GLASS HAMMER

What a beautiful music. it's purring like balsam on the wounds. Vocal is outstanding (just a sample, how a history repeat itself); organ and bass work is top notch. Entire album is great, but the last 2 songs (about 35 min) especially good - masterpieces of prog rock, no less. More you listen to it, more you like it. Since release of Close to the Edge, a lot of musicians were fascinated and inspired by it. But nobody came so close and did it so well, as Glass Hammer with their last 3 albums. Artwork is remarkable, on a pair with music. It deserves to be at list on cardboard sleeves.

This album is for Yes fans and for all complex symphonic prog lovers. But, if you're not? If it is boring for you, simply DO NOT REVIEW IT. (I'm happen to be don't understand RIO and Zeuhl - I do not review it). When Glass Hammer said "If", it means: If this album would be done by Yes with Anderson vocal, how would you rate it? In other worlds: Is it fair to rate the same music differently, depending on the group name? Because this is Yes at their best in the music, vocal and artwork, plus smooth contemporary production.

Is this "buy or die" album? For those, who want that the song never ends, it is. 5 golden stars.

As I see it... With their last 3 albums, guys tried to bring old Yes sound to new level. And in most songs they succeeded, especially in this album, where strings and chores added more layers to the sound. It sounds very dynamic, powerful and gentle at the same time - "intelligent rock", if you will (I picked up somewhere such a word). It is Symphonic Prog of highest caliber. Thanks to stunning vocal, it's definitely early Yes, but 100% ORIGINAL - and that what matters. The same thing could be said about Agents of Mercy toward to Genesis. Having vocalists so close to Andersen and Gabriel, guys from both groups are enjoying to recreate old sound and carrying it on. When Glass Hammer say "If", it means: If old groups cannot do that anymore, somebody have to do it. It's all about Love and Tradition. Love to our old Prog and carrying on its great Tradition. Thank you, thank you guys for been so brave to do that on a such high level. Please don't give up. Only one complain I have: it's a guy on the cover... I am covering him with my finger right now, and the cover looks way better. Someday, when you will reissue this album in digibook with SACD, please take this "backdoor man" out. 5 shiny stars.

"If" is yet another concept album from Glass Hammer, but what's different here, is that the story is mainly open to interpretation. It is based upon one's search for self meaning, a common theme of prog concept albums. The lyric's are beautifully written, and much more subtle then their previous efforts. Jon Davidson's voice communicate the story rather nicely. There are no tracks that stick out as the "standout", but that is not a bad thing, in fact it makes the album more consistent. What I love about this album, is that the themes are often repeated. Quite often in progressive rock and metal, the themes get lost in the strive for technical showcasing. At times Glass Hammer have been guilty of this (not always) but this album is very consistent due to the emphasis on melodic and rhythmic themes.

Last of all, I want to express my annoyance at the constant comparisons to Yes, no matter how deserving. Yes is to Symphonic Prog as Dream Theatre is to Prog Metal - pioneers of their genre, and it is only natural for a band to acknowledge their influences.

I recommend this album to any fan of any type of progressive music, particularly to fan's of Yes and classic Glass Hammer. Peace!

Their are two downsides to this concert. The first is that I personally would have preferred for the band to have played the full album in it's entirety, and the second is that the picture quality is poor (though this does add charm to the recording). But while the picture quality of the footage is poor, but the sound quality isn't bad. The angles of the footage are good as they give a good idea of the musicianship of the band. What makes this piece of footage so unique and watchable, is how relaxed and happy the band members are playing their music. It makes you feel like you are part of the band.

This performance gets 4 stars. A great companion to the studio album.

I am surprised that this album is not rated into the top 100 prog albums. This is one of my personal favourite albums of all time, but I guess this is just one of those albums that I just instantly loved. The musicianship of the group at this point was incredible, and the blend of driven rock riffs, neo-classical and european folk influences, odd time signatures, jazz chord progressions and mythical storytelling only add to the superb surrealism that the band had set in its early years.

The album is a concept album about a roman soldier's encounter with Jesus. Many may find the concept and storyline of the album overpowering, but it will be very enjoyable to those who are fans of concept albums and who do not mind an underlying christian message. The album is by no means a gospel album; in fact many people claimed it to be overly inspired by the likes of Yes and Genesis. I however think that this album is quite original and I believe that Glass Hammer are the leading prog/symphonic rock band around today.

