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██▌ Artist...: Lee Abraham ░▐██▌
░▐██ Album....: Harmony/Synchronicity ░██▌░
▓▐██ Year.....: 2020 ▓▐██▓
▓▐██ Rel.Date.: 2020-12-08 ░▐██▓
▐██ Genre....: Progressive Rock ██▌░
░ ██▌ Label....: Festival Music ██▌
▐██ Source...: CD ▐██
░▐██▌ Type.....: Album ▐██▌░
▓▄████ Quality..: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo ████▌░
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1. The World is Falling Down 7:09
2. Stay 5:44
3. Hearing the Call 11:51
4. Misguided, Pt.2 (Instrumental) 7:13
5. Never Say Never 5:26
6. Rise Again 3:40
7. Harmony/Synchronicity 6:57
------
48:00
Lee Abraham is clearly on some sort of creative kick right now with a
new solo album hot on the heels of his Echo Rain instrumental project
EP, Western Skies, and not long after his release of one of the
outstanding progressive rock albums of 2019, Comatose. Whilst that was
an extended, ambitious and flowing song cycle imagining the experience
of someone in a coma following an accident, Harmony/Synchronicity is a
collection of much more accessible songs in a more AOR style with
progressive elements, similar in nature to his fine 2017 album Colours.
It seems each album is a reaction to the previous one for the now rather
prolific Abraham. ThatÆs putting aside his input into Galahad who are
currently re-releasing 1998Æs Following Ghosts in an expanded edition
with an Alternative Ghosts disc of new versions, also featuring Abraham
on guitars. Lee certainly keeps himself busy!
Harmony/Synchronicity is a collection of seven melodic rock songs of his
usual smooth style and crafted quality. Lee Abraham has now firmly
established himself as an excellent lead guitarist, and æguest
guitaristsÆ on his solo albums are now a distant memory. Additionally,
Lee is also proving himself to be pretty adept on keyboards, handling
that whole department on this album. LeeÆs trusty drummer Gerald
Mulligan is the only other additional musician, and he plays with his
usual aplomb, particularly on the atmospheric instrumental Misguided,
Pt.2, in which he performs with subtlety or power as required.
Lee has yet again recruited a set of excellent guest vocalists, and
shows his usual skill in providing different songs perfectly suited to
their respective vocal talents. Previous eminent guest singers have
included Sean Filkins (ex-Big Big Train), Steve Thorne, Gary Chandler
(Jadis), Steve Overland (FM), Dec Burke (ex-Frost* & Dust) and Robin
Armstrong (Cosmograf). Two vocalists he seems to consistently turn to
are Simon Godfrey (ex-Tinyfish, Shineback & Valdez/Tribe of Names) and
Marc Atkinson (Riversea & Moon Halo), and they return once again to
perform LeeÆs songs with their usual vocal skills and feel. To his
roster of guest vocalists (which is increasingly becoming a æWhoÆs Who
of Modern Progressive RockÆ) Lee has added Peter Jones (Tiger Moth
Tales/Red Bazar & Camel) and from his Galahad bandmates, Stuart
Nicholson and Mark Spencer. (Apparently Stuart did wonder when Lee would
ever ask him!) This is an impressive cast list and Lee gives them all
well written accessible rock songs to express themselves, ranging from
the hard rocking opening song The World is Falling Down, which seems to
refer to this yearÆs pandemic (?),handled with his usual vocal
excellence by Nicholson, to the anthemic closing number
Harmony/Synchronicity, sung with characteristic assurance by Godfrey.
LeeÆs guitar riffs and keyboards sound very Æ80s (in a good way!) on
this impressive final song, and it reaches a crescendo with a trademark
rippling and rising guitar solo from Abraham as Mulligan belts the skins
off his drums. Stay is a much gentler melodic soft rock piece, sung
smoothly by the wonderful voice of Peter Jones.
The silken voice of Marc Atkinson is entrusted with two songs on this
album, after singing the whole of the excellent Comatose last year.
Never Say Never features Abraham on piano on an opening with echoes of
The Way It Is by Bruce Hornsby, before an undulating U2-like guitar riff
takes over, whilst AtkinsonÆs warm voice sings of hopeà and we all need
some more of that these days, donÆt we? ItÆs a straightforward melodic
song and sometimes just keeping it uncomplicated is what is neededà
Atkinson could sing the phone book and it would sound just fine! Rise
Again has a slower tempo with a beguiling undulating Mellotron-like
backing and acoustic guitars from Lee. Towards the end, Lee embellishes
the song with a restrained electric guitar solo, but part of me just
wanted it kept simpler and more acoustic û sometimes less is more,
especially with the song floating on the lush Mellotron base.
The highlight of the album and itÆs most ambitious piece is Hearing the
Call which features LeeÆs bass playing Galahad bandmate Mark Spencer on
vocals, although Spencer has previously demonstrated his vocal
excellence singing with Twelfth Night, particularly one of the best
albums of 2018, the outstanding Sequences. Hearing the Call is the most
extended (and dare I say it æproggiestÆ?) song on Harmony/Synchronicity
and shows that Abraham is developing his keyboard skills in a rather
epic sounding piece. SpencerÆs impressive vocals are perfect for the
feel of this dramatic song. Halfway through, Abraham launches into a
fuel injected guitar line with Mulligan providing plenty of percussive
artillery. After a brief organ passage the tempo and intensity further
increases before the acoustic guitar æcome downÆ sweeps us into a more
stately and altogether more heroic conclusion, which is intoned
beautifully by Spencer.
Harmony/Synchronicity is an excellent collection of songs, framed in
appealing musical settings and topped off with LeeÆs scintillating
guitar work, which shines right across the album. It does not possess
the breadth or ambition of something like Comatose but perhaps wisely
Abraham does not try to repeat what he did last time. Previous albums
such as The Seasons Turn and Comatose amply demonstrate his ability to
be more ambitious in his concepts and song writing.
Part of me when listening to this album did wonder whether Lee could
æstretch the envelopeÆ a little more at times as he does seem to
following a familiar and possibly predictable pattern set by previous
albums Colours and Distant Days. However, another part of me just said
æShut up being so pretentious, and enjoy the music!Æ Perhaps in a year
which has cast a dark shadow over us all, Lee Abraham just felt he
needed to use his musical expression to be accessible, positive and
optimisticà and he succeeds with a fine album full of high-quality rock
songs û just shut up and enjoy it!
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