Alongside the Progressive
bands and artists from the different parts of the country in Italy, Germany,
Sweden, The Netherlands, and Indonesia to name a few, I’ve always have a soft
spot for Norway. Bands like; Motorpsycho, White Willow, Hedvig Mollestad Trio,
Panzerpappa, Tusmorke, and Krokofant to name a few, they really take it into
different areas of Avant-Garde, Symphonic, Psych Folk, and Jazz Fusion like no
other.
This year in 2015, I was
blown away by an artist that carries the touches of the Progressive genre mixed
in with some Psychedelic Folk thrown into the mix. And his name is Rhys Marsh.
Rhys has released with his group, The Autumn Ghost from his four albums and he
also worked with The Opium Cartel and Kaukasus that featured Mattias Olsson
from Anglagard and White Willow on Drums, and Ketil Vestrum Einarsen from
Motorpsycho on Woodwinds and Percussion.
His solo debut album
entitled, Sentiment, is Rhys
performing all of the instruments and exploring the darkness and the chance of
hope throughout to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Opening track, Calling in the Night with the moody yet
haunting tone between the mellotron and guitar introduction, gives the chills
down the spine as Rhys’ vocals come in.
It’s almost reminded me of
Anathema’s We’re Here Because We’re Here-era
and you could tell that Rhys is almost paying homage to them on this track
while the blaring yet thumping beat per minute of 119 on Burn the Brightest Day has this wonderful touch between early Black
Sabbath and obscure prog group, Czar that almost wished Mike Pinder of the
Moody Blues could have been a part of. And he would take the Mellotron into
those areas to fit the vibe of the song.
Pictures of Ashes has this late ‘60s Beatle-sque vibe thrown in with a lukewarm yet climbing
sound with the psychedelic beauty thanks to the acoustic rhythm section that
Rhys brings into the sun. The Seventh
Face has a powerful tempo that has a moderate beat with a haunting journey
in search of the real self as the moving and comfort on The Ghost Ship brings to mind of Pink Floyd and Steven Wilson.
The percussions on the
relaxing In The Sand gives it a
dancing rhythm and not to mention the acoustic guitars going into almost an
ancient traditional Egyptian dance and not to mention a lullaby as well. There
is also a ‘80s synth-like electronic drum pattern for a perfect introduction
along with the Rhodes-like keyboards before going into the mysterious voyages
in Last November as the booming roar
of the pounding drums and mellotron come out of nowhere with the slowed down
ominous touch on Silver Light &
Blackened Eyes that shows a touch of the Crimson sound.
The closer, Give Me (What You Need) is almost the
trip back home to Earth with and into a chance for hoping to start a new
beginning as the last few minutes go into a bursting of the synths and
Mellotron that surround the ship for a chance of a new life with a reminiscent
of Seventh Wave’s Star Palace of the
Sombre Warrior.
I have listened to Rhys
Marsh’s Sentiment about four times
now and it is a real surprise to me that he has lot of potential in his music
and lyrics. He is very much like a storyteller throughout the nine compositions
he’s written. And also, this is my introduction to the label Autumnsongs Records. And I
can’t wait to check out what is on the label and see where it would take me into the next side of the other room.
Sentiment, is
for me, Rhys Marsh’s mind-blowing solo debut and I can’t wait to check out some
of The Autumn Ghost and Kaukasas adventures to name a few. So if you love bands and artist like; Czar, Pink Floyd,
Steven Wilson, and King Crimson, then I highly recommend checking out Rhys
Marsh’s Sentiment.
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