxophone solo by Dana Shettom rife with blue notes, trills, and bends plays off the other instruments, making things extremely jazzy and tasty. There are a couple places where the rhythm section drops out and it's just sax with slight reverb alone before a jazzy drum beat and syncopated piano backing comes back in. If you didn't know better you'd think you were listening to a jazz combo. The symphonic riffs return to bring us out of battle and back home.
3) The Moon
The short track The Moon is lush with instrumentation and vocal backing. The brevity and calmness of the piece makes me think of the first part of King Crimson's Moonchild...or maybe it's the title...either way it's an enjoyable listen.
4) Now I'm Blind
"I used to play with my goblins" ...or did he say goblets? It doesn't matter. Do I detect a harmonica in the background? This team has all retro prog bases covered! A stacatto riff heavy with bass and keys sets things in motion with a riff that reminds me of Sabbath's Snowblind...or maybe it's the title... A solo with some of the craziest keyboard note bending by Dan Moses I've ever heard finishes off the song.
5) The Emperor
Clocking in at just over 11 minutes, this track starts off with a synth lead effect that sounds very similar if not identical to the one (or ones) Tool used a few times on Fear Inoclulum. Its shimmering overtones are a luxury to behold.
Some backing vocal with wide vibrato respond to the call of the lead vocal - The Emperor addressing his loving empire? The beautiful synth lead voice returns halfway through the song with some faster paced drumming. A slow tempo resumes with the highest vocals so far on the album.
The last third of the song features some Sabbath-esque vocals with guitars doubling. "The Emperor is dead!" shout the people of the kingdom with sorrow...or is it joy?
6) Don't Be Afraid
This track is short but trippy with the various instrumental voices and vocal backing.
Don't be afraid! This album is really good and a lot of fun to listen to. It accomplishes what a lot of modern retro-prog outfits tend to over promise on their albums. From start to finish you feel like you are indeed listening to a record from the 70s, and that is a really good thing.
I will admit I didn't dig the vocals at first, as they reminded me a bit of Bob Dylan, but the more I listened, the more I gleaned the different influences and realized they are just another small spice to the music and not the center.
I hope Mythology gets a chance to step into the limelight and enjoy the gilded stage in the future. They deserve to be heard and enjoyed.
Sons of Apollo are back with MMXX (that's 2020 for you non-Romans), the follow up to their debut Psychotic Symphony. I have to admit that while I did enjoy Psychotic Symphony the few times I listened to it, I just never really got into it like I did with a lot of other albums that year. That being said, I guess the best way for me to discuss MMXX would be to do so track by track, so here I go!
1) Goodbye Divinity
The first track starts off with a slow groove that reminds me of that iconic metal album buildup, kind of the way Dream Theater kicks off Train of Thought with As I Am. A simple but pounding riff kicks things into high gear before Jeff Scott Soto's rich voice weaves a melodic chorus with a hook meant to catch. Some flashy finger work by Derek Sherinian and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal take us through the middle section and back to the chorus.
2) Wither to Black
This song starts off with a moderate tempo snare-led drum beat with bass drum triplets. This is one of those songs where the guitar plays one long chord while the singer does some fast vocals for a few bars, then stops singing and the guitar does a fast riff for a few bars (I'm looking at you, Black Dog!). It's a straightforward rocker. Overall, this song doesn't do much for me, but Ron has a good guitar solo.
3) Asphyxiation
Syncoption + Dissonance = RAWR! It's what sounds to me like F and B at the same time haphazardly accenting a muted pedal on the low B string which can only be described as Korn attempting to play Blue Rondo a La Turk. I suppose I can't complain too much, I mean it could be a djent riff. And at least Ron has the good sense to play the riff without that diminished accent during the verses.
After a fairly pedestrian chorus, the opening riff returns to lead us into a keyboard solo, guitar solo, followed by the best part of the album so far with the whole band going full-on prog madness just before the 4 minute mark.
4) Desolate July
The faint sounding of a heavy bell...
Hey, is this For Whom the Bell Tolls or Hell's Bells? Nah, the bell is sounding B, not E or A...hmm...how are they gonna start this song?
A soft piano riff with a soft keyboard voice starts it off...so far so good. Jeff Scott Soto sings soft and deep and then lets out his signature howl to kick off the song. There is a short keyboard solo followed by a short guitar solo and Mike Portnoy gets a chance to shine on the drums a bit toward the end of the song.
