Anybody who has yearned for the basics of progressive rock to return back to its roots within the moody realm of structure that provides a soundscape of the atmosphere that began the whole neo-classical meets rock revolution, aligning itself with contemporaries such as Spock's Beard and The Flower Kings, well,
Knight Area brings it back.
Filled with analog synths (an arsenal's worth), mellotrons (lots of choirs and strings), syncopated rhythms, and a more lad back vibe,
The Sun Also Rises offers fifty minutes of sonic imagery that will put this album on the map as one of the strongest progressive rock albums this year. Although not exactly a heavy album, the sound is dominated mostly by the vintage keyboards, with the occasional crunch and leads found within the normally chorus laden clean axework, behind the aggressive drumming that packs the final punch (by the way the thick distorted guitar sound has the "rockman" distortion sound, very similar to the crunch on Boston records, who's guitarist invented that sound).
The brainchild of composer/keyboardist Gerben Klazinga, armed with an eleven musician arsenal including Mark Smit on vocals and flautist Joop Klazinga,
The Sun Also Rises has the feel of a normal concept album experience rather than being a full blown rock opera, allowing many of the cuts here to stand out on their own, but rather flowing from one to the other, without harsh transition.
Speaking of the cuts, mostly all have the laid back sound, keeping low-to-mid-tempos, whether it's the opening cut
"The Gate of Eternity" the acoustic
"Moods Inspiring Clouds," the
Yes inspired
"Mortal Brow," complete with a keyboard solo played on the Oberheim, and the prog pop/rock opus
"Conspiracy," showing that front to back, all the melodies are strong. Some of the "louder" moments on the record belong to
"Forever Now" and the crunch happy
"Conviction" with its Hammond organ backdrop, adding even more edge.
Production wise, its flawless, sonically perfect, engineered with the metal record mentality in mind, but yet creativity to bring more to the ears, pushing the envelope on the ear candy factor. It's easy to, like earlier, to compare this record to Spock's Beard, Flower Kings, The Tangent, and of course classic prog acts such as
Long Distance Voyager-era Moody Blues,
Yes, Marillion, early Genesis, and Pink Floyd, so with that said, any prog fan should dare not overlook this, it is a strong release that will surpass any cynical expectations.
Written by
Hashman Friday, March 26, 2004
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