V

Spock's Bear is a highly acclaimed prog. band of the nineties and V is probably their most praised album.It contains first class musicianship for sure, each musician is a master of his instrument. The voice of Neal Morse is not that great IMHO, but it's OK and neither are his lyrics what are a bit silly sometimes(Especially on The Great Nothing and All on a Sunday ). The band surely has some talent for multi layered vocals , ThoughtsPt II is the best example for that. SB are skilled musicians and they have a good ear for melody, but they music lacks imagigation and deeper emotions based on my more than three years experience with this album. The first three tacks are my favourites on the album. At the End of the Day is the most enjoyable piece, despite its length it does not get boring, it features various styles quite well integrated and some truly good choruses. The second half is a letdown. All on a Sunday and Goodbye to Yesterday are good pop songs, but nothing really more. The Great Nothing is a very long track, but unfortunately it's not a good one. This is where the mentioned weak points of the band are the most obvious. Overall this is a pleasant album, but it hardly moves me(except the opening track and Thoughts Pt IIand some parts of Revelation). It is the only SB album I have.Sometimes it feels good listening to it, but it does not make me hungry for more SB albums and neither do the samples I've heard so far. Good but non essential, it's worth giving a spin to it.