Great (four stars out of five)
Sometimes, an album is released that, according to the laws of probability, never should have been released. It's not because it doesn't deserve to be released, but rather because all of the odds are against it, and the obstacles in its way seem insurmountable. In the case of Andrew Gorczyca's album "Reflections: An Act of Glass," the world should be very glad that these obstacles were indeed overcome. Gorczyca's album is a fun and wholly enjoyable record that stands in stark contrast to the tragic story behind it.
Andrew Gorczyca passed away at only 40 years old during a night in 2004, leaving behind some great, though unfinished, songs. Chris, Andrew's younger brother, knew that the music was worthy of an audience and gathered some of the best players and vocalists from around the progressive rock world to complete the album. With a roster that includes Enchant's Ted Leonard, Spock's Beard's Nick D’Virgilio, Dave Meros and Ryo Okumoto, Adrian Belew, and Phil Keaggy, the album got just what it needed to bring it to completion--and in an impressive way.
The sound on this album is similar to the more poppy and upbeat names in the progressive rock world. Some songs sound a bit like Rush, while other could come from a Saga album. Unsurprisingly, there's a bit of a Spock's Beard sound to some of the songs as well. Through this combination, the album does manage to craft its own sound; the songs are fairly straightforward pieces in terms of song structure, though the instrumental performances are all strong.
The songs themselves are all quite enjoyable, and there's enough variety here--largely due to the rotating collaborators--to keep the album interesting. The record gets off to a great start with the Nick D'Virgilio-fronted "The Tall Tale Heart" which is also the album's longest track by far at over eight minutes. The song has a wonderful driving melody that starts as the leading instrumental melody, which later becomes the main vocal melody. Nick gives one of the album's best vocal performances here, and manages to give a good introduction to the album's tone: upbeat music, even if the lyrical content isn't necessarily happy (in this case, the song is about deception). Other highlights on the album include the two songs fronted by Enchant's Ted Leonard, who provides some of his most accessible vocal work in years on "Give it Time" (which sounds a bit like a cross between Rush and his work with Xen) and "Peasant Under Class."
The mix and production on this album also deserve special mention. The mix achieves a perfect balance between all of the various instruments, especially the bass, which too often gets lost in the mix or pushed to the back in progressive rock albums. The bass is on full display here--which is fortunate considering the high quality of the bass lines.
The faults of this album are few. For one, some listeners may be turned off by the relatively short length of the songs and of the album as a whole. Most songs are right around the four-to-six-minute mark, and the album contains only eight songs. However, this is a fairly easy fault to overlook, as these are the sorts of songs that you'll want to play over and over again. Lastly, the album's final track, "All Fixed (Predestination)," doesn't quite match the quality of the rest of the album's songs. It contains the weakest of the album's vocal performances, and the songwriting isn't quite as strong due to a somewhat weak and repetitive vocal melody in the chorus.
Considering the circumstances surrounding the creation of this album, it's impressive that this package was able to come together at all. Yet the album's true accomplishment is that even when considered apart from its great roster and inspiring history, you're left with a wholly satisfying 42-minute musical experience with a wide appeal. Reflections: An Act of Glass is the sort of album that grabs you from the very beginning and stays with you for a very long time. I have to think that Andrew would have loved the final product that this album became, and I think many listeners will share the sentiment.
Andrew Kauz
www.progressivemelodies.com
Andrew Gorczyca passed away at only 40 years old during a night in 2004, leaving behind some great, though unfinished, songs. Chris, Andrew's younger brother, knew that the music was worthy of an audience and gathered some of the best players and vocalists from around the progressive rock world to complete the album. With a roster that includes Enchant's Ted Leonard, Spock's Beard's Nick D’Virgilio, Dave Meros and Ryo Okumoto, Adrian Belew, and Phil Keaggy, the album got just what it needed to bring it to completion--and in an impressive way.
The sound on this album is similar to the more poppy and upbeat names in the progressive rock world. Some songs sound a bit like Rush, while other could come from a Saga album. Unsurprisingly, there's a bit of a Spock's Beard sound to some of the songs as well. Through this combination, the album does manage to craft its own sound; the songs are fairly straightforward pieces in terms of song structure, though the instrumental performances are all strong.
The songs themselves are all quite enjoyable, and there's enough variety here--largely due to the rotating collaborators--to keep the album interesting. The record gets off to a great start with the Nick D'Virgilio-fronted "The Tall Tale Heart" which is also the album's longest track by far at over eight minutes. The song has a wonderful driving melody that starts as the leading instrumental melody, which later becomes the main vocal melody. Nick gives one of the album's best vocal performances here, and manages to give a good introduction to the album's tone: upbeat music, even if the lyrical content isn't necessarily happy (in this case, the song is about deception). Other highlights on the album include the two songs fronted by Enchant's Ted Leonard, who provides some of his most accessible vocal work in years on "Give it Time" (which sounds a bit like a cross between Rush and his work with Xen) and "Peasant Under Class."
The mix and production on this album also deserve special mention. The mix achieves a perfect balance between all of the various instruments, especially the bass, which too often gets lost in the mix or pushed to the back in progressive rock albums. The bass is on full display here--which is fortunate considering the high quality of the bass lines.
The faults of this album are few. For one, some listeners may be turned off by the relatively short length of the songs and of the album as a whole. Most songs are right around the four-to-six-minute mark, and the album contains only eight songs. However, this is a fairly easy fault to overlook, as these are the sorts of songs that you'll want to play over and over again. Lastly, the album's final track, "All Fixed (Predestination)," doesn't quite match the quality of the rest of the album's songs. It contains the weakest of the album's vocal performances, and the songwriting isn't quite as strong due to a somewhat weak and repetitive vocal melody in the chorus.
Considering the circumstances surrounding the creation of this album, it's impressive that this package was able to come together at all. Yet the album's true accomplishment is that even when considered apart from its great roster and inspiring history, you're left with a wholly satisfying 42-minute musical experience with a wide appeal. Reflections: An Act of Glass is the sort of album that grabs you from the very beginning and stays with you for a very long time. I have to think that Andrew would have loved the final product that this album became, and I think many listeners will share the sentiment.
Andrew Kauz
www.progressivemelodies.com
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