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░ ██ ██ Artist: Glass Hammer ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: The Breaking of the World █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2015 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2015-10-10 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Progressive Rock ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Sound Resources ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Album ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ It's hard to believe that American symphonic prog █
█ band Glass Hammer are now sixteen studio releases █
█ into their career after forming in 1992, and with █
█ no signs of slowing down, it's even more █
█ impressive that they're still as exciting, █
█ inspired and creative as ever. 1995's `Perelandra' █
█ was the first to hint at true signs of great █
█ potential, and each album since then has shown the █
█ group and the various musicians that contribute to █
█ the core line up of bass player Steve Babb and █
█ keyboardist Fred Schendel becoming more ambitious, █
█ gradually growing in maturity and musical █
█ intelligence. `Chronometree', `Lex Rex' and the █
█ double CD `The Inconsolable Secret' (which just █
█ may be a true modern symphonic prog classic) were █
█ all big leaps forward for the band, and the █
█ addition of future Yes frontman Jon Davison for █
█ the trio of albums `If', `Cor Cordium' and █
█ `Perilous' certainly lifted the profile of the █
█ band. But with Jon busy with `the other fellas' █
█ and another reworked line-up of the band in place █
█ since previous album `Ode to Echo', 2015 brings █
█ one of Glass Hammer's most deceptively complex, █
█ lavish and sophisticated works to date with `The █
█ Breaking of the World'. █
█ This current version of the band is now led █
█ vocally again by Carl Groves, making this his █
█ third contribution after fronting 2009's `Culture █
█ of Ascent' and returning with last year's `Ode to █
█ Echo'. Considering this might be Glass Hammer's █
█ most vocal dominated release to date, thankfully █
█ Carl remains the very natural and expressive █
█ singer he always was, and is more than up to the █
█ challenge of so many different kinds of vocal █
█ passages here. In addition to Steve Babb, simply █
█ one of the most distinctive and dynamic bass █
█ players in modern prog, Fred Schendel's variety of █
█ colourful keyboard flavours and Aaron Raulston's █
█ elaborate drumming, two other musicians help make █
█ this one of the most exotic Glass Hammer release █
█ to date. Guitarist Alan Shikoh is now six albums █
█ into his career with the band, and this time his █
█ warm acoustic guitars especially are given more █
█ prominence than ever before, and guest Steve Unruh █
█ of Willowglass and the Samurai of Prog offers █
█ crucial and exquisite flute and violin █
█ contributions that really help define the identity █
█ of this particular Hammer release (although the █
█ violin here shares similarities with Carl's first █
█ album with the group and its use of the string █
█ trio, the heavy guitar sound of that one is █
█ absent). Finally, of course, the sensual, █
█ compassionate and evocative voice of Susie █
█ Bogdanowicz made a very welcome comeback on █
█ `Echo', and in her few lead moments here she █
█ reminds in an instant why she has become one of █
█ the truly essential, defining elements that makes █
█ up the Glass Hammer sound. █
█ `The Breaking of the World' is a continuation of █
█ the sound of the previous studio disc, and like █
█ all of their albums, listeners will find a strong █
█ collection of unpredictable symphonic vintage █
█ flavoured prog rock with wondrous melodies from █
█ soaring vocals and complex energetic instrumental █
█ displays, along with those couple of standout █
█ moments that go on to become something of classic █
█ Glass Hammer pieces. An energetic blast of █
█ spiralling keyboards, busy drumming, driving █
█ guitars and buoyant bass charge through the █
█ three-part opener `Mythopoeia', and an acoustic █
█ passage simply backing Carl's plaintive voice in █
█ the middle interlude is a thing of fragile beauty. █
█ Although it starts with prancing flute and regal █
█ organ pomp with a sprightly spring in its step, █
█ the lyrics of `Babylon' about the `stench of █
█ morality, real or imagined, reeking like burning █
█ hair' and `Pious Judases, let them all burn in the █
█ world they hold dear' takes things to darker and █
█ more confronting places. █
█ Despite a cutting and biting lyric, energetic █
█ vibes race through the peppy and infectious █
█ `Bandwagon', the closest the band comes to a █
█ Yes-style piece here with some added frantic █
█ violin, and `Northwind' floats on mellow dreamy █
█ uplifting breezes. The band's quirky sense of █
█ humour is firmly on display on `A Bird When It █
█ Sneezes', a barely thirty second glimpse of an █
█ addictive instrumental jazz/fusion spasm! Come on, █
█ Fred and Steve, give us a full album of the Glass █
█ Hammer interpretation of jazz/fusion sometime in █
█ the future! Actually, the band come close anyway █
█ on the album closer `Nothing, Everything', which █
█ moves in and out of gently grooving jazzy █
█ instrumental runs in between Mellotron/Hammond █
█ flights of fancy and a very spirited joyful █
█ chorus. █
█ But as for those classic Glass Hammer pieces that █
█ appear on every disc, `Third Floor' is already a █
