BETWEEN SUNLIGHT AND SHADOW

A much better release than Color of Space, Singularity pares it down to a trio and lays down a very listenable concept album. Singularity loses the Geddy clone and finds a voice of it's own. Guitarist Matt Zafiratos, Keyboardist John Green and Drummer Jamie McGregor share vocals chores and have a strong resembalance to the vocals in Timothy Pure. This change of voice gives the album a stronger Pink Floyd influence, however flashes of their Rush inspiration shine through. The musicality is soft and flowing, with one chunky portion, "Inferno" that rocks but doesn't pound.

Between Sunlight and Shadow is a concept album broken into 15 pieces. The lyrics have a strong religious bent, searching for healing, "A thirst for something higher." They don't get preachy, but offer some hope of finding peace in thaat space between darkness and light.

This work is remarkable and quite amazing too, but in my opinion it's too much in the vein of the recent issues by ECHOLYN, IZZ and the 80's RUSH. I don't get crazy for such works nor for the vocals inside this "Between Sunlight and Shadow", but naturally I find an excellent stuff within, between a breakthrough and another; instead I regard the album "Suffocating the Bloom" by ECHOLYN as an appealing masterpiece. Anyway coming back to the present issue, I like to remark the good impression that I received from their sense of melody and the creation of a particular atmosphere as well: even though there's no trace of any bombastic solos or complex arrangements, this concept album, in the middle between progressive rock and space rock, maintains a certain balance, by means of fifteen tracks which often flow fluently. Besides the presence of a simple and essential piano, some good effects (like the run of cars passing on the highway), take the listener to a fine landscape. To me the best track is "Hold a Candle", along with "Flight", where you find an invigorating synthesizer. Instead "Infractus" is a melancholic tune, quite symphonic-like; and moreover, even though you don't find any bombastic solos, the keyboards excursions by John Green are quite fiery and intelligent.

Sometimes you find little master pieces in the underground prog rock and Between Sunlight and shadow is one of them along with others like Metamorphosis,Tempus Fugit,Subterra, Chaneton,Grand Stand,Afterglow and Knight Area.Difference is that this one is a little less neo prog rock but a little more in the vein of Opeth (Damnation)and Timothy Pure! This is quality and lots of work and it deserves more attention!

Between very good and excellent.

Colorado, USA band Singularity took a major step forward in their maturity with this 2002 release, their second album.

Consisting of a single piece of music, conveniently broken into 15 sections for navigation purposes, the music is melodic with a pleasant sense of understatement. For those familiar with the music of TIMOTHY PURE, and in particular their wonderful "Island of misfit toys" album, "Between sunlight and shadow" has a certain similarity. The often harmonised vocals for example, have that sound and feel.

There are though plenty of instrumental passages, particularly in the closing sections where John Green's keyboard work becomes the focal point. The music is unquestionably symphonic prog, leaning more towards the early post Gabriel GENESIS than say the music of YES. If there are similarities with RUSH, as I have seen suggested elsewhere, I have yet to identify them. There is for example a total avoidance of anything aggressive here, the music having a smoothness which makes it easy upon the ear.

In terms of composition, the band show a dexterity and talent which many might aspire to, the full extent of the quality of the work only becoming apparent after a number of listens.

2006 has been a good year for Singularity, including a support slot for Spock's Beard. A new album is due for release shortly. All the indications from this album are that the new album will be worthy of investigation. Recommended.

With SINGULARITY just releasing a new album I thought it was about time I reviewed their second album "Between Sunlight And Shadow".Their first record "Color Of Space" sounded a lot like RUSH mainly because of their bass player / vocalist who sounded a little too much like Geddy. Give these guys credit though as they have changed their sound completely. They are down to a trio now as the former vocalist / bass player is no longer playing with them, but he did have a hand in writing the lyrics which is cool. This is actually quite an ambitious effort as it is really one long piece divided into 15 parts. Easy Livin took the words right out of my mouth when he compared the sound of this album to TIMOTHY PURE's "Island Of Misfit Toys", one of my personal favs.

"Drive" opens with the sounds of cars going by as piano and reserved vocals come in. I have to say I really like the lyrics they came up with for this album. A change 3 minutes in as bass, synths and drums become more energetic. It ends as it began. Great start. "Invictus" opens with intricate acoustic guitar and higher pitched vocals.The drums and bass really bring to mind OPETH's "Damnation" album. I'm smiling big time right now. Melancholic but beautiful. "Stratum" continues the melancholic theme as the vocals are almost spoken. Very atmospheric and at first haunting. A full sound with some great sounding synths 2 minutes in. This blends into "Endless". The guitar is great here. The vocals are methodical. Eerie synths as the dark vibe continues. The synths become more upbeat 2 minutes in as the song blends into "Fight". This is a synth / drum led tune. It's more uptempo. Great section.

