HERE AND THERE, NOW AND THEN

Here and There, Now and Then was the debut album for the young Canadian band Signs of One. Came by it at the record store and decided to give it a try. Good decision, for this is a quite interesting release.

I am not sure how this band ended up being classified as "prog-related" because from what I can hear, they are genuinely prog. Influences appear to range from Rush to Fish-era Marillion, with some psych, classic and metal touches. Overall, this is an album best described as "heavy neo-prog".

The compositions are fairly complex, with several movements and nice melodies. The flows are nicely done as the songs go from mood to another mood very smoothly.

Honestly, this is an album with virtually no filler (only the fifth track Please seemed to me that it could have been shorter) and with a number of great moments. The epic War (clocks at 16:39) is brilliant on the whole. Very recommendable track, as good as prog can get. The lively opener Ice Cream Silence, as well as the sublime and inspired long guitar solo closing the album, also make for excellent musical moments.

Actually, I find that if this album has a significant weakness, it lies in the audio quality, something that oft happens with newcoming bands recording their first release. Thus a 4 or 5 stars rating is not accessible. The sound product is not at a pro level but nevertheless, I quickly forgot about it after a minute. I think this is an album worth trying, especially for heavy prog or neo-prog fans, whereas those who might be even more picky than me with the sound may elect to avoid it. Pretty good album overall.