The whole album is a masterpiece, but I think I prefer the first half of the album. The standout tracks are "Tales of the Great Wars", "One King", "Further Up and Further In" and "When We Were Young". You can buy this album directly from their site and some albums come in package deals, so there is hardly a reason not to buy it. I think that this album would be perfect on vinyl, as it is so obviously split into two sides, so let's hope for a vinyl rerelease!

This album is a great listen and everyone should give it at least a few listens!

Peace!

Am quite happy with this album even though it was quite hard at first spin trying to understand the album until third spin or so. I finally realized the reason why it was quite hard it penetrated into my mind. Yeah, it's basically the preconception that Glass Hammer is a reincarnation of legendary Yes prior to 90125 album. So when I spun the album I always tried to compare every single thing presented here with what Yes dis in the past. Where is the walking basslines like Squire did in vintage Yes? Where is inventive guitar fills like Steve Howe did? Where is the punchy keyboard lines like Wakeman or Moraz (sorry for not to mention Downes) who really characterized the music of Yes? I was trapped by my own definition of reincarnation of Yes. Yes, I could fine vocal similarity of Jon Davison and Jon Anderson even though Jon ANderson is much powerful and clearer. But hey ... Why do I make my own confusing comparison? And then I started the fourth spin.... It relieved me really ....

As I wrote in previous review of Glass Hammer album: "Musically, Cor Cordium is quite simpler than classic Yes albums but the overall composition is really nice. One peculiar thing that I can observe at first spin is the guitar playing style that is different from Steve Howe. As I play the music quite often, I realize that I like this album and in some points I do not really care whether or not this album is like Yes replica" So is with this Perilous album, it's basically in similar vein than Cor Cordium. The good thing about this latest album is that the music flows really nicely from start to end in a seamless fashion or at least I do not really care about the change from one track to another as it flows nicely. So you got my point that the composition handles the transition pieces beautifully. I only paid attention to it when I spun the album and tried to find out the name of the opening track and I found that I was already at track three: The Restless Ones. This is one thing that I need to pinpoint as the beauty of any prog music offering is on the artist handles the transition pieces. If the listeners cannot notice the change to another track that means the composition has very good structural integrity and overall it sounds like a cohesive offering by the band. It happens here with Perilous.

Take an example now when the album arrives at short instrumental track "The Years Were Sped" it introduced with simple acoustic guitar fills that represent the entry of tis track without me having noticed that at the end of the fifth track "We Slept, We Dreamed" there were a very nice choirs that brings the track to the end and finally, smoothy transferred to the short bridge "The Years Were Sped" which demonstrates a very nice instrumental work. The bridge then proves its effectiveness when the succeeding track, even though there is a short break "Our Foe Revealed " which has great and solid bass lines combined with very nice and inventive keyboard solo. Woooow!!! I love this seventh track - especially when I just enjoy the music as Glass Hammer music and no comparison with Yes or whatsoever! In fact if we want to compare with Yes, it surpasses (musically) the quality of any Trevor Rabin era of Yes. So I do not blame any of you who consider Glass Hammer is the reincarnation of Yes as the music is really excellent!!

When Yes toured Asia-Australia and made a gig here in Jakarta in April 24, 2012 at JW Marriott Hotel, during the press conference I stood up made my comments to Jon Davison that I am a big fan of Glass Hammer and liked their Cor Cordium album. Jon was pleased (even though Chris did not seem quite happy with my "out of Yes" comment) with my comments and I really hoped that the next albums would be at par excellent as Cor Cordium. They did! This Perilous album is at least at the same quality as the previous and in fact slight better, I believe.

As I am writing this review I play the album through my iPod and now I am reaching track 8 with no sense of being bored with the music. Yes. I have to admit that overall there is proximity with Yes especially with the Jon Anderson-like vocal style. At the eighth track "Toward Home We Fled" I find guitar fills in a bit complex style like Howe's playing even though it's quite short. But the sounds of organ / keyboards are really good and promising.

