Transatlantic's The Whirlwind

[kamakiriad7]

I just wanted to put in a plug for the new Transatlantic album, a concept album called "The Whirlwind". Any prog-rock fan will love it! It's very well-written, as one would expect from the boys, but there's a real freshness on this album. Considering the fact that the last cut came out in 2001, and Neal Morse (keyboards/vocals) has quit Spock's Beard and became a born-again christian, it's both different and similar at the same time to their other work.

And Pete Trewavas - what a player! I usually don't like aggressive tones or pickstyle playing (I play a rosewood pbass), but I love his tone. He's got Warwicks in the photos on the album, and there's a real character to every note he plays. Great bass lines, too: chordally-ambiguous ostinatos, straight-8th grooving, odd-time funky stuff, tapped harmonics, and so on.

For anyone who likes prog-rock, this album is an absolute must. Get the 2-disc version: there are 4 new individual Transatlantic songs on it, and 4 covers of songs by Genesis, Procul Harum, The Beatles, and Santana.

And for anyone who's never heard of Transatlantic, Spock's Beard, Dream Theater, Marillion, or the Flower Kings... well, here's a year's worth of great music to seek out.

[Trapezius]

Yeah, I love the album. I don't know if I like it better than the first two albums, but it's amazing. Pete's tone is much brighter on this one. I kinda prefer the Rick tone he had on the last one (at least I think it's a Rick, it really sounds like it, plus I know he used one live sometimes).
But the songs.. wow! Those guys are just perfect together. I love their bands as well.
One thing I noticed, it's doesn't sound a lot like old Spock's Beard anymore. I think Neal wrote a LOT of the first two albums. This is different.

[Rich L]

Diggin' it!