TESTIMONY

I was not really "into" Spock's Beard music when Neal Morse was there for reason that was not logical at all. Basically I did not like how the music of Spock's Beard flow from one segment to another as it did not sound natural to my ears and my mind. I was also aware that Neal's voice was not bad at all but I did not really favor the way he sung therefore I did not really admire the band's early albums. After Neal Morse left the band, I started liking the Spock's Beard's music especially when "Octane" was released. The band was in limbo to strive for new frontman and composer but they were okay with their life without Neal.

As for Neal's solo I did not really expect that he was going to release an album as I understood from some friends that Neal would focus his life on religion activities. This album shocked the prog world at that time or at least right here in my country. Most of my friends who admire Neal's tenure with The Beard were surprised and very happy with the release of this album. I was not interested at all to buy this CD even though most of them told me that it's worth owning this album. Having owned "One" and "?" albums which both sound good to me, it's kind of weird of not having this "Testimony" album. But I'm quite reluctant with the double CD for merely listening to Neal's music and voice. It's gonna be boring, I think. Finally, I purchased it anyway. The first time I spun the CD, it did not attract me but it grew with number of spins. Most of the time, I get bored with the first CD and not willing to continue with CD 2. I still got trouble with the flow of the music which sounds to me like being forced like this way.

Why Liking this Album?

Storyline. I believe some people adore an album with strong storyline, which is the case with Neal's "Testimony". As a person who believes in God, I always admire people who can make a music with orientation towards God and how human being behave in their relation to God and other lives. For this, I don't need to talk about prog or rock music, even I also love other kind of music which has an orientation about God. Neal seems quite serious with the storyline as it can be heard clearly right from the beginning of his story with a thought provoking title "The land of beginning again" (3:10). Through this opening track he conveys a message if we can start it all over again with totally new life where all the bad things we have done are truly gone.

He then brings his story through a journey with music with "Overture no. 1" (5:58) which then leads to his praise on God's grace through following track "California nights" (5:46) where he says "IT's ONLY BY THE GRACE OF GOD THAT I AM STILL ALIVE!" . well, you bet, Mr. Morse! And the story goes on his life journey and his relationship with God until his praise "Cause you are / You are the tongues of angels / And you are / You are the winds of time / That's what you are / The soul that feeds my freedom ." ini his ending part of the story "Oh lord my God" (3:54) at CD 2.

Composition. Of course, one of Neal's strengths is his virtuosity in composing his music. From the opening until the end you might find the variety of styles he presents through "Testimony" even though some of them are not new and very similar with Spoc's Beard music during his tenure. You might find at Disc One track 8 "The promise" (2:52) which has proximity with Gentle Giant's choir. It's really nice and it reminds me to the music of early Spock's Beard. He combines segments with complex arrangements and those with simple ones which comprise acoustic guitar and / or piano. My favorite track which has excellent composition is track 10 of Disc One: "Overture no. 2". Oh yes, it proves that Neal Morse is a good composer.

Why (you are) NOT Liking this Album?

It's hard to believe a progger that does not like this album because it offers variety of styles as well as changing tempo from one song to another or even in between music segments. But I can understand that some people do not favor the kind of music that Neal delivers because I also experienced it myself. If this is the case, it's a matter of taste only. But frankly, I cannot find any way to dislike this album.

Conclusion

It's definitely a concept album with grandiose design, composed with rich textures. It favors those of you who can appreciate music album with strong storyline and well-crafted composition. The only caveat, probably, is that you might get bored listening to the story with double CDs (or even three CDS!). Keep on proggin' ..!

"Oh You are my soul, You are my soul. Thank You."

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