DISSOLUTION

Bruce Sword and company have collected a very well-recorded and rendered group of more Indie or pop rock- oriented songs for this 2018 release. Nice contributions from Gavin Harrison and David Torn.

1. "Not Naming Any Names" (2:05) a brilliantly sedate and spacious opener with Bruce singing over piano in such a soft, emotional voice. A top three song for me. (4.5/5)

2. "Try As I Might" (4:26) clear, clean guitar-based rock with the always-welcome drumming of Gavin Harrison. There are several PT/Steven Wilson-like moments or nuances, but over all it's a very good song. Slide guitar used for the solo instrument in the "C" part. (8.5/10)

3. "Threatening War" (6:37) singing in a little higher register, Bruce leads us into another more delicate, sensitive story. He gets more aggressive as the music drops out and leaves only an acoustic guitar, but then the full band kicks in with a straightforward rocker for the chorus. The "C" part on this song is where everything interesting happens: guitar harmonics, subtle drumming flourishes, etc., but it's too short. Then it kicks back into the chorus section before finishing out with the final verse and chorus. (8.25/10)

4. "Uncovering Your Tracks" (4:29) interesting Peter Gabriel-like foundational weave sets up before Bruce sings in an almost-talking voice. The chorus is amped up by strumming acoustic guitars and a few electric guitar chords. This presence of a raunchy electric guitar gives the song a kind of Steven Wilson feel to it--especially as the vocal has gone this way--while the ensuing guitar also has a frenetic squeal tone not unlike upcoming song guest David Torn. Not enough variation and diversity to make this one really stand out. (8.5/10)

5. "All That You've Got" (3:27) rock 'n' roll with an indie feel. Indistinct and nondescript save for the awesome guitar solo in the third minute. (8.25/10)

6. "Far Below" (4:36) opens with a little "Thunder Island" feel--and this remains the dominant chord and guitar approach throughout this rockin' song. Unfortunately, it gets a little monotonous. (8/10)

7. "Pillar of Salt" (1:25) A non-descript song. Too bad I don't hear lyrics. (3.5/5)

8. "White Mist" (11:05) the length of this song allows for some nice sound experimentations from several contributors, David Torn being the primary source. Gavin's work is so solid, like the spine of a vertebrate. But the song never really digs in, never digs deep enough to engage me into a head-banging, foot-stomping, air-guitar strumming experience (though Harrison and Torn's interplay in the seventh and eighth minutes is pretty darn awesome!). After the 8:20 mark there is an awesome section of keys and drums before Bruce rejoins with his singing--which is then followed by some stunning guitar shredding by Torn. The second best song on the album. (8.75/10)

9. "Shed a Light" (5:20) sparse acoustic guitar play with delicate vocal opens this song. When the full band joins in it has a kind of twangy folk-pop sound to it not unlike a Ben Watt/Everything But The Girl song. Odd guitar strumming precedes a very cool heavier guitar and keyboard-based chord ascension before we mysteriously (and disappointingly) return to the sparse opening style and sound (with drums and simple bass). The wide and dramatic dynamic shifts of this song do make it interesting and the chord progressions and vocal melodies are the best on the album. (9/10)

Though Gavin Harrison's presence is heard, it's not really felt as none of these songs really explores or experiments much with standardized forms or sounds. This is a rock album; the band's least proggy album yet.

Four stars; a nice addition to any prog lover's music collection.