As we discussed before, prog came back in the 80s...if not in a big way, then at least in a noticeable way. After having its heyday in the 70's, most of its major players had either split up or moved into more commercial directions. Bands like Marillion, IQ, and Pendragon kept the spirit alive in their complex compositions, theatrics, concept pieces, and the like. It never quite took off in the same way it had in the decade prior, aside from the few hits that Marillion managed to score. But it was never like the days when Yes, ELP, Genesis, and Jethro Tull were selling out arenas and stadiums. Instead these bands managed to enjoy cult followings, which is the better end of the deal anyway. Sure, you might have to work a day job to get by, but the fanbase that you do have is totally dedicated and eager to follow you down whatever rabbit hole you might chance upon. That has allowed all the major bands of the genre to enjoy careers that extend to this day, each band creating its best work in the modern day, with each successive release.
The Nick Barrett-led Pendragon is one such band. Formed in 1978, they have been making records since 1985's The Jewel but are probably at their most relevant in the present day. While many of their albums are hailed, at least in the prog community, as masterpieces, I always found their music to be a bit hokey, and it took me ages to come around. Their music was never as rich as Marillion's nor as deep as IQ, and it took them a long time to get away from sounding dated. But something happened around the turn of the century, I'm not quite sure what, but their music suddenly got dark and, at times, quite heavy. The hooks got stronger, but were more deeply buried, surrounded by musical ideas that are both compelling and soothing. For me, that's when Pendragon got good. After not listening to them for years, I heard 2009's Pure and was instantly sold. This is a record that has its complex proggy bits and its spaced out Floyd-type bits, but also can get downright metal when the section calls for it, and then turn around and lay a catchy, poppy chorus or guitar lead on ya, before launching into some other clever bit. While they never get as heavy or as technical as Dream Theater, they manage to thrash much harder than any of their peers, most of whom would never even try. Obviously that lends a certain level of energy to the record, particularly in the 17-minute "Comatose", which manages to move from Metallica to Zeppelin to Sgt. Pepper in the span of about two minutes, before driving into the "Space Cadet" section, which could have been a single on its own.
The opening track, the epic "Indigo" is a most perfect introduction to the band, featuring pretty much every example of the band's style shifts. One of my favorite pieces by them, this starts off dark and states its intent right off the bat. After thirteen minutes, this wisely moves into "Eraserhead" which has a bit of a Porcupine Tree feel, and is another one that rages at the right times and spaces out just as well. "The Freak Show" is a shorter number that I actually covered on my album, The Big Cover-Up. Where my version stripped the song all the way to its barest core and rebuilt it in a very stripped-down form, the version here is dense and clever, featuring a majestic intro, full of dystopian metal riffs and soaring guitar melodies that resolves itself into a really great song. Obviously a quick favorite of mine. The lyric isn't perfect, and I honestly would have developed this song even further, but there is a lot of emotion behind these words and what's here is a hell of good idea.
That seems to be a recurring theme, as Barrett's weakness lies in his lyrics. It's not always the case, but sometimes there is a lyric that just doesn't quite nail it. It's clear what he's saying but sometimes I think it could be said better. But for every clumsy lyric, there are a dozen brilliant musical ideas, and that really makes up for it. Barrett is a clever, and quite underrated, guitar player and a seemingly endless fount of contrasting ideas which he fits together perfectly. His production skills are also astounding. I am pretty sure this album was recorded in home studios but it sounds phenomenal (a hell of a lot better than my own, home-recorded albums, that's for damn sure). Lots of tricky bits in the mix, different layers and such. He probably spent longer on the mix than anything else here, but it pays off.
Since I first listened to this album, I've gone backwards and forwards in their discography, pinpointed exactly when they got cool (2005's Believe) and then found them just getting better from there on out. 2011 brought Passion which features "This Green And Pleasant Land", perhaps their best song ever, while 2014's Men Who Climb Mountains is a masterpiece. One of these days I will give their early work another go. It's just hard when you have albums like Pure that are damn near perfect.
Just sayin'...
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