MR. SO & SO

Well, who exactly are Mr So & So? To answer that you have to go back to 1991 when they released the cassette 'Thoughts of Fear & Principle' (yep, still got my copy), which was recorded at Pagan Media. Steve Paine saw promise in this group of young lads and offered them a deal, and a year later they released their first CD 'Paraphernalia'. What made these guys so very different to the rest of the prog bands around was that not only were they all extremely talented at a young age, but also that their sound was based around bass/guitar interplay as opposed to keyboards. Drummer Leon Parr and keyboard player Kieran Twist were great musicians, but it was guitarist Dave Foster and bassist/singer Shaun 'Magoo' McGowan that gave them the edge.

The next album was 'Compendium' where the band became a five-piece with the addition of another singer in Charlotte Evans. It was about this time that I saw the band play live for the first time, supporting John Wetton, and they had their slot cut short as they were going down so well! Steve Rothery entered the story at this point, and he signed the band to his own label for their next album 'The Overlap' and they found themselves as the support act for Marillion on their 'This Strange Engine' tour (I caught them at Shepherd's Bush Empire and they were just stunning). But, the album wasn't ready in time for the tour and in 2000 the decision was taken to fold the band. Dave, Charlotte and Leon formed Sleeping Giant (whose album 'Primates' is well worth grabbing if you can find it) and played some gigs (I managed to catch them support Karnataka, and there is no doubt in my mind who should have been supporting who). But, in 2005 Dave and Shaun met, and after some discussions started playing music together again. Charlotte became involved and the decision was taken to resurrect Mr So & So. Kieran and Leon weren't available, but they managed to find replacements in Anthony Hindley (keys/vocals) and Stuart Browne (drums).

And so, in 2009 they released 'Sugarstealer'. To say I was nervous when playing this for the first time was something of an understatement. Back in the Nineties Dave and I often spoke to each other, I had travelled many miles to see them in gigs, I had even given a flexi of theirs away in 'Feedback', and these days we were friends on Facebook! What would I do if I didn't like it?

Luckily that was never an issue. From the first note it was just like old times, yet way more polished and mature. I did sometimes use to have a concern with how Charlotte would be able to make room for herself in a band so tightly musically dominated by Magoo and Dave, but here the balance is just right. There are passages where Charlotte is absent, or just providing backing vocals, and others where she is centre stage ? it is all about balance. I remember Bill Bruford saying that he once received a songwriting credit in King Crimson for a song where he didn't play ? his decision to be absent made the song what it was, and that is the same here. The guys have grown up and there is no need for anyone to be wrestling to be above anyone else, it is all about the end result.

There really is no prog band that sounds like these guys, they have taken the normal prog influences, added Tool, FNM, The Police, Zappa and a while load of others to create a sound that is truly and uniquely their own. They are touring again now, and will be supporting Marillion again in Europe (you lucky, lucky people) with plans to have a new album available at the beginning of 2013.

I should have reviewed this three years ago (and thought I had, honest) ? but here it is now. This is a five star album from a five star band. Welcome back guys. www.mrsoandso.com

There are some good moments on this album, and when they are good, they are very good. There are also, unfortunately, some throwaway moments, and the decision really is whether these are enough to put off the potential buyer's interest in exploring them further.

I think the first thing I should clearly point out is that you should not be fooled by the Prog Archives sub genre label of neo-prog. This is, at best, crossover prog, and really prog related in parts if I am to be honest. Mr So & So, on this evidence, are a good mellow rock band with prog tendancies. Sure, there are sections where prog influences are heard, Marillion being the obvious one, certainly as far as David Foster's guitar work and Kieran Twist's keyboards are concerned, which have Rothery and Kelly admiration stamped all over them. Regrettably, they are not as good as the masters, but that would, in this listener's eyes, be next to impossible anyway.

The album opener is truly shocking. Metaphor is a mess of a post indie track, meandering into a welcome conclusion, and this is dangerous as it might put off many from exploring further.

Thankfully, the band redeem themselves in the wonderful, gentle, prog layered Spacewalk, where Foster especially is on very good form.

The throwaway label reasserts itself with Drowners, another meandering track featuring at its heart Kieran Twist's early Mark Kelly impersonation on keyboards, whilst Shaun McGowan reminds me very much of a New Romantic singer whose name is infuriatingly beyond me. Far too light to be anything other than an interesting diversion, it is pleasant, certainly, but instantly forgettable.

Isn't It Amazing is basically a pop rock single that is fun, but, again, throwaway.

The opening riff to Subterfuge offers a very welcome change of pace and direction. McGowan, at last, provides us with evidence that he is a rock singer, and the band sound far more convincing as a unit on a track which reminds me of a couple of the more thoughtful tracks from Holidays In Eden with the contrasts between rock, pop, and prog inside the eight minutes available, with all the time signature changes that description suggests. There are also some nice cello effects (unless there was an uncredited real thing at work!). All in all, a good rock track with rich prog undertones.

