BRIDGE ACROSS FOREVER

About a year and a half after SMPTe, Transatlantic released their second and final studio album, Bridge Across Forever. This one is very much like the debut. No covers this time around, this is all fresh. Four tracks, three epics (two of which reach 25+ minutes), and one shorter piece, which is a moving ballad. The writing is even tighter on this album. The epics all contain recurring themes, and they are used very tastefully, making this album extra coherent and meritorious. There aren't as many hooks on this one, but they make up for that with emotion. This is a very powerful album. Striking melodies are strewn about. It has a very stong opening, and a very captivating closing. Everything in between is great, but man, the first five or so minutes bring me so much excitement, and the segments that comprise the end of the last song building up to that climax just really hit me hard.

There isn't a whole lot else to say about Bridge Across Forever. Great musicianship, very controlled, very profound. Fans of it's predecessor will most likely share the same feelings toward this one. As before, it may not be one of the most historically important albums for progressive rock, but it certainly is one of the best.