PALLAS - INVINCIBLE NEO
Jason M. Carzon | bowie, maryland United States | 02/18/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Scotland's Pallas were once part of the U.K. art-rock scene of the early 80's along with Marillion,IQ, Pendragon and Twelvth Night, and return here with one of the top records of 2005 in the often called 'neo-prog' genre. Four years has passed since their excellent 'Cross & The Crucible' album from 2001, and although Pallas releases are few and far between, it is often worth the wait.
'Dreams Of Men' continues in the more symphonic direction they embarked on when they first returned to active service in 1998 with their 'Beat the Drum' album, and here they waste no time making up for lost time with a solid- though lengthy- 70+ minutes of cinematic and melodic rock which goes through many moods and textures ranging from dramatic orchestral washes to heavier, almost prog-metal guitar bite. This is modern Neo with some meat on the bones, and though this lengthy disc is filled to the end with music, it's solid and still merits repeat listenings. Lyrically, 'Dreams' has a loose concept about, well, the dreams of mankind- what drives us, our hearts desires, our darkests fears and anxieties. Cheery stuff, I know, and occasionally preachy, but the songs stand alone, so any linking thread can be irrelevant. The album starts off powerful, but the best material is towards the end.
The line-up remains the same as ever: guitarist Niall Mathewson, keyboardist Ronnie Brown, drummer Colin Fraser, Graeme Murray playing some fine Chris Squire-esque bass and of course vocalist Alan Reed. The artwork is excellent, though that one band photo is a bit eerie. The songs:
THE BRINGER OF DREAMS: An orchestral intro opens the circus of dreams, finally breaking through with powerful guitar, and drags you through ten minutes of prime Pallas. All the trademarks of their last album 'Cross & The Crucible' come to the table here, a solid opener and a good taster for what both this album and Pallas are about.
WARRIORS: Rush-like guitar opens this rocker about the dreams of the fanatical 'holy warrior', the type who would, say, ram a hijacked plane into a building of innocents who never saw it coming. A more guitar-driven track.
GHOSTDANCERS: a violin opens this sombre track about the New World told from the point of view of first the immigrant and later, the Native American. With guest violin, some of this track has a distinct sound of American proggers Kansas. Powerful lyrics, though the chanting and gunshot sound at the end may have been an overdone cliche.
TOO CLOSE TO THE SUN: This one is a progressive rock lover's dream, going through some tasty instrumental flavors and changes. Special mention must go to the nice Emerson-style synthesizer bits from Ronnie Brown. I gather this song is about our natural flair for going too far in pursuit of our dreams and the inevitable consequences. 'Don't fly too close, the wax may melt'.
MESSIAH: A shorter and almost funky rock track similar to an earlier Pallas track called 'Dinosaur'. Murray's bass also reminds me of 'The Messenger' from Yes' 1999 album 'The Ladder'. I hear some Squire in there. I think this track is a dig at George Bush. There's guest female vocals at the end too.
NORTHERN STAR: a beautiful instrumental with nice guitar and atmospheric keyboards. Being an often vocal/lyric-oriented genre, there are precious few neo-prog instrumental moments, with the exception of some Pendragon and early IQ material. This is a reflective calm from the stormy songs around it, and a pleasant track indeed. No words are needed to convey that this track is meant to be about your(you the listener)own dreams and desires. When you wish upon a star...
MR. WOLFE: another shorter track(six minutes is short for Pallas)with a somewhat Gothic feel with use of some organ. This is probably about the selfishness of those whose dreams are material gains at the expense of others. This theme moves into the next track as well.
INVINCIBLE: the last two tracks on this album are astounding. This one is the longest and most involved track, separated into 'movements', and going through many dramatic sections. The sound of a machine-like percussion pattern repeats its way around Alan Reed declaring 'It's my life, and YOU CAN'T HAVE IT!'. This is not too unlike something from IQ's 'Seventh House' in places. Basically this one's about how we're all expected to be numbers, living robotic lives endlessly working and pumping money into our credit cards while chasing unattainable goals and going along with whatever corporations feed us. Yet invincible if we dare to break out.
THE LAST ANGEL: an emotional anthem closes this disc, one with all the trademarks of some of the best melodic Neo elements. It starts as a mellow almost Peter Gabriel-like slow theme(think Biko, but that's stretching it), and goes through a Hackett-like guitar bit, an Arena-like dark section, and a powerful anthemic close with additional female vocals. A powerful closer, play this one loud. I believe this may be about an Angel who comes to help mankind, only to find nothing worth saving. However this album is worth saving for your collection, and stands with Arena's 'Pepper's Ghost', Pendragon's 'Believe' and Kino's 'Picture' as best Neo albums of 2005.
Also- the 'special edition' comes with a second disc, also stuffed to the guts with 70+ minutes of music, which features remixes of some album tracks, instrumental tracks(very tasty) and another version of 'Fragments Of The Sun' from the 'Beat The Drum' album. Of course get the two disc version and enjoy."
