THE OLD MAN AND THE SPIRIT

Beyond the Bridge hail from the home of the Berlin Wall, the hamburger and Ludwig van Beethoven. From what I've read, they've actually been around since 1999, although they were originally under the name "Fallout". I think they're new name sounds more imaginative. "The Old Man and the Spirit" is a concept album that had been in the works for five years until its first studio recording in 2008. It was not completed until 2011. The time it took was worth it. The instrumentals are fantastic, though never overdone. The vocals are wonderful, and the trading off between male and female singers adds a lot of feeling and color that helps to drive the plot of the album forward. This is an excellent album. I loved it at first listen, and then repeated it four or five times within the next few weeks. I found it hard to stop listening to it. The album's plot reminds me of Ebenezer Scrooge a bit. It's like a diary at times. There are two main characters, the old man, played by Herbie Langhans, and the Spirit, played by Dilenya Mar. The Spirit expresses lyrical wisdom to share with the Old Man in exchange for his feelings and experiences to answer all of his questions. Her wisdom eventually guides him to the meaning of life. The style is a wonderful mix of classic Prog, 80's metal, Thrash at times, and Classical. This is a masterpiece.