Good Progressive Rock should be a journey. You won't need Trip Advisor, this Travelog is entertaining enough.
egin with the view that there's genuine beauty in Yes' music and you won't find many naysayers in this readership. Posit the idea that a lot of that beauty is from Steve Howe's playing and you'll receive many nods. His tone, the air in his playing, particularly the acoustic, is gorgeous; Kinetic Element know this, as it's all over this rather affecting second release. But not so much the 1970's business, this has the brittle, angular brilliance of his solo turn from the GTR album 'Sketches in The Sun' and is all the better for it.
This awaited album is steeped in 1970's style; not seen through the prism of 2015 and not commenting ironically on it. The style and just the style and as such, it is wonderful to be with. The Virginian band describe themselves as new Symphonic Progressive, but they are far more interesting than that; this is glorious old-school Prog with no ifs, buts or soundscapes.
They are just not afraid to take nine minutes and mine one seam, the gentle, lilting 'Travelog' with a plangent flute, but neither are they afraid to bear their breasts when needed or required; 'War Song' is a Prog masterwork, not in the tricks it can provide but the 1970's brilliance it shows. This track has sweeping guitar lines, rising organs (and who could mind that?), martial drums and skirl of pipes, guitar, organ and bass solos – such gorgeous Proggy travels.
And among these five, twenty, nineteen and eleven or so minute tracks, there is good stuff all over the place. They have something else excellent too; a Jazzy, cool groove that Andy Tillison uses to such fantastic effect with The Tangent; when they uncork this, there is no going back. Played with talent to spare, adding different elements (kinetic indeed); slithering synth solos, soaring guitars, thickly organs, even whistling – all in the same song. And because they have a groove, Messrs (Mike) Visaggio (keys & vocals), (Michael) Murray (drums & vocals), (Todd) Russell (guitars) and (Mark) Tupko (bass) are not just bolting stuff together, they are organically growing old style Prog with such bright colours that fans from all over the world will flock to them. That is if there's any justice.
Good Progressive Rock should be a journey. You won't need Trip Advisor, this Travelog is entertaining enough.
Steve Swift
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