SUBTERRANEA

IQ

Neo-Prog

4.01 | 760 ratings

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Moonstone

I find IQ's "Subterranea" exciting, but yet a little boring at the same time.

I just cant help comparing it to Genesis' "Lamb lies down on Brodway" It's cut in the same vein, double disc, one main caracter that we follow through the whole record.

It is flawed in the same vein too. The album is just TOO jampacked, with some great songs, and a bunch of fillers just to fill the disc's two sides. At least, that's the impression I get when I listen to it. It's really hard to motivate myself to listen to the record all the way through. I tend to loose interest on the way, like they cant keep up the momentum and excitement.

They could easily have cut it a single album, in fact I think it would have worked better if they did.

The first disc is the most interesting one. "Overture, Provider, Subterranea, Sleepless Incidental, Failsafe, and State of mine" are all great songs, and typical of IQ. I tend to NOT listen to the second disc, and for two reasons: Not as good songs as on the first disc, and I've lost interest by then. It's just TOO jampacked, and I need a rest. To close the album with a 20 minute "A Narrow Margin" doesn't help either, especially because It's way too long, way too late on the album, and not very good or interesting.

I find Nicholls voice very dramatic and emotional here, and sometimes a little disturbing, but that just adds to the drama in a good way. I'm sure that this albums music is working much better LIVE, with the drama & Nicholls costumes to illustrate the music visually. That would do it more justice. Unfortunatly I never got to see that tour.

Great playing and musicianship here, as allways.

Overall: A good disc, but nothing spectacular. But nevertheless an essential album in the IQ collection, and in Neo-Prog in general.

Moonstone | 4/5 | 2011-6-7

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