DEEP REEF DREAM

1. "Things Inside" (5:32) I just love the melodic sensibilities of these songwriters/performers. The bass sound is primo/number one as are the guitarist's creative chord-play. The vocals and lyrics are a bit mundane and the music spans an odd spectrum from pop jazzy to 1980s heavy metal (when the vocalist sounds like Sammy Hagar). (8.75/10)

2. "Parthenon" (3:26) a snappy, melodic, prog instrumental. Nice to hear such multi-layered structure with a central contribution of violin. A top three song for me. (8.75/10)

3. "Tijuana Sunset" (3:56) if Jean-Luc Ponty and Rush were to have collaborated with Herb Alpert. Hard-drivin' jazz- rock fusion. Nice axe solo in the third minute. In the end, a little too jam-formatted. Still loving this bass! (8.75/10)

4. "Smee" (2:10) nice atmospheric soundtrack music. Love the submersive bass and airy vocalise. (4.5/5)

5. "Psyclops" (5:01) a walk on the band's heavier side. Nice composition with fair vocals and lyrical message--and that gets better as the song progresses (despite sounding a bit 1980s-familiar in the instrumental fourth and fifth minutes). Impressive drumming. Violin is back with a great solo in the third minute. Heavy prog is really much better with violins. (8.75/10)

6. "Underwater Cigarettes" (0:54) familiar piano motif with multiple effects. (4.25/5)

7. "Deep Reef Dream" (5:53) opens like MAROON FIVE's "Sunday Morning" before turning trip-hop smooth jazzy. Very pretty, melodic, and chill. Nicely layered and developed instrumental. One of my top three songs. (8.75/10)

8. "Mr. Pippy" (1:54) carnival sounds turn to BLUE NILE-like late-night stargazer. Again, welcome sound contribution of the violin. (4.75/5)

9. "Big Beef" (8:32) opens like a bit of a Mexican metal band (CAST) before moving into territory that is more akin to a cross between PAIN OF SALVATION, DEF LEPPARD, and TOTO. This is where plastic-skinned drums show their weakness. In the third minute the music moves more into the atmospheric realms of Prog Metal before returning to the main motif--this time adding violin to the weave. The instrumental passage in the sixth-through-ninth minutes (the second half of the song) is very pleasing--almost hypnotic in a MOTORPSYCHO Death-Defying Unicorn-kind of way. (Love the reverbed trumpet!) What started out as a suspiciously generic metal song turned into something quite good. An excellent way to end an album! (18/20)

Total time: 37:18

I do love the sounds and stylings chosen by bass player Chris Lyons as well as the lushly melodic song structures created by the band as a whole. These boys are, in my opinion, gifted. Unfortunately, none of the music here is really ground-breaking and a lot of it feels rushed, as if the band could have developed these B-plus-grade songs into A-levels had they really put in the extra time and effort. While I thoroughly enjoy this album, it is, unfortunately, a little bit of a let down after the band's superlative 2020 release, The Pseudo-Scientific Study of Oceanic Neo- Cryptid Zoology.

B+/4.5 stars; an excellent addition to any prog lover's music collection.