Search - Spock's Beard :: Feel Euphoria

Excellent new material from the Beard!

Benjamin W. Waterhouse | Portland, OR | 07/09/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This latest effort from Spock's Beard is the first album written and recorded after the departure of autocratic lead vocalist, songwriter, and front man Neal Morse, who announced shortly after the recording of Snow that God had been telling him for some time to quit the band. Fortunately for fans of the Beard, drummer Nick D'Virgilio was ready and willing to step into the role of lead vocalist. The result of the reformed group is a much more diverse and democratic recording than any of the band's previous efforts, featuring pieces written by each of the four remaining members. And it's . . . different.
Make no mistake: the band is still playing cutting-edge prog, and playing it well. But Feel Euphoria is much more hard-driven than anything Neal Morse composed, venturing into progressive metal, fusion, electronica, and hard rock. The album features fairly little of the Beard's signature 70's-style prog-pop. No, this time the boys have pulled out all the stops, throwing in bits of every rock movement since the sixties. The sheer diversity of Euphoria makes it a more difficult listen than the six previous works, especially for those who were expecting to hear a rehash of Snow and V.
The most noticeable change in the band's sound is the voice of Nick D'Virgilio, who explores a wide range of vocal styles from growling to shrieking to crooning. He sounds good, and uses his range much more than Neal Morse ever did. Also, all of the guitar tracks on this album are written by Alan Morse who, free from his brother's influence, explores some new musical new territories.
The album begins with a bang-the hard-driving, head-banging Onomatopoeia, a grunge-influenced, over-the-top metal piece like nothing you've heard these guys play before. The second song, The Bottom Line, is pure prog, moving between guitar and keyboard styles freely, dramatic and incredible. The title track, Feel Euphoria, written by the ingenious Ryo Okumoto, begins with an exploration into light electronica and winds up with a thrashing, punk-rock jam. Track four, Shining Star, is a fairly standard acoustic-guitars-and-strings ballad, followed by East of Eden, West of Memphis, an interesting composition that sounds vaguely like R.E.M. for a while before drifting into prog-metal territory. Ghosts of Autumn, the only track on the album written by bassist Dave Meros, is rocking stadium anthem featuring a fabulous guitar solo by Alan Morse. Then the Beard delivers what we were all waiting for-A Guy Named Sid, a 20-minute epic with prog-metal licks worthy of Dream Theater, vaguely Floydian keyboard segments, and an amazing vocal section reminiscent of Thoughts or Jibberish. In short, it's amazing. Finally, the album closes with Carry On, an introspective ballad by Alan Morse that showcases the band's brass talents. Give it a listen, you'll see what I mean.
This is one killer album, a fantastic introduction to Spock's Beard Mark II. Go out and buy it right away. In fact, go out and buy the special edition for two bonus tracks and a fabulous sampler of InsideOut music, not to mention a beautiful packaging job. Go! Buy!"

A Natural Progression for the Beard

Benjamin W. Waterhouse | 09/17/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Like all Beard fans I was bummed out when Neal Morse left. I was expecting a disaster, but was pleasantly surprised by this album. It has its weak moments, but it is a good effort overall. NDV steps up to the challenge of leading the band and does so quite well. The songs for the most part are good. They range from brilliant (The bottom line), to very good (East of Eden..and Ghosts of Autumn) to disappointing (Feel Euphoria). It is more of a band effort than their other studio albums. The playing is, as usual ,top-notch.
I think it is good that the band does not sound like a lesser version of a Neal Morse production. They will get better with their subsequent efforts, but for now this is a nice start,"

Finding Their Way w/o Neal

Glenn O. Kirms | Anywhere, USA | 03/03/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Ok, I waited until Octane came out to give my thoughts on this CD. And to those of you who want Neal back, it doesn't look like he's coming back. After releasing One and just released his 'Worship'CD Volume One, he's making his stand pretty clear. I'd love to see Transatlantic 3, but let's be realistic about the whole situation. Lead singers leave groups and the groups go on. Spock's Beard has a whole different sound. While many dispute this cd as either good or bad it's something you'll have to get used to. I actually like Feel Euphoria better than Octane (which I've reviewed already). Even though I give both 4 stars it's just a matter of personal taste. I believe this cd has more of that progressive feel while Octane almost harkens back to Day For Night with short commercial-type songs. That can be or not be a bad thing for a group. But Spock's Beard is a progressive rock band and labeled as such so, of course, that's what one expects. I think Nick has a fine singing voice, but what's missing from this CD and Octane is Neal's superb song writing and arranging that always pulled everything together so well. Happy listening if you choose to, but don't bash this cd just because you have a pre-conceived notion of what it should sound like. If you want to hear the same thing everytime then pack it up and head for the Top 40 because there's plenty of that junk out there."