This photo taken from underneath one of those lattice bridges.
The Gift started out way back in the mists of 2006 (has it really been over a decade?) as the brainchild of frontman Mike Morton, who recruited guitarist Leroy James for the project's debut double album Awake and Dreaming. (That link will take you to the 2016 remastered version.) Since then the group has seen a number of departures and arrivals, and its current lineup is much refreshed and up to six members, but, at the time of Land of Shadows, The Gift were primarily a trio: Mike primarily on vocals and keyboards, his son Joseph Morton on drums, and David Lloyd on guitars and bass.
Land of Shadows came out in May 2014, a full seven and a half years after Awake and Dreaming, but numerous interruptions and commitments hadn't kept Mike from working hard on new material, and it shows. Have a listen to this:
If I had to choose one word to describe this album, it'd be "careful", and not in the backhanded sense of being overcautious and unimaginative. The amount of work that's gone into honing and refining these pieces, both lyrically and musically, is evident on every single track, perhaps most of all in the twenty-minute epic 'The Comforting Cold'. But Land of Shadows never feels clinical or over-engineered - the spark of raw emotion is still very much present.
Genre-wise, The Gift are symphonic prog writ large, with movements, layers, and clarity despite the diversity. Both the two long tracks and the handful of shorter ones display a keen sense of purpose and method - this is not kitchen-sink music, and everything that's present is present for a reason. It's a system that works on heavier, rockier songs as well as lighter ones, and helps both fit comfortably together on the album.
Land of Shadows was critically acclaimed, with Progarchives special collaborator tszirmay giving it a comfortable four and a half stars for providing "a new adventure to place under the gilded prog tree". Bryan Morey at Progarchy called it a "true masterpiece" and one of his favourite albums of 2014, and Martin Hutchinson (rest assured, this was before he joined the BEM crew) gave an album he called "tantamount to genius" a glowing writeup and a perfect score!
What have The Gift been up to since then? Well, we released their third album, Why The Sea Is Salt, in October 2016 to another warm reception and very strong sales. And, again, they're about to start work on some exciting new material, so we'll keep you posted on their progress there.
In the meantime, it's a very good time to check out Land of Shadows, because, between our archive discount and the January Sale, it's the cheapest it's ever been at just four English pounds, and that's for a physical copy! Head on over to the webstore to grab yourself a slice of symphonic prog perfection today.
Status Update
Our first release of 2018, A Map in Fragments by new signing Tonochrome, is available to preorder now with one preview track already up and running. It's a very strong first showing from the art-rock quintet and we can't wait to get the rest of their material out to you. As usual, grab 'em while they're hot!
Fractal Mirror have been on the air recently, showcasing some new music from their upcoming fourth album, Close to Vapour. With appearances on ProgCore Radio on Thursday and House Of Prog on Friday, they've had a pretty busy week, and those who caught them on either stream are no doubt excited for the impending preorder and release.
Last but definitely not least, The Fierce And The Dead have released a brand new music video for 'Truck', the lead single from their impending third studio album The Euphoric. The track will be available to buy, and the album ready for preorder, very soon, but you can give the video a watch and a listen right now exclusively on the PROG magazine website.
Review Roundup
Alison Reijman over at Background Magazine gave Murder and Parliament a spin recently, and liked what she heard, praising a successful "scattergun approach" to composition and a skillful transition from vocals to instrumentals.
And, over in France, praise for The Divine Abstract continues, as Profil gives it an 8/10 for offering "a lot of possibilities... you just have to discover them".
No comments:
Post a Comment