Overall I can say this is an excellent addition to any prog music collection with excellent composition and good performance. On composition the music flows nicely from one segment to another with good harmony. Most of tracks have memorable melodies and there are changes in mood and styles throughout the music that make up a dynamic composition. The keyboard / organ plays dominant role even though guitar and bass lines are also contributing quite significant way. It's not something that essentially the same with Yes but there is no harm associating the music with Yes. Look at the ending tracks "The Wolf Gave Chase (1:59) - We Fell At Last (1:56) - In That Lonely Place (6:10) - Where Sorrows Died and Came No More (6:34)" that are really excellent and there is no way to compare with any composition by Yes. It's highly recommended album! Keep on proggin' ...!

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW

The ambitious Tolkien-inspired experiments of the band were long over and with ''Perelandra'' Glass Hammer deal with the second book of C. S. Lewis' Space Trilogy, offering tight, flashy and well-arranged modern Symphonic Rock aking to MAGELLAN, CAIRO and KANSAS.The sound constantly changes from keyboard-driven beautiful instrumental themes with some great solos here and there to smooth and deeper atmospheres with an intense symphonic mood.Often the band delivers some good breaks and monster organ passages, blending the old school Prog with the more modern approach.And there are also some soft acoustic moments to hold things down when needed.The vocal delivery recalls again KANSAS' works, having a typical American approach, and the quite long list of singers helps creating every time the appropriate atmosphere.More importantly all these totally dull ballads of their debut is are thing of the past and the album explores the Prog field all the way through.

Great comeback for Glass Hammer.A more tight concept, definitely more solid musicianship and the better arranged ideas complete a warmy recommended work and the starting point of more interesting records by the band.

It begins with glorious Mellotron, Hammond and ambient atmosphere on 'Beyond, Within' (11:44) and Davison certainly sings beautifully in his high register. It is little wonder he joined Yes in 2012 on their tour, of which I was privileged to see in Melbourne. I like his vocals so I had no problem with his voice on any of these tracks. The lyrics have the searching for God symbolism, "And who does dwell within me, And who does my song call out to, Who looks into my dreaming and makes my visions whole, In infinite creation, So many small infinities, Each singing out their own song, Each one a soul to rise up and take flight".

'Behold The Ziddle' is similar in style with lots of tempo shifts, keyboard dominations and Davison crooning sweetly. The lyrics are poetic with darker meanings, "Through a wintry scene I flee, A murky hollow looms ahead of me, Down I slip and tumble, Torn and bruised I lay humble, Am I lost forevermore in this dark world, Now I only walk the lonely way, Where all is sadness, How dearly I'd love to pray, Yet all is madness".

'Grace The Sky' is a very smooth tranquil track, Davison again peaceful and relaxed, the keys and tempos remaining subdued and organic. The lyrics are as usual replete with Christian symbology, "In sleepwalking society, A youth questions his role to be a pillar, puppet a parasite, Get your head on right, As your heart takes flight, If the bird is free to fly, Then why my soul should I deny, If the bird is free to fly, Then why the wings of my soul should I deny, Oh bird of paradise, Let your colors grace the skies and with courage on your wing rejoice freedom's blessing."

'At Last We Are' is replete with synth, medieval sounding guitars and a steady tempo. Davison sings, "Sing to me a star, Set it in yonder sky, Shining, and guiding me, For I've lost my way before, There in the mist on eastern hill, For I would climb to the sun and then beyond to hear what you might sing, Such was the power of your voice, Oh, that I might hear more." Then it moves to a new time sig and finally ends on a bright tempo and Anderson flawless on passionate vocals, with an even higher vocal, almost sounding like the 5 octave vocals of Annie Haslam.

'If The Stars' is a lengthy piece at 10:25, that opens with a steady percussion, chimes, and grand swirling synths. It builds steadily and features scintillating lead guitars, soft vocals and meandering Mellotron. The lyrics have intriguing imagery based on the Bible; Phillip or James, "If the stars should then appear, One night in a thousand years, How would man believe and adore, If the light of the city of God was shown there, Would they believe?, If the stars should then appear, One night in a thousand years."

'If The Sun' is a mammoth epic clocking 24 minutes, in the traditional prog epic length. Since I only have the version without this I can't comment. However, this is one of the greater Glass Hammer albums with some of their best vocals. The lyrics, the musicianship and the overall atmosphere are symphonic prog bliss.

