THE BRIDGE

After finally hearing Stained Class Stories in all its' derivative splendour, i couldn't wait to get to this album. Monsterhead starts off promising - acoustic guitar ... then Anglagard with an American singer ? Did King Crimson dump their out-takes on Cathedral with the proviso that they not be as heavy as recent KC output ? O.K. , skip that one. Satellite ... gets me thinking that I'm sure I've heard of a Neo-prog group by that name. There is one. That fact is about the only thing that stands out for this song. ANd yes, likely it's unintended, but it does come off like Neo. Bad Neo. All synth washes, and guitar solos & fills with heavy doses of delay. I'm starting to notice that often, the mellotron or synths seem to appear regularly almost as backing vocals on much of the singing - da da de da da synth wash ... Hollins - and today students, we'll apply our textbook theory and build a modern prog composition. Your recent case studies of Neo-prog, Swedish scene, and mellotron should provide you ample material to construct a passing grade tune. Kudos to those who have come up with the idea of inserting the word angular while playing Anglagard like passages. Kithara Interludium - now class, one of the standard components of a Prog album is the inclusion of an acoustic or classical guitar composition. It is never a bad idea to include overt & covert melodic ideas from some of the classical canons' best melodies. You may want to refer to Steve Howe's occasional forays into this field to come up with ideas. Now unlike Mr. Howe, I will not expect you to introduce other musical genres into your playing. Angular World - did I mention that they use the word angular at the same time that they play an angular melody ? The Lake - the bottom of which this CD is going to end up in. Why would they bother ripping off So era Gabriel and do it this badly ? The Secret - is that their next album will be a self financed vanity project. If I touch your lips with my fingertips, hush my child, we'll just dream a while. And I'd given up on seeing signs of originality ! Truly, for those who enjoyed the debut, and might be looking at picking this up, do yourself a favour - choose an Anglagard album, or go to Pendragon's Pure. Sometimes, memories are best left alone.