WASSAIL

The star of this 25-year old British, nowadays 8-piece band has grown brighter in the Prog sky in recent years, but sadly I haven't yet listened to any of their albums. Nevertheless this 4-track EP (25 minutes in length) is probably a good introduction to the band's strengths. And one can spot them immediately: a full-blooded sound that leaves enough room for the acoustic folk touch also; powerful vocal harmonies; and tight, effective songs.

At least within this narrow sampling (three new songs unless the live-in-studio recorded 'Master James of St. George' isn't new as well), each one has their individual hooks. On the title track, about the Medieval tradition of banishing the evil spirits away before cider-making, the folk flavour comes out beautifully and the multi-vocal repetition of the word "wassail" is gorgeous rather than irritating. Perhaps my favourite is the near-instrumental 'Mudlarks' that has a vintage prog spirit equivalent to e.g. STEVE HACKETT's classics. In fact the lush info sheet tells that their preceding EP features a version of Hackett's 'Spectral Mornings'.

I'm not necessarily a fan of the somewhat stuffy main vocals of David Longdon, and an EP is always just an EP, but an album's worth of as strong material as this would surely receive four stars from me. I really need to get a closer look at this band.

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Posted Wednesday, September 23, 2015 | Review this album | Report (Review #1468997)

Just a small teaser from this fantastic modern symphonic band. Wassail proves once again that those Englishmen are in great shape both as a performing band and, specially, as songwriters. There is just three new songs plus a live version of Master James of St George, but what they produced here in just 25 minutes is once again - quality wise, of course - much more than what I´ve heard in 80 minutes CDs from most of other prog acts lately. Their combination of memorable melodies, complex arrangements and emotional delivering reminds me of a time when symphonic prog also meant great songs. Although hardly a retro band, BBT does own a great deal to the masters of the 70´s.

All tracks are great, but my favorite is surely Lost Rivers of London, a fine composition that has all the elements I like in this genre (elaborated arrangement, inspired solos, mood and tempo changes and a poignant melody line) all wrapped up in just 6 minutes (sometimes less is more)! I´m really looking forward to listen to their next full CD. The recording quality is top notch - even the live track is so well played it´s hard to notice that is not a studio version.

If you don´t know this band, this is a good starting point. If you do, then it is another great addition to your collection. Highly recommended!

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Posted Wednesday, February 10, 2016 | Review this album | Report (Review #1527567)

I find that some of BBT's newer stuff is really fantastic, this one included (although it's only 4 songs). I'm not sure why some people are being hard on this disc and giving it low ratings. Three of the songs are new - Wassail, Lost Rivers of London, and Mudlarks (an instrumental), are all exce ... (read more)

Report this review (#1478568) | Posted by gbjones | Thursday, October 22, 2015 | Review Permanlink

A cider with a peculiar flavour Big Big Train has a recent history of mostly excellent releases like The Underfall Yard and their masterpiece English Electric. After cranking up English Electric beyond full power, they have not been idle. They are on their way to become a big big band with Ri ... (read more)

Report this review (#1451345) | Posted by someone_else | Tuesday, August 11, 2015 | Review Permanlink

Another fine melodic progressive effort from Big Big Train, who have established themselves these days as one of the best in the business. With the "Wassail" ep, we have 3 solid new songs, plus a live version of "Master James of St. George", from "The Underfall Yard". Of the three new songs, 2 ... (read more)

Report this review (#1432606) | Posted by snelling | Tuesday, June 30, 2015 | Review Permanlink

The 1st June of 2015, "Wassail", the new EP of Big Big Train, came out. Already in 2013, the band released an excellent EP called "Make Some Noise" (the tracks of this EP were released after on the box set "English Electric Full Power". They don't disappoint us with "Wassail". Between the title tra ... (read more)

Report this review (#1422110) | Posted by floflo79 | Monday, June 1, 2015 | Review Permanlink

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