| Track by Track Review
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Meeting House Green, Pt. 1
This introductory piece features creepy cinematic music at first. Then some acoustic guitar rises up with musical themes that are more melancholy, but almost Celtic and proggy. There are balladic vocals here. |
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Scene 1
This a short bit of monologue that creates some of the theatrics of the trial. |
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Rumors
A chiming bell opens this. Then the music pounds in, making it feel like we might be headed to a metal tune. From there it drops back to atmospherics. As it builds out we definitely get a jam that fits under the heading “symphonic rock.” Creepy operatic vocals lend a bit of a European epic metal vibe. Then, around the two and a half minute mark, it fires out to a jam that’s quite metallic. Still, there are enough shifts and turns and proggy quirks in the arrangement to keep it from landing under the metal heading. More of those vocals come in later and the piece drops to symphonic, cinematic textures to continue. This massive piece (it’s over ten minutes long) is epic in scope as well as size. It works through various changes. There is a full on prog jam, with some killer keyboard sounds, later in the number and various sections come and go and then return in reworked sections. |
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Scene 2
This is another theatrical snippet, from the trial. |
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Accusations
A frantic, nearly metal jam starts this almost nine and a half minute song. It drops to pretty balladic keyboard elements to continue. It comes up from there in another rather metallic jam, this time feeling a lot like Pink Floyd. Like the previous extended piece, this one is all over the musical map. At times it’s metallic.At times it’s more atmospheric. There’s even a jazzy space rock jam later in the number. |
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Meeting House Green, Pt. 2 – 4
This piece runs over five minutes in length. The first section is a ballad-like movement with various vocals portraying different characters. It’s similar in a lot of ways to the first part heard earlier. They turn things to a more symphonic treatment as it continues. After that we get sort of a return to the musical modes of the first part of this. Then it works out to some harder rock progressive rock as the musical themes and lyrical concepts continue. |
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Scene 3
We get another theatrical scene here. |
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Verdict
This fires out with the most metallic bits of the set so far. Still, there is plenty of progressive rock in the mix. As it builds out and some more choral vocals are heard singing “guilty” this has a definite theatric air to it. Then it fires out to some vintage styled progressive rock jamming. |
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Scene 4
This is another cinematic bit. |
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Incarceration
This comes in mellow, sad and symphonic. It’s completely instrumental and never rises above the level of symphonic. |
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Scene 5
Here is another short cinematic bit. |
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Voyage
This bouncy number feels like a Celtic sea shanty at the start. Then a minute or so in it fires out to some seriously metallic jamming that still falls into the progressive rock side. After a time those two sounds are merged together as this jam continues. It feels a bit like something from Tempest to me. |
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Meeting House Green, Pt. 5
This is a short piece tied to the other “Meeting House Green” pieces. |
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Ghost
Starting sad and atmospheric, spoken vocals are accompanied by the mournful wailing of the ghost. The song builds out in spacey, atmospheric progressive rock from there. The flute later begs comparisons to Jethro Tull, but this almost like Pink Floyd with Ian Anderson playing over the top. After a section with choral styled vocals we get a rise up to rather metallic territory. More of those choral vocals emerge over the top of this and then a killer melodic crunch guitar solo is heard. Later in the piece we get some cool funky bass work. Then, one of the most intriguing things emerges later, a talk box guitar solo that is just plain cool. This is another epic piece and it works out to some symphonic prog with choral vocals later and then a fiery metallic guitar solo section emerges. |
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Scene 6
This scene is all about Goody Cole getting proclaimed innocent centuries later. |
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Exoneration
Pretty much a purely symphonic instrumental, this is a great way to bring things to a close.
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