THE TOWER

I think this is MOTORPSYCHO's first concept record since "The Death Defying Unicorn", but I could be wrong. A double cd but thankfully they are old school at 42 and 43 minutes in length respectively. I gotta say I gave up on this band at one point, they just weren't my thing and then all these glowing reviews for "The Death Defying Unicorn" and I bit and I'm so glad I did. They changed again after that one to what I call psychedelic sunshine styled music with those high pitched vocals and uplifting sound. Thankfully they haven't given up on adding some heaviness at times. So from 2012 to 2017 this band has hit my sweet spot. Albums like "Still Life With Eggplant", "Behind The Sun", "Here Be Monsters" and this one "The Tower" are all top notch in my books. I was surprised to hear the drummer Kenneth Kapstad left after "Here Be Monsters". He has his side projects for sure like MOSTER! and SPIDERGAWD" and other stuff keeps this talented drummer busy. A trio here with a guest who adds vocals to one track, guitar to two tracks and flute to another. Some very cool pictures in the liner notes. They divide the story into four sections with tracks 1-3 being the opening section followed by tracks 4-6 then 7, 8 before the closing section of songs 9 and 10.

So much good music on here and the opener is one of my favourite tunes on here called "The Tower". A quiet start but it does turn heavy before a minute. So good! Vocals follow. An interesting change at 3 1/2 minutes as we get this urgent rhythm section with guitar over top and no vocals. Check out those keyboards too. Just ripping it up until around 6 1/2 minutes when a calm arrives. "Intrepid Explorer" is another highlight. This one is different as it opens dark yet mellow. Reserved vocals just before a minute. It's getting fuller at 2 1/2 minutes then it settles back with bass only as guitar and drums join in. So good as it builds. This is intense like ELEPHANT9. Big fan of "In Every Dream Home(There's A Dream Of something Else)" especially the lyrics but this one has some heaviness that I like as well. Disc two isn't as strong in my opinion. I like the mellotron-like sounds early on "The Cuckoo" then the heaviness arrives. Vocals just before a minute. Nice guitar solo follows as vocals step aside. Killer section from after 5 minutes to after 11 minutes on the closer "Ship Of Fools".

4 stars seems perfect for me. This is a keeper along with the others by them that I have mentioned.