THE COLOR SPECTRUM: COMPLETE COLLECTION

Casey Crescenzo and his project The Dear Hunter are one of the greatest bands my generation will ever see, he creates music that is so thoughtful and beautiful yet remains very mainstream and accessible. And yet he isn't afraid to let a little self-indulgence show like releasing nine EPs at once.

This collection is essential listening for almost every fan of prog rock (the standard edition just doesn't give you the full listening experience). Each EP has it's own atmosphere, flavor, texture, etc. and yet it's all connected in some weird way. While not all tracks are completely flawless (many on the first half of the collection are almost too mainstream for me) there literally is not a bad one. The guy just rights good songs, he has never, and I mean never, released a song that isn't well composed and well performed. That's just not how he does things.

This release really shows the solidity of The Dear Hunter and their ability to produce extremely grandoise and majestic releases while never getting to far "out there". Real highlights are the Green, Indigo and White EPs but you really can't go wrong with any of them.

An excellent release and intermission in The Dear Hunter 6-album project. Can't wait for more from these guys, Act IV or not.