This welcome tone continues in the shorter Salamander, featuring some excellent vocal interplay between McGowan and the backing vocalist, Charlotte Evans, on the chorus. The latter also, for the first time on the album, comes into her own with a lush vocal solo, but the track is especially memorable because of Twist's rich keyboard layers both overlaying and leading the riffs. On the first few listens, this is very misleading in its apparent simplicity, because it is actually a very clever and well performed rock song.

The title track has God himself guest performing. Naturally, Rothery is instantly recognisable, and this is a piece of music as good as the opener is bad. Whilst it is clearly written at the same juncture in the band's development, The Overlap has an urgency and emotion palpably missing from Metaphor, and for the first time you hear Leon Parr's drums and McGowan's bass leading rather than following the action.

The best is saved until last. Coup De Grace is precisely that, an epic eight minute plus track which commences with some extremely dark, and extremely good, vocal effects and harmonies, backed by a heavy, lingering synth. The changes of mood in this piece of music are exceptional, it is extremely well performed, and is a joy to listen to. Twist excels on piano and keys, and we hear far more of Evans, and she adds so much to McGowan's feeling, melancholic vocals. The symphonic passages on the chorus are brilliantly performed. in conclusion, this is a glorious prog rock track which manages that difficult trick of pulling you in and back out emotionally.

This is a good album overall. Criticisms are that Evans is criminally underused, because when she is allowed to express herself, she shines. More of her, please. When the album plods, it plods badly. However, what we used to call side two reasserts this album in a very strong fashion, almost an act of redemption, and to return to my earlier query about wishing to explore further, then the answer is a clear yes. The concluding track and Spacewalk, especially, are amongst the best I have from this period.

Three stars. A good album that I would heartily recommend.

Well i find this work so ...so...regular.

This work has nothing to do with Pallas or It Bites...completely different.

This is not neo-prog is nearly crossover prog ..in the line of other bands that try to create a modern prog rock.

This is modern ..but in my opinion not good crossover prog.

A collection of modern pop rock prog songs ..but with average short songs in the line of the crossover prog..but in comparison to Pineapple Thief or Big Big Train works ... remembering best crossover modern prog in their latest albums ...this album is mediocre .

I haven t listened yet their other albums but if the were similar to Pallas or It Bites I think they should return to those inspirations .

The album starts with two small epics. The first is ok with overall the same level of quality as the debut maybe slightly better. let's say a 3,25* case. Next composition is a lot more interesting especially in the second half where they do an excellent Marillion imitation for about one minute (around 8:00 mark), rest of the song is not Marillion at all I believe, more like early Pendragon like I said in my first review. This is mainly caused by the vocalist who sounds a lot like Nick Barrett, typical British, I really like these kind of vocals and accents. This second mini-epic scores around 3,75* to me. Third song could as well have been on the debut and is a typical 3* effort. Next is already the third very long song and at the end two more are following so at least where these mini-epics are concerned this album is pretty impressive. And I have to admit none of these 5 songs is sloppy, poor or even average. Fifth and sixth song are two short ones again and these are both again around 3 stars composition and quality wise. Good songs but no more. Sixth is an instrumental by the way again sounding like Marillion in the beginning doing the Mosley impersonation. Last two mini-epics are sounding ok once again for the first one and a half bit but then we come to the second half of last song The Visitor. Goodness me, that's where they got the positive reviews from no doubt. What a terrific guitar display we are treated with here. Best few minutes of the entire album without a doubt.

So there we have the explanation for all the enthusiasm. With such a grand finale you leave this album with an almost ecstatic feeling and you're indeed tempted to give a four star rating. But looking at the whole album a bit more critically I can only conclude the other 64 minutes are somewhere between good and very good where quality level is concerned. So I wouldn't want to call this an overall excellent album. But it's no doubt better than the debut and comes a lot closer to a four star rating. I'll leave it at three though (3,4).

And that's in fact the story of the whole album I can say after hearing it a couple of times. This is nice neo prog but nothing really mindblowing. The vocals are average and sound typical British, the keyboards are more dominant with this band than the guitar. Third song Again starts with a captivating Pan Pipe melody but I must admit that this is the most outstanding bit of the whole album. On the other hand there are no sad fillers here, each song is at least worth while listening to and that can not be said of every album I heard in my life, so that's always an important plus.

But because all songs are in between 2,75 and 3,5 stars the final outcome for Paraphernalia can only be three stars. Nice debut. By the way, the band sounds a bit like eighties Pendragon, probably their biggest influence.

Lead vocalist and excellent bassist Shaun McGowan should be singled out for his superb vocals and original bass lines. Wouldn't be surprised if he eventually has a solo career or appears as a session player, he's that talented. The rest of the band has its chops, but unfortunately the flat recording dilutes their efforts to a certain extent.

I fisrt came across this band in the mid-1990s when I was initially getting back into prog in a big way, sadly wish they were still around as they were the band I often used as a example for friends to have them hear that "prog ain't dead."

And even if you're not a fan of neo-prog (I'm generally not), this album offers alot. The 11- minute + Tick-A-Box is, quite simply, one of the most exciting prog tracks recorded since the 70s. Superb musicianship, monster keyboards, and the most out-in-front bass since Chris Squire. Other highlights include Primrose and The Missionary.

Highly recommended.