"Inferno" along with "Invictus" are my two favourite sections. It opens with haunting synths. Percussion rises out of this atmosphere and builds. Heavy guitar and drums join in. Vocals arrive 2 minutes in. This reminds me of "APSOG" by FATES WARNING. This is amazing ! Thankfully this is the longest track at 6 minutes. We get a piano interlude before the heaviness returns. "In Passing" opens with piano. The multi-vocal parts sounds impressive. This is just so moving at times, I can't explain why. The guitar and drums are excellent. "All Comes Down" is less then a minute of vocals and harmonies that blend into "Ground Zero". This is a heavy piece. The guitar grinds away as the drums and organ add to the listening pleasure. Haha. Vocals are well done. "Still" is a minute of gently played acoustic guitar. "Hold A Candle" continues the mellow mood with reserved vocals and piano. Synths to end it. "Traces" is orchestral sounding after a brief NOEKK-like intro. "Meta Morphosis" opens with energetic synths before we get a RUSH-like passage. More uptempo synths before piano and some brief vocals end it. "Coming Undone" is a good section with some aggressive guitar that blends into "Infractus". The song quickly settles down as piano, synths and drums lead the rest of the way. A beautiful way to end this musical journey.

If your into any of the albums i've mentioned in this review, then i'm sure you will really like this outstanding release. I have their new one already on order, just in time for Christmas.

Total space rock.

To me, the term space rock was reserved for Dark Side of the Moon and such; that album has to be added to the genre. Singularity is making a statement here in terms of intensity because this album has the right stuff to please your cosmic appetite.

From the cover to the soaring Moog lines and thick guitar power riffs, this album is sending you to a chilling trip in outer space. The moods are alterning from tranquil to full bombastic, from soft acoustic guitar melody and then propulsing you full throttle without warning. If you like new bands kicking it old school, you will find lots of Camel (Moonmadness), Pink Floyd (vocals and Dark Side atmosphere), Rush (small bits sprinkled here and there) and some thick keyboard a la Le Orme, reminding me some intense passages of Felona and Sorona.

Wow and wow, and wow again. Obscure band with balls, but intelligent enough to criss cross genres and emotions.

Discover, please.

Those poor Americans! It's generally acknowledged that the prog egg hatched in late 1960s England. While country specific offshoots sprouted in Italy and Germany, and the French and Scandinavian schools have enriched us with folk and metallic variants, what have the Americans ever done for us? Well, they brought us LOS JAIVAS...oops different Americans. How about RUSH...wait what? OK there was KANSAS and...HAPPY THE MAN, and probably something in between. In more recent years, if you liked new time religion, then the Morses might have been your thing, or if you had ADD then maybe ECHOLYN. There was and is IZZ as well, and I'm sure I"m forgetting somebody and would not be disappointed to know that anyone has read this far and wants to prosecute me for forgetting THE American prog act, who are probably heavy prog, blues prog, or jazz anyways(or superb folk like MIDLAKE), but hopefully you get my rambling point that America and prog don't really fly in flyover country. Honestly, when half the country thinks that we need to cut a traitorous sociopath in chief some slack, well, that's half that would be staring at their dumb phone 30 seconds into something as entirely enjoyable as FM's "Phasors on Stun". Oh yeah, Canadian again, sorry.

So what have we here then? A 2002 release from Colorado based SINGULARITY, an ambitious suite of tightly packaged short pieces that, like any good relationship, repeat themselves just enough to justify their existence but not so much as to upset each other. In terms of, well, their singularity, and their juxtaposition of the despairing and the wistful, the enervated and the empowered,I think this compares somewhat to the debut by Australia's ANUBIS. Particularly successful are the brooding few opening numbers with creative bass work and appealing vocals, especially "Invictus"; the nasty "Inferno"; the harmony vocalizations of "All Comes Down"; the sweet ballad "Hold a Candle"; and the bass and synth rich closing instrumental "Infractus". Speaking of which, the keyboard palette is an asset of this band, and generates a spacey aura that is unusual in the American lexicon. While they are a trio that apparently borrowed broadly from RUSH in their previous album, this release establishes a working identity.

While this type of independent and collaborative triumph is destined for a small audience, it achieves an accessible yet sustaining blend of light, dark, and, axiomatically, what lies between.