01	On a Perfect Day						07:45
	02	Skeletons at the Feast						06:33
	03	Is This Love?						02:51
	04	All That's Left						04:45
	05	With Your Kiss						11:46
	06	Sometimes They Stay, Sometimes They Go						04:31
	07	The Slow Crash Landing Man						05:47
	08	Wherever You Stand						05:09
	09	Hereafter						05:01
	10	As Far As the Mind Can See - Part 1: Dreaming in the Age of Answers						04:44
	11	As Far As the Mind Can See - Part 2: Here's a Man						03:28
	12	As Far As the Mind Can See - Part 3: They Know We Know						03:15
	13	As Far As the Mind Can See - Part 4: Stream of Unconsciousness						05:22
	14	Rearranged						06:08

Nick D'Virgilio - Lead & Backing Vocals, Drums, Timpani, Percussion and some Guitar
Alan Morse - Guitars, Backing Vocals and Lead Vocal (6)
Dave Meros - Bass, Bass Synth, Sitar and Backing Vocals
Ryo Okumoto - Keyboards and Backing Vocals

with: The Section Quartet: (1,7,10,13) Eric Gorfain -Violin, Daphne Chen - Violin, Leah Katz - Viola, Richard Dodd - Cello (The Section Quartet appears courtesy of Decca Records.) Stephanie O'Keefe - French horn (1,7,12,13) Jon Titmus - French horn (1,7,12,13) Jon Papenbrook - Trumpet & Flugelhorn (12,13) Eric Jorgensen - Trombone (12,13) Ray Yslas - Percussion (4,5,11,14) Kaylene Peoples - Flute (1) Kiko Izumi - Erhu (9), John Boegehold - Voices (5,7,11,12) additional guitar (2,13) and synths (1,2,10,13), Stan Ausmus - Voices (12) and additional guitar (1), Rich Mouser - Voices (12), "They Know We Know" kids voices - The Barnhart Chorus, Judith Stevens, Director.

String & Horn arrangements by Dave Meros and John Boegehold, except for "On A Perfect Day" by John Boegehold.



Spock's Beard - Spock's Beard


Year of Release: 2006
Label: InsideOut
Catalog Number: IOMCD 260
Format: CD
Total Time: 77:12:00

In their twelve year existence Spock's Beard has gone from strength to strength, although when Neal Morse left the band they really didn't know whether at all they could continue. Then in pure Phil Collins fashion drummer Nick took over the role of singer whilst still delivering his incredible drum skills as well. This new album is the band's ninth studio effort and does produce a mixture of material, as not everything you'll hear is pure Spock's Beard. With a lot of the new material written by Dave Meros and outsider John Boegehold they do explore some genres one would not automatically link to the band. As Alan Morse told me: "when it feels right it feels right so why shouldn't we put it on our album?"

The album opens with what could be seen as an outtake from the band's debut album The Light. With added real strings, this is powerful symphonic rock with great melodies, hooks and even some tasty acoustic Spanish sounding guitar. The band takes it one notch higher with the speedy instrumental "Skeletons At The Feast," which includes a huge input by Ryo together with ace playing by Dave Meros. In the end they steer the song towards an incredible melody which might be the catchiest on the album. The first not so evident song by the band certainly has to be the pure aggressive rock 'n' roll of "Is This Love," a song which came into existence after Nick collaborated with Cheap Trick's Ben E. Carlos!

Compared to a lot of progressive acts, Spock's Beard is one of the few that regularly comes up with songs that could easily be played on daytime radio. "All That's Left" is such an example with once again some brilliant singing by Dave - a superb song that nestles in your mind from the word go. As on their previous album Octane, "With Your Kiss" sounds more rough, incorporating a great tribal rhythm which is accompanied by a metal sounding guitar. For sure this is not the kind of Spock's Beard we have known for so long yet it's a daring musical adventure that ends with a fragile acoustic finale, once again introducing Alan's superb guitar skills. With "The Slow Crash Landing Man," the band delivers yet another radio friendly tune based around another of their catchy melodies. The contrast with this song is perfect when "Wherever You Stand" gives us the kind of "in your face" rock 'n' roll that could be linked to vintage Queen if you like. With only voice and piano "Hereafter" is the perfect composition to illustrate both the quality and the wide vocal range from Nick resulting in almost classical grandeur.

As on their previous albums, the band yet again delivers a lengthy epic which is made up out of four separate parts. With "Dreaming In The Age Of Answers" the band sounds like Level 42, especially with Nick getting close to the voice of Mark King and the bass being rather prominent in the mix. Dave even gets the chance to deliver some tasty fretless bass towards the end. Second on the cards is the jazzy, fusion of "Here's A Man," including some fierce organ playing by Ryo. "They Know We Know" even includes a children's choir before letting Ryo loose on his synths during "Stream Of Unconsciousness," the closing section of this magnum opus. It even incorporates a brass section which sounds like it announces the entrance of the gladiators! The album closes with the direct "Rearranged" which is the kind of song a band like Jadis should go for.

