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Pallas - The Dreams of Men CD (album) cover

THE DREAMS OF MEN

Pallas

 

Neo-Prog

3.99 | 314 ratings

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Cesar Inca
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
4 stars If "The Sentinel" had been for years the Pallas Milestone even though it dated back from before the Alan Reed years and the 90s resurrection that found the band both older and stronger, now the Pallas guys and fans can be sure that "The Cross & the Crucible" and "The Dreams of Men" are the new Pallas definitive statements. My personal fave of the two is the latter, and I read that this is a shared opinion. Yes, "The Dreams of Men" is the sort of album that Pallas had been aspired to through the years, and now, with the conviction of experience and the refurbished sonic tightness developed since the "Beat the Drum" days, it only took a selection of inspired compositions to complete the picture. 'The Bringer of Dreams' starts epic and solemn, and it continues that way when the full band gets in, only in the full splendor of a bombastic mid-tempo rocker. The tempo shifts to 7/8 and the soft interlude are well managed within the whole integrity. 'Warriors' spices things up, bringing some moderate complexity to the overall stamina. 'Ghostdancers' goes for a more dramatic mood, portraying the yearning and solitude of American Indians in a land that they hardly recognize as their own after the white man's domination: the presence of a guest fiddle adds to the general sad, evocative ambience, while the guitar solo enhances it bombastically. 'Too Close to the Sun' is an 11 ½ minute epic that captures much of late Pallas' splendor with an added touch of "Sentinel"-era dynamics, which in turn brings back the ambition and bravado of vintage symphonic rock (Genesis, Yes, you know what I mean). The latter factor is particularly present in Brown's exquisite orchestrations and solos. The alternation of motifs and moods is polished and amalgamated: the acoustic portions bear a special magic. 'Messiah' is a punchy mid-tempo, somehow stating a link to that AOR thing that Pallas at times seems so fond of - anyway, this track carries out an exciting prog vibe, in essence. 'Northern Star' is an eerie instrumental featuring a Celtic-oriented acoustic guitar and soft, lush synth layers: almost new-age oriented, this beautiful piece serves as a proper solace before the frontal bombast of 'Mr. Wolfe', which sounds like contemporary PT-meets-Muse with some AOR- related airs. The album's last 22 minutes are occupied by 'Invincible' and 'The Last Angel'. 'Invincible' is aggressive (for Pallas standards), including some industrial elements as well as some pertinently psychedelic developments. The closing section is typical prog epic on a slow tempo (6/8, this time), a very helpful thing that allows to anticipate the arrival of 'The Last Angel', whose general scheme is noticeably more lyrical that the preceding track's. Slow and majestic, it is colorful enough as to never get boring despite the lack of rhythmic variations. In fact, the song's closing climax (featuring soprano Pandy Arthur) states an ethereal atmosphere that completes the overall idea beautifully. A great ending for a great prog album. Not unlike IQ, Pallas is a band that tends to get better as it grows older - way to go!
Cesar Inca | 4/5 |

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