█ bit of a firm favourite among GH fans, and with █
█ good reason! Endless symphonic instrumental █
█ passages jumping back and forth and a lovely █
█ variety of vocals from Susie, Fred and Carl convey █
█ a baffling fantastical story about a (wait for █
█ it!) sentient elevator and the man travelling █
█ inside her! It's oddly sadly romantic, slyly █
█ humorous and perhaps even a little darkly █
█ obsessive, lines such as `I feel you in my █
█ circuits, but it's fleeting, and now you're gone. █
█ Use me and complete me then just leave me all █
█ alone' and `All encompassing, I stand in the heart █
█ of her, she takes me higher and higher' are all █
█ delivered with tragic conviction! █
█ While Prog bands, and Glass Hammer themselves, are █
█ certainly no stranger to fantastical lyrics, it's █
█ when they move beyond that and offer something █
█ more grounded that true magic can happen. `Sand', █
█ with a deeply personal and quietly reflective █
█ lyric written by Fred and mostly carried by his █
█ sparse warm piano, is one of the most genuinely █
█ heartfelt moments to appear yet on a Glass Hammer █
█ album, beautifully sung by Carl. Later in the █
█ disc, the sublime `Haunted' is a melancholic █
█ standout not only for Susie's voice, but it shows █
█ the band playing with careful restraint, knowing █
█ when to keep things simple and just deliver a █
█ piece with great taste. It feels like it could █
█ have easily fit in on the second disc of `The █
█ Inconsolable Secret', and is truly a very moving █
█ solo showcase for Susie. █
█ Is this one of Glass Hammer's best albums to date, █
█ to place alongside those above mentioned standout █
█ titles from their back catalogue? As always with █
█ this band, it's a little too early to tell, but a █
█ few years and more releases from now will likely █
█ answer that question. Yet there is no doubt it's █
█ one of their most varied, intricate and joyful █
█ works, and is the embodiment of the sort of album █
█ that really needs time devoted to it, the kind █
█ that always ends up being the most rewarding in █
█ your collection. But for now, there's no denying █
█ `The Breaking of the World' is another superb █
█ release from one of modern prog's leading █
█ symphonic groups. █
█ █
█ --- █
█ █
█ Other than their epic contribution to 2005's █
█ Colossus Magazine-Musea Records project, Odyssey: █
█ The Greatest Tale--which is one of the best modern █
█ symphonic pieces I've ever heard--I've had quite a █
█ bit of difficulty connecting with the music of █
█ Glass Hammer. I have heard many of their albums █
█ according to recommendations of friends and other █
█ PA and PE members but have not been able to █
█ connect with any. While technical masters, their █
█ sound styling has been just too imitative of █
█ classic YES for me. How can I love WOBBLER's Rites █
█ at Dawn and not connect with any of Glass Hammer's █
█ work? I think, as I said, it is the band's nearly █
█ exact recreation of the sounds and playing styles █
█ of Chris SQUIRE, Bill BRUFORD, Steve Howe, and Yes █
█ harmonies that irritate me. With Wobbler, there is █
█ an awesome melding of the CROSBY, STILL, NASH & █
█ YOUNG singing styles, much less exact imitation of █
█ Squire and Bruford, and much more of a Steven █
█ STILLS lead guitar sound and style that Steve █
█ Howe. Anyway, this is all a moot topic for this █
█ was then, and today I'm writing a review of Glass █
█ Hammer's latest album, The Breaking of the World. █
█ As Aussie-Byrd-Brother mentioned, this is a much █
█ more diverse sounding album from Glass Hammer--not █
█ as tightly bound to YESsounds, which makes it more █
█ interesting for me. Songs like the jazzy snippet, █
█ "A Bird When It Sneezes" (0:34) (8/10) and the █
█ more laid back and melody-driven, "Sand" (5:46) █
█ (9/10) and even parts of the opener "Mythopeia" █
█ (8:34) (8/10) are much less Yes-complicated. But, █
█ then, this more simplistic approach makes them █
█ sound like 'prog-by-numbers' 'mainstream' NeoProg █
█ bands like IQ. The song which gives Glass Hammer █
█ their most distinctly 'unique' sound is the █
█ album's finale, "Nothing, Everything" (8:50) █
█ (9/10) which has some very jazzy chord and melody █
█ lines as well as several very interesting and █
█ engaging shifts in dynamics and keys. "Babylon █
█ (7:56) (8/10), "Bandwagon" (6:20) (6/10) and █
█ "North Wind" (9:26) (7/10) are examples of the █
█ band's not straying too far from the usual █
█ YES-with-ART IN AMERICA (Chris FLYNN)-vocals █
█ sound. Then there is the odd duck--which happens █
█ to be the jewel of the album--the stunning, █
█ "Haunted" (5:55) (10/10) which has a sound all its █
█ own--more RPI than Neo- or RetroProg--which is due █
█ to both the more FRANCESCO ZAGO/EMPTY DAYS sound █
█ as well as the gorgeous and highly underutilized █
█ female lead vocal of long-time adjunct member █
█ Susie Bogdanowicz. In conclusion, this is █
█ definitely a step in the right direction for my █
█ ears. The contributions of "Haunted," "Nothing, █
█ Everything," and even "Sand" bring the music of █
█ Glass Hammer much closer to my liking. █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. Mythopoeia 8:34 ░
░ 2. Third Floor 11:03 ░
░ 3. Babylon 7:55 ░
░ 4. A Bird When it Sneezes 0:34 ░
░ 5. Sand 5:46 ░
░ 6. Bandwagon 6:19 ░
░ 7. Haunted 5:54 ░
░ 8. North Wind 9:25 ░
░ 9. Nothing, Everything 8:49 ░
░ 64:19 ░
░ ▒ ▒
▓ █ ░ ▓ ░
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