Here we have a concept album (not unfamiliar territory for GH) which is based on what happens when we walk through the gates into the cemetery beyond, and start a journey which can be 'Perilous'. The album kicks off with a string section, that leads into a fairly length instrumental introduction to "The Sunset Gate". This shows to me that Steve and Fred really know who their listeners are, and that they will be ready to spend the time and invest in what is going to be a great listening experience instead of looking for a quick fix hook or bridge. Long before the vocals started, the guitars and keyboards have struck an intense relationship with influences from classic prog bands abounding. An important thing to mention here is that while Glass Hammer have been influenced by the classic groups of the seventies, they are not just plain plagiarists but instead are doing something new while also casting a look back to what has gone before.

There is no doubt that Jon Davidson has a very similar vocal style to Jon Anderson, that is why he has been chosen to replace him after all is said and done, but these guys are not Yes clones. One of the most effective songs on the album is "In That Lonely Place" which starts with classical guitar and vocals from Amber Fults which takes the music in a totally different direction and even when Jon joins in the duet he sings in a different way to normal. Yes, the mellotrons come in to add backing but this is all about simplicity and context; prog doesn't need to be bombastic and multi-layered to be incredibly effective. Maybe now that Glass Hammer are gaining more recognition thanks to the Yes connection they will become well known to a much wider audience. This album certainly provides the basis for being able to do that. www.glasshammer.com

The big Hammond sound gloriously dominates "Empty Space and Revealer" with Mellotron swathes and steel guitar cascading over piano.

"An Eldritch Wind" is ambient and spacey with some relaxed vocals, not the greatest that Glass Hammer will experience but adequate. There are beautiful textures of autoharp, electric piano, and a steady percussion.

"Revelation/ Chronometry" is the big ELP happy organ sound, unmistakeable with complex 'Tarkus' ferocity and intricate 'Karn Evil 9' delirium all rolled up into a glorious package. The organ is incredible from Fred Schendel and it really is his show piece. There are nice sliding guitar tones from the incomparable Arjen Lucassen too. There are more vocals eventually from Brad Marler that are more unwelcome than embraced as they are rather toneless. I do like the bass heartbeat on this.

"Chronotheme" has a fantastic rhythm section with lashings of heavy guitar riffing. The Hammond runs are off the scale and then spacey synth takes over on another highlight of the album, an instrumental.

"A Perfect Carousel" is the acoustic ballad, another carbon copy of Lake's style. The vocals are actually better but still lack that emotion necessary, and they seem to get worse the more the song progresses. It has a pretty melody especially the acoustics. The synthesizer solo is not Emerson by a long shot but still satisfactory.

"Chronos Deliverer" is very dramatic, majestic and has the angelic choral vocals of Susie Bogdanowicz, Jamie Watkins, and Sarah Snyder. The spacey synths are backed by soaring lead guitar tones. It even throws in Vivaldi as the music builds to a crescendo.

"Shapes Of The Morning" is another instrumental with a ton of electric piano, swooping synths, fast fingered organ and pounding drums. The lead guitar soars beautifully with virtuoso playing. It is perhaps the best track as Brad Marler shuts up!

"Chronoverture" is an instrumental that begins with minimalist piano beautifully played, joined by cathedral organ. It explodes into Emerson territory and a striking quick tempo locks in. I like the shimmering Hammond and the way the lead guitar chimes in. It is a show pony for Fred Schendel who is stunning on keyboards. The way the tempo shifts is a fabulous touch on this definitive highlight.

"The Waiting" is the return of those horrid vocals, but the Hammond tries to drown them out without success. Symphonic strings herald the melody and staccato blasts of bass and drums are effective. It is a heavier song with dark synth tones and pounding percussion. "Watching The Sky" is a dumb short piece of weirdness driven by minimalist drums, whistles, and flutes.

Overall this album lacks a great deal, although there are some inspired moments. It has a weird concept about aliens calling from the netherverse while a guy plays a prog rock album, but it matters not. The vocals are the worst thing about it but it has some wonderful instrumental sections, and thankfully many tracks are devoid of any vocals. I would certainly not recommend it as a starting point because Glass Hammer are capable of so much more.