SOLA SCRIPTURA

Sola Sciptura is Neal Morse's heaviest and most chaotic album to date. At only four songs, it contains some of the longest epics he's ever composed. But unlike Testimony and One, this is one of his more consistent works. Each song brings something new to the table, while still relying on the classic Neal Morse recipe.

The album opens with a staple of Neal's discography, 'The Door' (10/10) The song is very long, and has many parts, but they're all connected flawlessly. The song takes no time to bother with a build-up intro a la 'The Creation' and jumps right into It with a flurry of guitar, keyboard and drums. The main melody is heard at two minutes and is one of his best. The chaos ensues until the vocals enter at five minutes. The song progresses with riff after riff until acoustic guitar enters, leading to some chorus and another memorable melody. The rest of the song is classic Neal Morse melodies with perfect instrumentation from the band. There are a few Transatlantic-sounding sections (especially at 18:43) I picked up in this song which is always a bonus.

The chaos ensues with 'The Conflict.' (9/10) The song is almost as strong as 'The Door' and contributes to the harsh, heavy, and dark mood of the album. The riffs and melodies are similar to the previous track. There is a notable Spanish guitar section followed by a softer jazzy piano section reminiscent of 'The Light' by Spock's Beard. Overall this song just builds upon the previous track.

'Heaven In My Heart' (6/10) is a slower and lighter ballad. The orchestra sounds help make this song fit in with the rest of the album, despite being softer.

'The Conclusion,' (8/10) like the rest of the album wastes no time starting up by throwing a chaotic keyboard and bass solo at us just moments in. The rest of the song introduces some new melodies, but mostly reprises existing ones.

Sola Scriptura is a high point in Neal's solo career. If there was any nitpicking I could do at all it would be that some of this stuff could have been shorter, especially 'The Conclusion.' Regardless, Sola Scriptura remains my second favorite album from Mr. Morse.

9/10

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