2ND

I already posted a recommendation to check out this album, so I figured I would review it as well. The first song "First Communication" strikes me as somewhat of a precursor to Post-Rock, in the vein of Red Sparowes. This track is a very gentle instrumental rock song and features excellent guitar work. One thing that you notice immediately about this album is the crystal-clear production. It really serves to bring out the different moods of the songs, by expressing the tone of each instrument very accurately. The second song "Dialogue & Random" is a collection of electronic noises arranged in a very trippy manner. If electrons wrote music, this is what it would sound like. A crashing piano chord finishes Dialogue & Random and simultaneously introduces the third song, "Laila, Part One". An epic guitar solo laid over a sweet groove comprises this entire song. A transition at the end of the solo opens up into the fourth song, "Laila, Part Two". As did Part One, Part Two primarily consists of a guitar solo laid over a groove. Unlike the first Part, however, this one gets slightly repetitive as the bass line and basic groove are repeated for well over four minutes. This song could also be viewed as an influence on Post-Rock. Laila, Part Two gently fades out and in comes the fifth song on the album, "In The Silence Of The Morning Sunrise". This song is more free-form that the two Lailas, and consists of a nice instrumental track with some pretty bluesy guitar soloing. I have just come to realize that one of the main reasons for why I like this album so much is that the guitar playing is ridiculously good. It reminds me of a mix of Harvey Mann and David Gilmour, with a dash of Hendrix. Morning Sunrise fades out and in comes the sixth song on the album, "A Quiet Walk: A) Listening B) Two - Not Of The Same Kind". This song opens up with what sounds like a babbling brook, and then some atmospheric and trippy noises start fading in and out. It's pretty cool, sort of like a psychedelic version of the "silence" in a forest, which isn't really silent but rather filled with a bunch of small noises. About three minutes in, a guitar solo gently fades in and out, all the while accompanied by more trippy sounds. I can just imagine how crazy this will sound in headphones. At the five minute mark, a single vocalized note floats into the song, then disappears, leaving in its wake gentle strumming on acoustic guitar. As the strumming continues, distorted guitar and bongos trade playing verses for the remainder of the song. A Quiet Walk fades out and in fades two haunting, ethereal voices, one whispering and one singing. These voices recite lines from something written by Edgar Allen Poe while cosmic noises play in the background. This is the last song on the album, "Haunted Island". After the first set of vocals finish, the instruments begin playing, while a muted and wavy voice recites more lines. This will sound wicked trippy in headphones. The second set of vocals concludes and in comes an impeccably bluesy guitar solo. My attention is drawn once more to the unusually clear production of this album. You can hear every note from every instrument perfectly. As the song winds down, the solo fades out and a distorted riff is repeated several times, when suddenly all of the instruments stop, the drums play a few final notes and then a sound like an electronic wave seems to wash over the song, ending the album... What an incredible listening experience that was. I cannot recommend this highly enough.