My progressive rock muse has struck again. Although I must admit I’m a little
late coming to the praise of this release. Two years to be exact. The band is
Flaming Row and the release is entitled Mirage – A Portrayal of Figures.
And the track that has me mesmerized is Pictures. Track that deals with the grief
of losing a son against the tumultuous backdrop of an alien invasion but fighting on
and starting again. The concept of a catastrophic alien attack is nothing new to our
consciousness with Steven Spielberg’s recently produced television series “Falling Skies”
running for 4 seasons coming to my mind.
Here’s a small taste of the opening lyrics from this track:
You and I
Flying through morning light
Weary to northern sky
Even at the coming of night
Just you and I
Gorgeous opening instrumentals with acoustic guitar, sax and what to this
listener’s discerning ear sounds like a Celtic flute. Although you may detect
a German accent in the inital male lead vocal that quickly dissolves into a
mixture of voices with vocal harmonies that are absolutely beautiful.
Combining all of these male and female voices is a part of the original
concept of band founder Martin Schnella. He serves as the musical composer
of this extraordinary music with Kiri Geile providing the lyrical concept and
sharing lyrical duties.
Continuing with the original concept of their debut Schnella has incorporated
many different musicians on this release. They hail from some of the more
recognizable bands of the genre like Spock’s Beard, Pain of Salvation, Enchant,
Ayreon, and Shadow Gallery to name a few but sadly probably known only to
true progressive rock fans.
Now onto the concept behind this release. The world is under siege by an alien
force who have declared war on earth. The last surviving elites fight to save
the world and vow to turn away from the greed and quest for power that has
brought the alien scourge to our planet. Now before you dismiss this as another
pretentious concept album, this musical excursion is one of aural delight. No CGI
here to look at. Just close your eyes and let your ears take it in.
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