VELVET THUNDER

Neal Morse needs no introduction to any prog fan, as pretty much everyone will be aware of what he’s done and accomplished with the various bands and projects he’s been involved during his career as a prog musician … Spock’s Beard, Transatlantic, Flying Colors, Neal Morse Band, not to mention his not inconsiderable solo career … and his work has always been of an exceptional standard, with no diminution of quality. There’s rarely the feeling, with any new Morse project, that fans are simply getting ‘more of the same,’ but under a different name.

This album – the title taken from the book Demon Copperhead – sees Morse recording, not with the usual stellar prog names (no Roine Stolt or Mike Portnoy here) but with several young, unknown musicians who live near his home in Nashville, and he’s reaped the benefits of this approach. As he said, ‘Working with younger musicians produced musical ideas which would never occur to me. There are voices and playing styles people might not have heard before, so I sound different on this one.’

No Hill For A Climber is another solid prog offering from the effervescent Morse, rammed full with contrast and power. Irrespective of whom he plays alongside, he always manages to conjure up something worthy. It’s an album containing only five tracks, opening and closing with two epics which together run to almost fifty minutes – it wouldn’t be a Neal Morse album without at least one epic after all, but here you get two! Opening track Eternity In Your Eyes is a mere 21 minutes, a piece which begins portentously but soon unfolds into a classic Neal Morse riff, with the music refreshingly complex and ambitious and, in parts, almost reaching Dream Theater levels of intricacy. Morse alternates vocals with Johnny Bisola, whose singing is a revelation, and the overall level of musicianship is absolutely towering. Title track No Hill For A Climber is just a tad shorter than 30 minutes, but musically it’s no less ambitious, with Morse claiming the selfish desires of society can’t hold you down if you believe in the Lord … ’just walk in his grace, you’ll walk through the door, no hill is too high, love is all.’ The track itself ends after nearly 27 minutes, then there’s a twenty second gap before a string quartet plays out for the final two minutes. One of Morse’s talents is coming up with long pieces which captivate the listener with their twists and turns, to the extent that the shorter tracks are sometimes almost insubstantial.

Of the three remaining pieces, the up-tempo All The Rage tells us that being famous isn’t everything … the starring role will never fill the God-shaped hole in you. Thief on the other hand is a slower track, though with a full-on prog workout mid track, about someone gradually taking everything you have. After an acoustic intro, the gorgeous Ever Interceding is an uplifting story about how ‘the guiding spirit’ will be ever interceding in our lives if we just believe in Him .. for one such as I, my Lord laid down his life, now he’s ever interceding. Morse has occasionally been accused of being ‘preachy’ in his lyrics. Be that as it may, there’s no doubting his standpoint here.

Morse has a track record of releasing live albums soon after the studio album, so it’s to be hoped that not only does he keep The Resonance together, but that they take this album out on the road and record it live. However, despite the undoubted quality of this album, I’m hoping this album is just Morse spreading his wings a little, and he hasn’t dispensed with NMB (Neal Morse Band), who are also a great little outfit.