‘L.I.F.T.’ is the latest concept album from the Neal Morse Band (NMB). “The album is a spiritual journey,” says Neal Morse. “It begins with being connected, then becoming disconnected, and subsequently being reconnected with God’s help.” The meaning of ‘L.I.F.T.’ has been kept open on purpose; now the listener can choose for himself or herself what he or she sees in it.
‘Beginning’ has a beautiful, calm start, with emotion in the music and vocals. A hectic atmosphere builds in the music, after which the recognisable grandeur of NMB can be heard. This opening track flows into ‘Fully Alive’, in which the (layered) vocals sound slightly distorted and/or sugarly. The music is slower, and there are less (unexpected) twists; the atmosphere is very different from that of ‘Beginning’.
‘I Still Belong’ follows without pause. Vocals and music are minimalistic, with the classical elements and unique details fitting in perfectly. The transition to a louder volume is fairly gradual, whilst the shift back to minimalism is more unexpected.
‘Gravity’s Grip’ also features many twists, both in style and rhythm, with bursts of high tempo. I’m expecting more, but ‘Hurt People’ follows sooner than expected. The grim tone suits the lyrics, but the distorted sound of the vocals is slightly too prominent. The beautiful vocal outburst sounds very authentic, though.
The lyrics of ‘The Great Withdrawal’ will be recognisable to many. Everyone has their own (family) situation. The sweet, wordless vocals form both a beautiful contrast and a harmony with the slightly ‘screaming’ guitar playing. The transition to a calm section just before the end is lovely.
‘Contemplation’ is the second, short instrumental track. ‘Shame About My Shame’ is sung with emotion; the music is appropriately calm. When the music changes and wordless vocals are added, the atmosphere becomes less sombre. But the words themselves don’t change much. You can hear the emotion in the instrumental section. The change in rhythm and the wordless vocals push this slightly aside. That remains… until the gently sung and played section touches me again.
In ‘Reaching’, you can hear religious “references” in the lyrics. The atmosphere of the vocals and music becomes lighter, more cheerful.
The rhythm of ‘Carry You Again’ slowly becomes catchy. This gives a sense of
confidence in the future. The (layered) vocals and music are at times a little sugary, yet this track is also complex in structure. This flows into the short ‘Shattered Barricade’, followed by ‘Fully Alive Part 2’. Once again, there are faboulus changes in tempo and volume, sugary parts and Christian elements.
At the start of ‘Love All Along’, you can hear emotion in the vocals and music; later, the vocals and music become sugary. The slightly classical elements are well interwoven with the rest of the music, which slowly but surely gains a bit more power. From the build-up of the music and the lyrics, you notice that this is the final song. Despite the sugary elements, the grandeur returns. After an uptempo part, this track has a minimalist ending, which does happen a bit sooner than expected.
(82/100) (InsideOutMusic).
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Tracklist:
01 – Beginning – 06:48
02 – Fully Alivev05:02
03 – I Still Belong – 03:32
04 – Gravity’s Grip – 02:03
05 – Hurt People – 08:05
06 – The Great Withdrawal – 05:08
07 – Contemplation – 02:20
08 – Shame About My Shame – 05:50
09 – Reaching – 07:32
10 – Carry You Again – 05:02
11 – Shattered Barricade – 01:25
12 – Fully Alive Part 2 – 06:18
13 – Love All Along – 11:18
Line-up:
Neal Morse / vocals, keyboards, guitars
Eric Gillette / guitars, vocals
Bill Hubauer / keyboards, vocals
Randy George / bass
Mike Portnoy / drums, vocals