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Progressive Rock CD Reviews

Space Mirrors

The Street Remains

Review by Gary Hill

This album was released just before Cosmic Horror III: Stella Polaris but recorded during the same sessions as that album. This one lands a bit less metallic than that album. Nik Turner is again featured here, but only on one song, the closing "Rituals of Shub-Niggurath."  One song ("The Ancient Ones") was a hidden track on the full album. As such, I've modified the track review from that one for use here for the sake of consistency. There are three cover songs here (including that one). There is also an extended version of a song from the other 2015 release. Rounding the set off are two previously unreleased tracks. While this fits more neatly under prog, it does still have some metallic elements at play.

This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) form in Music Street Journal: 2018  Volume 3. More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2018.

Track by Track Review
In The Blood
This is an extended version of a song that was included on the Stella Polaris album. Trippy dark space rock sounds open this. It fires out with a metallic edge and drive. The cut balances between a more rocking, industrial vibe and a mellower dropped back movement. They use the extra time here to make this a more dynamic and complex piece of music.
The Ancient Ones
This song was included as a hidden track on Stella Polaris. Here's what I said about it there: It's a cover of a song originally done by Morbid Angel. This is fierce and metallic. Yet there is a Goth rock meets space vibe built into it, too.
I Breathe
This is a cover of a song that was originally recorded by a band called "Vacuum."  Keyboards lead it off. The cut gets a bit of a reggae vibe as the rhythm section joins. As it works out from there it turns toward more of the kind of crunchy rock that one expects from this act. After the half-way point on this some tasty keyboard jamming takes it for a short time. There is a bit of electronic pop edge to the closing section here.
Bad Things
This song is a new version of the theme song from the series "True Blood." It's originally performed by Jace Everett. I dig the Americana meets punky hard rock sound on this thing. It's a killer cut. It has some definite prog brought into by the keyboard presence. The drop back to spoken lyrics section is quite trippy.
Earth Gods Dance
Progressive rock and space music and more merge on this number. It has some definite trippy sounds at play. It is dark, but also so cool. It's keyboard laden and yet has a bit of a techno edge to it. In fact, trippy keyboards bring it into being, but the cut works out from there to more pure space rock.
Rituals of Shub-Niggurath
The sounds that start this are quite spacey with winds blowing amidst symphonic keyboard textures. A spoken vocal line that almost feels like chanting at the start enters as the piece moves forward. After that section works through, the cut moves out toward some cool space textures that have both world music and jazz elements at play. Nik Turner's saxophone is all over this thing. There are definite middle Eastern elements at play on this. As it shifts to spacier stuff later, Turner turns from saxophone to flute. It eventually grows out to more rocking territory as it continues. Around the eleven minute mark (the song is more than 15 and a half minutes long) it drops way down and only the wind from the beginning remains. Then some musical elements rise up in a distinctly mellow progressive rock way. Some rather noisy guitar skirts around the edges of the trippy space music backdrop as it works forward. Some freaky processed vocals join after a while. That section eventually takes it to the end. Other than those more or less spoken vocals at the beginning and end, this is an instrumental.
  
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