{"id":8393,"date":"2021-12-14T20:37:24","date_gmt":"2021-12-14T19:37:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kessel-tamerus.nl\/Esthers_Blog\/?p=8393"},"modified":"2021-12-19T19:35:13","modified_gmt":"2021-12-19T18:35:13","slug":"mostly-autumn-graveyard-star","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kessel-tamerus.nl\/Esthers_Blog\/cd-recensie\/mostly-autumn-graveyard-star\/","title":{"rendered":"Mostly Autumn \u2013 Graveyard Star"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The English band Mostly Autumn has been around for about 25 years and it is hard to imagine the prog rock circuit without them. The band consists of seven people, some of them are multi-instrumentalist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The keyboards give this album an atmospheric opening. After a few soft, peculiar sounds, there is a gradual change. The whole thing remains quiet and Bryan Josh and Olivia Sparnenn-Josh sing suitably subdued. The “choir singing” flows together with the music. There are several tempo and volume changes. The music varies from dreamy to nice (prog) rock and “everything” in between. Vocals and music form a constant unity. The turn to minimalist acoustic guitar playing is cool. Chris Leslie’s violin can be heard regularly. One time in a calmer part, another time during a rocking piece. After a pleasant up-tempo piece, the sudden end of this beautiful epic is surprising. ‘The Harder That You Hurt’ starts with acoustic guitar playing and the vocals of Olivia. Beautifully clear, as she can do so well. There seems to be a sudden change, but the music remains calm. The electric guitar is played tenderly, all in service of the whole. The build-up to more tempo and volume is quite gradual. A little later, Olivia sings with decent power in her voice, she is capable of that too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first sensitive notes of ‘Razor Blade’ touch me, Olivia sings tenderly. The soft music even becomes minimalistic. Then, slowly, more instruments are added. The tempo and volume of the instrumental part increase. Bryan’s vocals fit in nicely. The singing together is also very good. Vocal parts are alternated with instrumental pieces. The last notes that Olivia sings are beautiful, instrumentally the song ends a bit strange.
‘This Endless War’ also has a beautiful, quiet start. Keyboards by Iain Jennings are, as always, very good. After all these years, and many CDs, Olivia’s voice remains impressive. That goes for her tender vocals as well as the vocal outbursts. The twists and turns are sublime. The guitar playing is beautiful, but the rougher part is perhaps, for a moment, not quite in harmony with the whole.’<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You soon notice that ‘Spirit Of Mankind’ was written to be played live. You almost feel the vibe that is always there at their live concerts. And how we miss this! You can sing along with the chorus quite easily. The end is nice and sudden. ‘Back In These Arms’ has a beautifully subdued start with nice details. The beat that comes with it takes some of the attention away from the music. When the volume increases further, everything is back in balance. Troy Donockley delivers another beautiful folk contribution. The cool bass tones go perfectly with the steady rhythm. This is another moment that will do well at live shows. The unexpected end is well chosen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the quiet ‘Free To Fly’, with its beautiful piano sounds, it’s time for ‘The Diamond’. The high, clear vocals are not from Olivia this time, but from Chris Johnson.
He’s got the lead vocals together with Angela Gordon, their voices form a fine blend too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, the epic ‘Turn Around Slowly’. After a calm, instrumental start, Bryan starts singing. Gradually, the volume in both vocals and music increases, followed by a portion of prog rock \u00e0 la Mostly Autumn. This flows over to subdued music, and this is pure enjoyment too. Then it goes over to a steady rhythm, with a lovely melody. Again, Troy’s contribution stands out in a positive way. The pace increases and the rhythm becomes exhilarating. You can feel the band’s energy coming through the speakers. The end is quite unexpected, but cool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even after all these years, and many albums, Mostly Autumn manages to captivate the listener again with this new album.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(82\/100) (Own Management)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n