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Progressive Rock CD Reviews

Bouquiniste

Bouquiniste

Review by Gary Hill

The mix of sounds presented on this album is both unusual and quite effective. The quickest answer for description would be to point to symphonic electronic music, but that’s only so accurate. There is also plenty of jazz and pure progressive rock here. In addition, at times it feels like soundtrack music. Whatever the mix is, though, this is a very intriguing and quite cool album.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2012  Volume 5 at lulu.com/strangesound.

Track by Track Review
The Day They Came

What an amazing mix of sounds we get on this. It starts off with sort an electronica texture. It shifts to something that feels almost like metallic, industrial goth music from there. Then we get some real classical sound. This is dark, strange and incredibly cool. As it continues the various sounds represented in that early section return to dominate various points. There are some sample vocals, sort of like an interference pattern, at times. There are some particularly lush symphonic moments, too.

Awakening

Dramatic, lush and powerful, this is more electronic and less dark. I really don’t hear a lot of classical on this, but there is some world music in terms of percussion and other sounds. Certainly progressive rock and jazz are both on display.

Faded Sun

More pure electronics are on display with this piece. It’s powerful and symphonic, but also techno in nature. It works through a number of musical changes without ever getting too far from the basic musical premise.

Stormtrooper Waltz

This has more symphonic elements over the top of a pounding electronic rhythm. It’s quite an awesome tune that’s very cool. It works out to some more synthesizer based music from there. Later it gets very weird and spacey.

No Place to Hide

Here we get a track with a real driving energy. It’s got more symphonic sounds on display. There is plenty of electronic sound here, too, particularly later with blips and bleeps on top of the mix. There is a real movie soundtrack texture to this and a definite sense of danger.

Fields of Silence

The sound of a beating heart opens this and classical instrumentation comes over the top. Then it all drops away for a piano solo that’s slow and quite pretty. Around the two and a half minute mark it gets some cool layers of sound added over the top. Some of that seems to be synthetic vocals, while others are space rock like keyboards. The whole thing, though, feels evocative, powerful and quite pretty. As it continues there is a definite classically tinged, symphonic sort of elegance and beauty to the piece.

The New Tomorrow

Arguably, this is the most rock oriented tune of the whole bunch. It’s also awesome. It still has plenty of both symphonic and electronic sounds in it, but it just carries forward more like a rocker than the rest of the music. It’s a great way to end things in style.

 

 
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