The Dreams of Pallas
Michael Perez | Norristown, PA USA | 10/25/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Pallas returns with a recording that even surpasses the musical sophistication and sonic brilliance of its predecessors _Beat the Drum_ and The Cross and the Crucible_. _The Dreams of Men_ is a truly solid group effort with all the expected twists and turns of the band's classic epic bombasts. In addition, the disc includes some hauntingly beautiful melodies in songs like "Ghostdancers" and "The Last Angel" and even some wry humor in "Messiah" ("Hello, good morning, from the top of the food chain . . ." "God is my buddy, we talk all the time . . ."). This is highly recommended. American fans will have a rare chance to see the band at The Rites of Spring Festival in April 2006 (...). Be there!!"
Powerful demonstration of contemporary prog rock
Murat Batmaz | Istanbul, Turkey | 11/02/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"It took Scottish neo-proggers Pallas four years to follow up their critically acclaimed The Cross & The Crucible. Apparently, the band wanted to take their time to develop their new songs as best as they could in order to reach the high level of standard they set with their previous release. The Dreams of Men is a competent successor in that it is laced with the band's universally accepted melodies, impressive guitar and keyboard interplay, beautiful vocal harmonies, and delicate song arrangements.
The songs on the album are about the dreams of mankind, but I don't think there is a definite concept going on. The songs are independent, addressing different issues, but they also seem to have that dream theme underlying them. To give you a better idea what they are about, "Ghostdancers" seems to be a very mellow tune punctuated by a sad violin melody through its entirety. The violin generates a distinct Celtic feel and portrays Scottish people immigrating to the New World in order to find a better life. This is deftly delivered through a gripping chorus and rhythm guitar. It's about people leaving their homes and loved ones behind in hopes of starting a new life in a new country. However, it's far from a single point of view. The second half of the album gives us an insight into the mindsets of Native Americans, who are not only harassed by the white man, but also threatened and terribly violated. This is perfectly displayed by saddening Native American chant vocals at the end. There are two guitar solos on the song, both of which are emotionally engaging, but the second one is a bit more effective due to its immediate bluesy leanings. Likewise, "Messiah", one of the shorter songs, is a dig at control-freak political figures, Tony Blair in particular, but the commentary is very subtle and conveyed through a plethora of genres from funky guitar lines to Arena-like melodic hard rock (think Pepper's Ghost) and female back-up vocals. "Warriors" is another track whose message got me, focusing on the 9/11 tragedy but once again looking at it from a broader point of view and touching on the suicide bombings all around the world. This song also has a heavier guitar focus yet at the same time it's uncannily 80's Pallas during the middle point. I love how the smooth guitar notes virtually transform into cutting riffs in the end as well.
With nearly half of the tracks breaking the 10-minute mark, The Dreams of Men is a long piece, clocking in at over 73 minutes. Though the album is quite mellow in most parts, it is also filled with subtle complexities, mostly in the drum and keyboard parts. "Too Close to the Sun", which must have been initially written on keys, is one of those ELP-like classics, featuring a killer bass start, lucid synths, interesting drum fills, and finally whispered vocals that beautifully harmonise with each other above minimal acoustic guitars. Strings, flutes and harps are also heard towards the middle before a quirky synth motif introduces itself secretly moving from one time signature to another, as Niall Matthewson lays down a fantastic guitar solo that will send shivers down any Pink Floyd fan's spine. While this track has Ronnie Brown shining, the opening cut, "The Bringer of Dreams", besides its marvellous orchestral arrangement (with pastoral strings and classical instruments), features an utterly complex and mind-bending drum pattern, utilising hi-hat, ride, and china all within a very short frame of time. The long ticking clock also lends the album a somewhat dreamy feel, as if all of this is happening in the middle of the night while we are comfortably asleep.
"Northern Star" is a minimalistic instrumental piece with just strummed acoustic guitar and keyboards playing sparse minor keys, whilst "Mr Wolfe" stands out as one of the darkest and nastiest pieces on the album. The wicked piano intro gets me every time - it's intense. Also, note the amazing synth lead and very heavy guitar work towards the end. "Invincible" is another lengthy piece with rocking guitar and bass combination, and a great drum sound. The best part of it, however, are the lyrics that go like: "I will not break . I will not fall . I will not compromise for anyone!" Finally, the album reaches its end with "The Last Angel", described as the best Pallas song by one of the members in a recent interview. Whether it's their best is debatable, but it certainly is among their most original and refreshing cuts. From vulnerable spoken-like vocals that drip with emotion to angelic female opera vocals singing Italian lyrics, the song is also filled with symphonic arrangements and thrilling guitar passages.
Together with Pendragon's new disc Believe and Arena's Pepper's Ghost, this is one of the finest neoprog albums InsideOut has released in 2005."
Track Listings (9) - Disc #1