ONES & ZEROS - VOLUME 0

So it is the end of the year and I've left the most daunting task of it to the end, afraid of tackling how to describe into words my favorite Album of the Year. But I've got less than three days as of this writing so I suppose there is no time better than the present.

Which is exactly what 3RDegree's latest offering to the Musical Gods of the Universe tackles itself, various subject matters that deal with the present while casting both a wary eye and a broad shadow over the future. A scary future. And one that I'm aligned with, for better. Or for worse.

Take for example the 5th track of what I have come to embrace is their magnum opus, Ones & Zeroes - Volume 0, entitled Logical Conclusion. Clocking in at 6:40, this is a luscious, synth-laden tour de force which probably has my overall favorite drum track of the album, this coming from former long time Drummer Aaron Nobel with George Dobbs proclaiming on "behalf" of God while dreamy keyboards are hovering over... "And so said God "Let us make man in our image to rule the air and sea over all the earth and all its creatures moving on the ground"... setting the groundwork for the chilliest song, lyrically-wise, to my ears: "Why deny what we are? On the brink of a solution - a logical conclusion. The best and brightest - all consequence be damned-along with their disciples... ". This ties it directly to One & Zeros Volume 1 released in 2015 via the song Life At Any Cost and the juxtaposition of the two albums seems to make a lot of sense when all is said and done, to my ears a stunning achievement, I being generally of the camp that "concept" albums usually fail to maintain its goal totally throughout the recorded material. But I think 3RDegree pulled it off. With Track 3, Olympia, being a prime example.

But I digress because Logical Conclusion requires a logical conclusion to its review, which starts with its main melody breakdown just short of the two minute mark and goes into a very ominous Robert James Pashman Bass line which is then matched by Dobbs on keys and Noble on drums until the 3:20 mark, where George starts to coo "True-only few can survive through the oncoming twilight. We only seek the better life we were promised. Why did they all lie? We won't be denied-this is our time..." and the iron fisting begins. This segues into the most exciting "bridge" back into the main melody of the song at the four minute mark with the guitars chiming in a beautiful, almost "Japanese" like melody, starting to point-counter pointing at the 5:10 mark and riding the wave excitement thru its "logical conclusion" at the 6:40 mark. This is heady stuff that continues to reveal itself thru tens and tens of listenings front to back since the album came out earlier in the year.

And the song that primarily sparked all those listenings was the aforementioned Olympia, which has since become my overall favorite 3RDegree song. I was not sure that was possible after 2012's brilliant The Long Division, which I totally fell in love with after 1st listening back in '12, so much so that I immediately played it a 2nd time to make sure I had heard what I thought I had heard the 1st time. I had... :) ...and started the platonic torrid love affair with the band, its members and their music.

So Olympia is about a love affair with a female artificial intelligent robotic partner. Novel idea, eh? But is it? Does it really seem that far fetched in 2018? Not to me it doesn't. And apparently not to its author:

"Olympia was her name-with a pliable polymer frame The cutting edge of design-the most promising of artificial minds A companion without a need who would follow my every lead And would always-always believe in me... "

Sounds like the perfect fairy tale, eh? Ah, but the story takes a detour while being laid out in as lush a setting as I've ever heard the band produce behind its words and the punch lines come in the most important lyrical lines of my 2018 and are sung as such:

"She figured out my deepest flaws - she wound me up like a machine She would not be my toy - I'd be her human being..."

Wham. bang, POW! The one-two lyrical upper jab to the jaw and I'm floored. As is the protagonist of the song:

"A high maintenance automaton - she's much more than an automaton Why didn't I shut her down and why is she still around? 
I guess I started to feel something toggled in my own programming And when I think about what I've done and even more about what I have not I seek forgiveness from Olympia I'm learning to understand-to share a life I finally see how I got it all wrong I'm learning to become a man - with open eyes And a man needs something more than just an automaton-much more than an automaton Olympia..."

This song highlights everything that is good and right about the band: A compelling story that unfolds from start to finish, lush instrumentation that is there to highlight and serve the story itself, beautiful lead and backing vocals that are always trying to "sell" the story and sneaky great and concise guitar playing throughout.

Those two songs were the 1st two favorites. The other seven come with their own individual charms. The opening track has become one of my all time favorite sub-four minute mark songs of all time. A clever juxtaposition of themes past (Volume 1) and present (Volume 0) works as rocker into Track 2, a brilliant satire on today's use of the internet entitled Connecting and its chorus:

"You just can't quit tonight - you are the shit tonight
..." with the satire and sarcasm positively dripping off George Dobbs' vocal delivery while Original and now Current Drummer Rob Durham keeping a steady beat throughout.

And while I'm here let me single out his efforts here as being IMHO my overall favorite vocals over an entire album. He uses his range to maximum effect, sweet at times, growling and spiteful at others. And the others, Robert James Pashman, Patrick Kliesch (also on Guitar), Bryan Ziegler (also on Guitar) and Eric Pseja (also on Guitar) present the backing vocals at the necessary heavenly levels required song to song and astonishingly also in concert, not an easy feat at the octave levels they are singing at to replicate in a live setting. No auto tuning here... :D !

Track 4, The Future Doesn't Need You, is another song that straddles the storyline between the two companion albums and one that features some fine interplay between the acoustic and electric guitar players and features the modern day dilemma:

"Unless you are living inside of my cloud I couldn't even help you if I wanted to now because The future doesn't need you at all..."

Track 5, Unintended Consequence, is a another brutal take on the future and its inevitable finger pointing:

"I'm an unintended consequence when the problem that you're facing is immense And the solution that you implement backfires badly and leads to something worse To the drawing board once more - and that's your curse..."

Track 8, Click Farm, is their "epic length" prog track, basically clocking in at double the length of any of their previously recorded output, almost 16 minutes, and it took me that long, LOL, to "get it" but once I did, wow. The song bobs and weaves through the 1st section, Positive Feedback Loop (One Click Away), with biting lyrics such as:

"I feel more alone with each friend I make Rejection is just one click away...", and continues the biting sarcasm in the 2nd section, Click Farm:

"We used to have a staff-well that's all in the past-we do it now with click bots Thank you click farm-we can optimize your visibility Thank you click farm-and soon you'll be a star..." and then totally starts to rock out in its 3rd and final section, Only Listen To This Section If You Truly Want Wealth And Security (LOLLOL!):

"We'll find out how smart you are-share it with all your friends-click here first for registration...". And the "shit" referred to in Connecting has now come to roost... :(

The 9th and final track, Ones & Zeroes, is a fine wrap up of the story of the album(s), ending with a bunch of one liners such as:

"Are you a one-are you a zero? Are you a yes or a no? Are you a sheep-are you a hero stuck in a binary code? Ones and zeros... 3:) "

In a year of fantastic Prog releases (my personal Top 3 are Ones & Zeros Volume 0, Pinnacle's To Whoever You Are Now and Steven Wilson's To The Bone) I'm thankful for the many many offerings available to us Prog fans nowadays but truly feel that Ones & Zeros earned the top spot this year with its magnificent songwriting and accompanying musicianship and if you haven't checked out this fine band or its music I would encourage you to do so. This is a progressive album that draws from many influences and delivers a sound all its own, one that continues to unfold through my ears as a fine wine improves with age... <3

Lyrics used by kind permission by its author and I suppose they should always be contacted, as I did prior to reprinting them, for the permission to reprint them, of which i was able to. By kind permission of... ;) <3