5) King of Delusion
Another keyboard/piano intro, but the piano is much more proggy - a slow arpeggiated riff in 4/4 followed by a measure in 7/8. This is followed by a riff in 5/8 that trips you up with some 16th note triplets the first time they're heard, but the second time, they lift you up and carry you into the next part which sounds like it would be right at home in a Mozart piano sonata if not for the underlying dissonance.
It's one of the highlights of the album so far and it is a pure joy for the ear.
What seems like the heaviest riff of the album so far kicks things into high gear. The verse and chorus are good; they remind me of Symphony X, specifically the Iconoclast album.
A soft section interrupts things a while and Derek busts into his piano riff again, but things are much more hurried this time with a frantic drum beat. Another heavy riff, short keyboard and guitar solos bring us to one final chorus and Jeff ends the song with some wild screaming that feels a bit forced.
6) Fall to Ascend
Drum city! This intro reminds you that Mike Portnoy is still one of the best drummers in prog today. I read recently that he is less concerned about speed and crazy solos than writing good songs as he is getting older. About a third of the way through, a fast guitar riff followed by trading solos give the Sons a chance to have a bit of good old prog metal fun.
7) Resurrection Day
A fast guitar riff that takes advantage of the open E string as a pedal kicks things off nicely. This is another one that reminds me of later Symphony X for some reason, but that is definitely not a bad thing! Some good solos, including a couple by Billy Sheehan (finally); I feel like he's kind of been absent until now.
8) New World Today
The first track over 10 minutes and in fact almost 16 minutes is saved for last.
A nice sweet guitar melody peppered with some Eruption-esque flashiness starts us off. The song takes off with a hurried rhythmic riff with 3 measures of 5/8 and one of 7/8. It's of the sort we've come to know well from post 90s prog, and while it may seem dated to some, it will be nostalgic and comfortable for others, myself included.
The first section concludes and it's metal madness time! Highlights of this section include a stacatto keyboard lick leading us into another bass solo! A super fast guitar riff in a time signature that hiccups a beat keeps things interesting during this section and solos ensue. Things then slow down a bit and, yes, more solos ensue, including the best keyboard solo of the album.
The hurried rhythm of the beginning returns, but seems less hurried and more victorious this time.
So what is the verdict? There are undoubtedly some great prog metal moments on MMXX, specifically on the second half of the album which are all good tracks. Unfortunately, the great moments are too few and 4 good tracks doesn't make a great album. The songs are simply too forgettable. Jeff Scott Soto's voice was so grungy that I had to stop and think about the fact that he was in Journey for a time. I wanted to go back and compare his voice now to Yngwie Malmsteen's first album Rising Force. As I was listening to it, I realized that I was enjoying myself more than I had been listening to MMXX.
I listened to all the songs on MMXX in Amazon HD a few times each, and perhaps more repeated listening might change my mind, but there is just better music out there right now. Sorry, Sons of Apollo!
In early 2019, the Ukrainian symphonic prog rock band Karfagen released the incredible Echoes from within Dragon Island. In January of 2020, they followed up that masterpiece with Birds of Passage.
If you are unfamiliar with Karfagen, they are headed by the mighty Antony Kalugin. With Antony involved with 3 bands, an orchestral project, and his own solo output, the man is prolific to say the least. But it makes you wonder, being stretched across all those projects, surely the quality of the music must suffer, right? O, say not so!
Consider Birds of Passage: the titular opus is split into two parts, each exceeding 20 minutes, followed by 2 short bonus tracks and a short recapitulation of the intro (only included on the digital version). The lyrics in Part 1 are set to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poems Birds of Passage and Daybreak, while Part 2's lyrics are set to William Blake's Eternity and The Ecchoing Green, and the bonus track Spring (Birds Delight) is set to Blake's Spring. The piece is punctuated here and there with Antony's short statement:
This Time, this place,
This world, your grace!
Your time, your faith,
Your voice, your grace!
Musically, Birds of Passage has everything you'd expect from good modern symphonic prog album: lots of different moods, layers, textures, and dynamics; the odd and mixed time signatures (the main riff of Part 1 starts off in a bouncy 7/4), layered vocals, expert guitar, bass, and drums; and of course, keyboards. For a nice change of aural texture, a classical guitar kicks off Part 2.
The bulk of the time you spend listening to this album will be spent on listening to achingly lovely keyboard voices that appear and disappear, can be as subtle as a little lamb or a quick flourish that grabs you gently and says, "get ready for the next part!" Nothing is too dissonant, abrasive, heavy, fast, or dense. This is truly music for relaxation and contemplation.
The band even went so far as to record some birds in Germany during the summer, which is a bit ironic when you consider the poetry of Part 1 seems to be based in winter and Part 2 in spring.
