A Progressive Rock Goldmine
E. Minkovitch | Montreal, Quebec | 08/13/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The ultimate prog recording of the new Millennium, no less. Well, that's a bit of a pompous claim, I'll admit, but having heard them all (Flower Kings, Spock's Beard, Transatlantic, Anglagard, IQ etc) it did not take long to see the genuis in this band, which combines the best of progressive rock styles - symphonic, Canterbury, jazz-rock and art-rock - with jazz and classical music so bloody seamlessly that you don't notice the transitions. Add to that quirky originality, compositional savvy and iron chops, and you've got a prog goldmine. This is where for once I can say, quality equals quantity - an 80 minute cd without any filler and only good music. No, fantastic music. The band wanted to come close to Tales Of The Topographic Oceans on this album, but in my opnion they have surpassed it by far on all counts, much as I enjoy that holy relic from Yes.
I love the cheeky New Wave/Disco quote in "The Sun In My Eyes", I believe they are quoting The Human League's "Don't You Want Me Baby" (???) Sure as boots, some progheads will sneer at this, but if it's done in a tasteful manner, what the heck? The references to "The Battle Of Epping Forest", which will delight Genesis geeks, and rich harmony vocals point to the symphonic leanings of the band.
Thank heavens they've replaced Roine Stolt and Zoltan Szorcz. No disrespect to these excellent musicians, but Szorcz lacks subtlety required for this type of music, and Stolt, well, one has to put up with him on the Flower Kings and Transatlantic albums, so it's a nice break. The keyboards of Andy Tillison are good enough to rival Emerson, Wakeman or Dave Stewart. Reingold is in top form on bass, what a musician. The flute and sax work is equally amazing. The guitarwork is fine, but nothing extraordinary, it's really a keyboards/flute/sax type of a sound. Andy Tillison's singing is surprisingly good, just listen to him on "Lost In London", my favourite track on the album, it sounds so much like the old Canterbury bands.
The album is chock-full of venomous cynnicism, nostalgia and rage against the New World Order. Top notch stuff."
Has highs and lows
wadrad | Land of Bitburger, Bratwurst, und Lederhosen | 07/28/2007
(3 out of 5 stars)
"I won't go into "track by track" depth on this review, because several others have already done so, and done so with quite pointed detail (in a good way in most places). As a big 70s prog fan I'll try to just give some observations about this CD and "the Tangent" in general.
I bought "The Music that Died Alone" (their first CD) and loved it. Lyrics were close to stupid in places, but I didn't care, because it was a fresh and energetic retreading of a lot of what I loved about prog. Great keyboards (organs, synths, piano), interesting themes and melodies, and some great guitar work by Stolt. Vocals didn't do much for me, but they seemed to be enjoying themselves enough with the rest of the music I didn't care. Stolt's vocal work has never impressed me much, but surprisingly I learned to appreciate it a bit more because his vox are definitely stronger than Andy Tillison's.
Their second release "World We Drive Through", though not quite as inspiring or thematically organized as "Music that Died..." definitely had some great moments. Stolt's guitar work and tone on "The Winning Game" is as sweet as I've ever heard through his various projects (Flower Kings, Transatlantic, etc). Surprisingly the lyrics were even a bit better on this one (not tough given some of the stuff on "Music that Died"). But for me somehow, the CD/band as a whole started to sound more like a side project than a real band.
And then came "A Place in the Queue"...DEFINITELY have mixed feelings about this one. Loved the liner notes where Tillison talks about the inspiration of "Tales of Topographical Oceans" and his desire to craft something with a similar magic. My problem is, of all 3 Tangent CDs, for me, this had the least magic. The concepts seem well thought-out, and the lyrics on this are much stronger than the previous CDs (even good in places), but the effort as a whole seems more like an Andy Tillison project where the different musicians just phoned (or likely emailed) in their respective tracks. I later read in Electronic Musician, that's exactly how they put together large parts of the CD (using the internet, not the phone). Having played in a few bands, I think part of that magic Tillison wanted to capture similarly to "Tales of Topo" would be hard to get without your fellow musicians feeding into the process, actually playing together and off of each other, building the dynamic energy and tension of a real band.
Other shortcomings I see with this release are:
Tillison's vox. He's written better lyrics, but I don't think he really worked out the vocal melodies and timing to make them sound natural. He just does not come across as a natural/comfortable singer. Unfortunately (as someone already pointed out), the support of Stolt's vox is definitely missing on this one.
The mix. For some reason, a lot of the parts never really come to the front of the mix. "Music that Died" had a much better balance on parts, and seemed the solo parts stood out more. Here even the solo passages (guitar, woodwinds, keyboards) seem less prominent.
There are still some great parts to this disk, but in prioritizing 80 minutes worth of tracks for my custom mix "Best of The Tangent" CD, the title track ("Place in the Queue") was the only track that made the cut. And except for the lyrics (which are actually witty in places), it's my least favorite on my "best of".
Why 3 stars? Well, despite the progressingly drooping line on my personal "return on investment" chart for the 3 successive "The Tangent" releases, there's still some decent prog on here, and I love prog."
A Near Masterpiece
Kurt Harding | Boerne TX | 08/21/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I've followed and enjoyed The Tangent since their first recording was issued. Their third album, A Place In The Queue has been part of my CD library now for nearly a year and a half and I can't get enough of it. Even though my opinion is that it is one of the finest prog albums of the decade, I develop writer's block whenever the urge arises to review it so now I'll finally press on and review it anyway.
First of all, if you are going to buy this CD, this Special Edition with the bonus CD is the one to get. That will give you two hours plus of mostly great music. CD one opens with an opus in classical prog style about an elderly veteran, how he had lived his life and how he now lives with nothing but his memories to comfort him, his friends long gone, his sacrifices for king and country nearly forgotten and his continued existence mostly ignored or resented by those living only in the present. Listen closely, its truly a fine piece of work. Other stimulating cuts on disc one include Lost In London, G.P.S. Culture, Follow Your Leaders, and the grand title song which really makes one think about his place in the world. I even like The Sun In My Eyes, a pseudo-disco ditty about the hazards of being out of step with one's peers in a conformist society. The line about getting "my head kicked in for liking Yes instead of Suzi Quatro or the Rubettes" is very evocative of high school peer pressures, though at my school it was quite normal to like Yes.
The bonus disc offers a smorgasbord of sonic delights that all fans of The Tangent should hear. The essentials are Promises Were Made and Forsaken Cathedrals, though The First Day at School and an extended alternative take on The Sun in My Eyes are also enjoyable. The last two cuts are a sort of ambient prog jazz which while enjoyable when listened to separately feel out of place with the spirit of the rest of the album.
Additionally, buyers of this edition get an attractive booklet containing artwork, the lyrics to songs on the first disc and commentary by lead vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Andy Tillison.
Many reviewers who have given this album fewer than five stars cite a dislike for Tillison's vocals. I agree that he isn't a strong vocalist in the classic sense but if you give it a chance, you'll find that his earnest delivery will grow on you. When you listen to A Place In the Queue with an open mind and stifle the urge to nitpick any of its minor idiosyncrasies, you will come to the view as I did that while the album may not be a masterpiece, it is quite near to being one. Get it today and hear what I mean!"
