This is not an album for everyone, but it’s most certainly a very interesting listen. The album starts on an unusual note for Gentle Giant in general. A quite under produced vocal performance surrounded by quite pristine instrumentations. As such, from the first few seconds you find out what Gentle Giant are all about. This is music for the sake of music; it’s for them as much as it is for us, which makes for an incredibly interesting listen.
You’ll immediately notice a lot of recurring melodies through a lot of differing instrumentation, adding a lot of depth to a great song. Funny Ways is far much more like the Gentle Giant most people know, the vocals are crisp and pristine, but still retain just that little edge of weird. I love everything that’s going on in the background here. The brief guitar solo here are very much reminiscent of the late 60’s British blues, and it’s always an unexpected turn.
Of course Gentle Giant aren’t a typical prog band. The songs aren’t all about virtuosity, solos and side long epics. For Gentle Giant, they were all about finely crafting songs for the sake of the songs, not the instruments within. This quality about the band is showcased very well on Alucard. Some very interesting synthesisers and vocal production makes it a very enjoyable and refreshing listen. But before you judge, and say “oh synthesisers, I bet they’ll sound like yes”. Not so, the synths here actually sound like synthesisers! There’s nothing much symphonic about them. You’ll be treated to a jazz style freak out at the end of Alucard here, and I must say it is a delightful way to introduce the next track.
And speaking of delightful Isn’t it Quiet and Cold? Serves as a lovely, cello-filled, interlude between the more demanding prog. More specifically Nothing at All, the longest song of the album features some of the more beautiful vocal harmonies and guitar melodies that you’ll find on any Gentle Giant song. Featured on this song is perhaps one of the most enjoyable drum solos you’ll ever find. Backed up by a wonderful keyboard performance by Kerry Minnear which fades from left to right and back again in a wonderful rollercoaster of production. It really is so good that you’ll want to replay the track to experience it again.
The album then takes yet another twist with Why Not? and we end up with some late 60’s style hard rock. Which quickly changes yet again to keep you on your toes, and once again cements Gentle Giant’s place as one of the more fun prog bands. Speaking of fun, ever wanted to hear the British anthem played on guitar? No? Seriously? Oh, well they do that to end this album off.
There are many strong points of this album, and it’s one hell of a debut, it can hold it’s own in the world of prog. But can it hold it’s own against the rest of Gentle Giant’s classic albums?
8.5/10