Spock's Beard the ninth studio offering from our American friends is an album which grows with each spin in your CD-player so don't make your final judgment after just listening to it only once. After a search that began with Feel Euphoria and a harder approach on Octane, I guess they have found the right route for the future which sees them going back to the very beginning, although with a more elaborate arrangement. Another top quality album from a top quality band which they will always remain!

Tracklisting:
On A Perfect Day (7:47) / Skeletons At The Feast (6:33) / Is This Love (2:51) / All That's Left (4:45) / With Your Kiss (11:46) / Sometimes They Say, Sometimes They Go (4:31) / The Slow Crash Landing Man (5:47) / Wherever You Stand (5:09) / Hereafter (5:01) / As Far As The Mind Can See: Dreaming In The Age Of Answers (4:49) - Here's A Man (3:28) - They Know We Know (3:18) - Stream Of Unconsciousness (5:23) / Rearranged (6:07)

Musicians:
Nick d''Virgilio - vocals, drums, guitar
Ryo Okumoto - keyboards
Alan Morse - guitar, vocals
Dave Meros - bass

Discography:
The Light (1991)
Beware of Darkness (1995)
The Beard Is Out There Live (1995) (cd/vid)
Official Live Bootleg (1996)
The Kindness of Strangers (1997)
From The Vault - 1995-1998 (1998)
Day For Night (1999)
Live At The Whiskey and NEARfest (1999)
Don''t Try This At Home (2000)
V (2000)
Snow (2002)
Feel Euphoria (2003)
The Light - The Artwork Collector’s Series (2004)
Octane (2005)
Gluttons For Punishment (2005)
Spock''s Beard (2006)

Don''t Try This At Home & The Making Of V (2002) (DVD)

Genre: Progressive Rock

Origin US




Spock's Beard
Spock's Beard

InsideOut (IOMCD 260)
USA 2006

Nick D'Virgilio, lead vocals, drums;
Alan Morse, guitars, vocals;
Ryo Okumoto, keyboards;
David Meros, bass

Tracklist:
1. On a Perfect Day — 7:45
2. Skeletons at the Feast — 6:33
3. Is This Love? — 2:15
4. All That's Left — 4:45
5. With Your Kiss — 11:46
6. Sometimes They Stay, Sometimes They Go — 4:31
7. The Slow Crash Landing Man — 5:47
8. Wherever You Stand — 5:09
9. Hereafter — 5:01
10. As Far as the Mind Can See Pt. 1: Dreaming in the Age of Answers — 4:44
11. As Far as the Mind Can See Pt. 2: Here's a Man — 3:28
12. As Far as the Mind Can See Pt. 3: They Know We Know — 3:15
13. As Far as the Mind Can See Pt. 4: Stream of Unconsciousness — 5:22
14. Rearranged — 6:08

total time 77:05

conrad

This is the ninth album from Spock's Beard and, more pertinently, their third since the departure of Neal Morse. The same questions are posed here as for the preceding two albums: can Spock's Beard survive; can they ever match the quality of the music when Neal Morse was a member; and can they find a new artistic direction? While the first two questions seem to have been answered as "yes" and "no," respectively, the answer to the third question remains up in the air, although there are a couple of hints given away on this album.

At times, this album seems to suffer from multiple personality disorder. Tracks 1, 3 and 4 are a case in point. The opening "On a Perfect Day" harkens back to the band's early days (and is, incidentally, better than anything on Octane). "Is This Love" is a straight hard-rock number, which is truly awful, and "All That's Left" is a ballad which sounds at times like a Tori Amos song, but not one of her better ones. At least nobody can claim that the band sound the same on every track.

As with the previous album, Spock's Beard sound thoroughly unconvincing when they play straight rock. Where thay have been more successful is in marrying disparate elements of their sound: for instance, the instrumental "Skeletons at the Feast" and the closing number "Rearranged" both use heavy guitar, but couple it with softer keyboard tones to great effect. If Spock's Beard are seeking a new sound, then this could well be part of it.

Fans will probably be eyeing the four-part suite, "As Far as the Mind Can See," towards the end of the album. Despite the fact that it builds quite nicely and manages to climax in classic Spock's Beard style, the earlier parts are too weak for this to be considered a classic by the band. That honour goes to the afforementioned "A Perfect Day."

Spock's Beard have gotten a number of things right on this album, including the lyrics, which at times are very good. Unfortunately, it's only a small step up from Octane, and not really a return to their best. Some will consider this to be the best album since V, with some justification, but that is mainly a function of widely differing views on Snow. Neal Morse is still producing the better music, but if there is one thing that Spock's Beard can hold musically above their former front-man, it is that they are at least evolving their sound a little faster.

review by Conrad Leviston — 3-19-07 — post a comment (0)