PERFECT BEINGS

Perfect Beings is a young band from the United States, conceived back in 2012 when Johannes Lulley and Ryan Hurtgen joined forces aiming to create a new project which would share their love for classic progressive rock, made with fresh ideas and a let-s say-modern sound. And in 2014 they released this debut album entitled Perfect Beings, which gives the prog rock listener 10 songs and 52 minutes of great music.

It opens with "The Canyon Hill", which honestly is like a short pop track that introduces us to the album. The first two minutes are not that great, later it becomes a bit better but it is far from being a gem, of course. "Helicopter" is another short song but much more attractive to my ears. Though there is still a catchy sound, the progressive rock elements are evident here due to the use of keyboards and guitars that show a touch of neo prog with a modern style. With "Bees and Wasps" they now sound big. This is a wonderful composition that starts with a nervous piano and somber strings and drums; after a minute the atmosphere is brighter and the rhythm becomes catchy again, but this time they begin to build up a structure that will give us truly interesting passages. I like the bass, I am not sure but it might be a Rickenbacker; later they use some electronic vocals and with guitar they create a kind of chaos that lasts for some seconds because later the brighter moments return, including a pretty nice mellotron passage accompanied by piano.

A 9-minute track comes next with "Walkabout", a song that blends folk with symphonic rock. The sound is pretty mellow, the voice is sweet and the music easy to dig. I think the first three minutes are just ok but then it progresses, becomes a bit more intense and to my ears, much more interesting. A nice blend of Yes-Genesis-The Flower Kings sound can be perceived here, of course without being a copycat, no, it is the original sound developed by Perfect Beings. "Removal of the Identity Chip" has a soft sound, guitars a-la Steve Howe and again a very sweet voice, but I think at least in this song, that I prefer the instrumental passages, mainly the last minute with that amazing guitar solo.

"Program Kid" has again a mellow sound, closer to a pop song with a slow start. After a minute drums and bass join and make it a bit more interesting, however, I've never felt so attracted by this track in spite of its more intense and loony second part; but that's just me, you, reader, might find the beauty I couldn't find. The next one is "Remmands of Shields" has a pastoral sound made by acoustic guitar, reminding me a bit of Wonderous Stories. This is yet another catchy tune that is pretty nice and dreamy, but that is far from making me falling in love with. The first 10 seconds of "Fictions" reminded me of Gates of Delirium, but later that sound vanished and vocals enter with a catchy sound saying "Far Away, I'm Far Away", I must point out that they have a great use of backing vocals, and they know how to seduce the listener with that Yes-like guitars. This is without a doubt a vintage song enchanted with a modern sound.

"Primary Colors" is a short track whose keyboards sound at first caused me a great impression, however seconds later the song becomes again smooth, catchy, and friendly; the adventurous moments that I would expect simply don't come. The album finishes with "One of your Kind", the longest composition of the album. I believe the guitar has been definitely my favorite instrument of the whole album, I love that Howe-inspired sound on Johannes Luley and in this track it also has its own Spanish guitar passage, just before the song explodes and the best part of the whole album begins. Lush keyboards, excellent bass lines and a fast and adventurous instrumental passage. I wish they would have added more of this through the album.

Perfect Beings released a pretty nice debut, however I cannot hide I never felt as excited as I wished while listening to it. However, they are talented and of course I would like to recommend their music to my readers, especially those who are fans from Yes and The Flower Kings.

Enjoy it!

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