CAPTIVES OF THE WINE DARK SEA

How I love Discipline!

I'll be honest; Discipline must be one of my favorite active US prog bands mainly due to their already classic "Unfolded Like Staircase" and their magnificent "To Shatter All Accord" which was my favorite 2011 prog album. Then I listened to their live record "This One's For England" and oh man, I've been willing to see them on stage for several years and seems my dream will come true soon at Progtoberfest in Chicago. And well, of course I would be looking forward to listen to some previous songs but I am also eager to see the ones from this new and great albums that I am reviewing right away. This time Matthew Parmenter and company have delight us with a 7-track album that make a running time of 45 minutes full of prog rock, symphonic and eclectic with that inherent VdGG feeling that Matthew's voice provides as well as with the musical arrangements.

It kicks off with "The Body Yearns". It is impossible not to think of Peter Hammill, and even I could say the music reminds me a bit of Gentle Giant so it is a pretty nice combination of a gentle sound with a raw voice. The song develops an addictive sound and at half the song it changes and produces a dark and somber atmosphere, which is one of the characteristics of Discipline's music, I totally love those somber instrumental moments that might be repetitive but hypnotizing. "Life Imitates Art" is another cool track, much shorter than the opener but with that same VdGG feeling provided not only by vocals, but also by keyboards, strings and drums.

The eclecticism of this band is not a hidden fact, and we can confirm it with "S", an instrumental track that can remind you even of King Crimson due to those guitars and dark atmospheres. Here the band also added a nice violin that produces both a symphonic and jazzy sound. With "Love Songs" vocals return accompanied by acoustic guitar at first, and later bass and drums join in a very soft way. It is one of Discipline's catchiest tunes ever, which doesn't mean it is weak, not at all, but we might not be used to it. "Here there is no Soul" is a rockier tune than the previous one, but it is quite different from the first tracks here, no dark atmospheres here, and a nice rhythm that can be easy to dig.

"The Roaring Game" is a gem, I absolutely love it! I could describe it as a perfect amalgam between strings and drums, with an overdose of hypnotic figures that create a powerful sound. The four musicians involved understand each other perfectly, so the result is a clean and natural instrumental prog song in which no one stands out because all of them have their share and great things to offer. The last song is another gem "Burn The Fire Upon The Rocks" whose 15 minutes make a magnificent ending. This piece blends prog rock and even jazz, with a great use of keyboards, wonderful bass lines and quite different passages. The first four minutes are instrumental and then the music fades and the voice appears, creating a new soft passage that will be developing new elements for some minutes, including the beautiful addition of a mellotron. The track keeps morphing but always sharing interesting moments. I think it is not as powerful as other of their epic-gems such as Canto IV or When She Dreams?, but it is quite solid, nevertheless.

A very good album that I've been enjoying a lot recently, not my favorite Discipline one, but it is great as usual. Now I am eagerly waiting to see them at Progtober Fest. Enjoy it!

Share this DISCIPLINE review

Social review comments () BETA

---

---

Review related links

• Send comments to memowakeman
• Report this review (#1790543)
• Buy DISCIPLINE music online with PA partners
• Show all DISCIPLINE MP3/Stream
• Go to DISCIPLINE page for videos, full discography with ratings, reviews and much more
• Go to Captives of the Wine Dark Sea page for more details, where to buy and ratings/reviews
• Search the Forum for DISCIPLINE related discussions