Spoilsport

 

''Nice to see you see you nice''

 

''Just like that''

 

''Betty''

 

..anyway out of Snow,Feel Euphoria and V I would say the last one gets my vote.

 

The Kindness Of Strangers and Snow are also quite excellent. They've sadly yet to blow me away since Neal left. They are making progress, but the rate of progress is becoming baby steps at the largrest.

I must admit to a bit of a nostalgia factor in my vote, as The Light was the first modern symph-prog album I ever listened to.  Hearing the title track for the first time absolutely blew my mind and it's probably the reason I got as into prog as I did. 

 

Snow is the worst of the Morse era.  It's barely progressive at all.  And the concept seems like a ripoff of The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway.

That really doesn't make it worse.  Although I do think that SB is at their best when they are progressive, Snow has some incredible non-prog moments.

That said, major parts of their first disc, and probably most of their second disc, are extremely progressive, as good as any of their long songs.  Just because it's doled out in shorter segments doesn't make material like "All Is Vanity" any less progressive.  As for it being a ripoff of The Lamb...I don't think so, even if it's obviously influenced by it.  Yes, it takes place in the streets of New York, but the music, concept (sort of), and presentation are all completely different.  It actually reminds me much more of Savatage's Streets: A Rock Opera, but that one might have been inspired by The Lamb Lies Down as well.

Anyway, Snow is my personal favorite album of all time, like the poster above me, but for their best...

V, X, and The Light, in that order.  Here's why:

V: Just consistent all the way through.  There's not a song on here that doesn't work or isn't appropriately placed, and the bookends are a couple of the best songs this band has ever written.  The album also covers everything that makes the Beard great--it's quirky, it's ambitious, it's serious, it's beautiful.  You have moments like "All on a Sunday," which is extremely playful and accessible.  But then you have "The Great Nothing," which, on top of being progressive, is just epic.  In spite of how huge it is, I've never felt it was weighed down by its own size; the parts fit together nicely and it never loses my attention.  "Thoughts pt. II" is rightly called out as one of the best.  It's such a blissful listening experience, and its only flaw is that it's too short. Also love the underrated Revelations.  I'm lucky this was my first Beard album.

X: Alright, I haven't given this much time and I still think it's one of the best things the band has ever done.  Let me explain.  As far as I'm concerned, there are three songs on here which blow away  much of the Beard's catalog: "Edge of the in-Between," "The Quiet House," and "Jaws of Heaven."  The first of these is upbeat and catchy, as an opener should be, but infused with much more energy than most of the band's openers.  "The Quiet House" is pretty damn heavy throughout, but boasts a memorable soft part, and it's busy enough that it demands that the listener hit the repeat button just to catch all the angles the song takes.  And "Jaws of Heaven," one of the most pretentious things the band has ever written, lives up to its over-the-top concept an lyrics by shifting focus and mood while still staying tethered to its central musical themes.  I really think this might be the band's best epic, even better than "The Light," "The Doorway," and "The Great Nothing."  High praise, but this is a song that has to be heard to be believed.

As for the other stuff, well..."The Emperor's Clothes" and "The Man Behind the Curtain" are fun, so no complaints. "Their Names Escape Me" is alright, but unlike many people, I think the song really tapers off in quality once Nick starts naming people.  I haven't listened to "Kamikaze" and "From the Darkness" intently enough to have an opinion on them, but the rest of the album is so good that even if they're weak, I'd still place this album as The Beard's second-best.  The top three songs are just that good, and the three "medium-quality" ones are as good as any of the shorter Morse-era songs.

The Light: I'll get straight to the point: the title track and track number 3, "The Water," are real highlights for me.  "The Light" moves seamlessly from theme to theme in a way that the band's never really improved on; this might be one of their most dynamic pieces of music and you can really tell they charged out of the gate with this one.  It alone is well worth the price of this album.  "The Water" is more quiet and contemplative, and also less unified.  I could easily see it being divided into separate tracks.  But the point is that it works as a longer epic.

"Go the Way You Go" is just okay.  It justifies the symphonic prog label and it's consistent.  It's not grating.  But to me it just serves to bridge the gap between the title track and the other highlight, without standing out much on its own.  "On the Edge" is decent, but Spock's Beard would write better "catchy" songs later, and even if stuff like "Skin" was less progressive, it's a better quick fix.  I'd go so far as to say that compared to the other three tracks, "On the Edge" sounds like filler.

...okay, that was probably too long.  Sorry.

Haha, thanks.  I might have been too hard on Snow and it probably shouldn't be left off the list...X, The Light, and Snow are so close together for me that on any given day of the week my opinion on their order could vary.  Since Snow is my personal favorite, though, I was a little harder on it when trying to be objective.  It's an essential Neal-era recording, and so probably more important than X.

I really do think V is the best of the Neal era, though, mostly because it's just one of the most consistently high-quality musical albums I've ever heard, and at the same time it boasts variety.  I have to be in a certain mood to listen to X or even Snow, whereas V should have something for everyone at every time.  The only reason I don't listen to it much anymore is because I wore it out in my first few months of owning it.  In time, though, I'll probably be listening to it on a daily basis again. 

Snow and The Light are good, but I just don't think they're as consistent, though there's not a moment of Snow I'd change.

My favorites are probably Snow, V, and The Light, in that order.  I'd need to give X more time (and I'd need to listen more to From the Darkness) before I added it to that list.

 

In this case, it does.

 

While it does have some very good music on it, it also has some boring stretches.

 

Octane

 

Spock's Beard LIve

 

X

 

Snow

 

V

 

Thats it really

 

You've found an ally in me.... Yep, "Beware of Darkness". Fantastic album!

I still rate it lower than "The Light" though, but not that far.

 

I got fed up with SB after "Snow"... but it might just be me, so don't pay too much attention.

I just happen to prefer their earlier works a lot more than whatever came afterwards. It's called 'personal taste'.

But V is a monster in my opinion, so well done and emotional. Also i'm a big fan of The Light, Beware Of Darkness and The Kindness Of Strangers.

as I`ve only started listening to the NM post era in the last few weeks... I`m with you now?

V 

The Light

X

Brief Nocturnes has some killer material on it. (Submerged is an awful pop drek song though) Might be #4 on my list. I was never able to really get into Snow but I'm due to revisit it. The other albums have some great songs (The Doorway is amazing) but the albums overall don't hold up for me. I listened to Feel Euphoria a few months ago after literally not hearing it in years and was completely unimpressed.