Customer Reviews

Alaska

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought this, based upon dropping in on the Alaska web page. The samples on the page drove me to buy this CD. I think John O'Hara is one hell of a keyboardist. Al Lewis is a great drummer. However, Al's vocals left me less than impressed. While he might sound like Jon Anderson, he does not have the timbre and tune carrying capability. I think his vocals do a dis-service to the music. The music is great. It is either Al is trying too hard, or that they should have gotten a good prog singer. Al Lewis is no John Wetton, or even close to a Jon Anderson. Alaska should get a new voice.

This is the first album by the duo of John O'Hara and Al Lewis (presumably not the same Al Lewis who played Grandpa on "The Munsters"). The album is dominated by O'Hara's fine symphonic keyboards. O'Hara appears to have been heavily influenced by Keith Emerson. The singer, Lewis, sounds like Jon Anderson on an off day. At first, the similarity to Jon Anderson bothered me, but I finally got used to the vocals. Once I got used to the vocals, this album grew on me. There are no great songs on the album, but there are several good ones. The three best songs (Tiananmen Square, WellsBridge, and Forests of Heaven) are long songs at the end of the album. With the Emerson and Anderson influences, there is a decidedly 70's feel to the album, but that is not meant as a criticism. There is virtually no guitar on the album, which is a drawback. Overall, however, this is a good first effort that is recommended to fans of 1970's progressive rock.

Yes, Lewis sounds like Jon Anderson, but I have no problem with that. The playing (keyboard and drums) is excellent, and the songs are dense and moody. But it lacks intensity. It is mostly mid-tempo stuff that creates great soundscapes but little excitement. Just as I would not care for too much intensity, too little leaves me unsatisfied.

This duo is from a local town in my area,...and it's nice to see their hand-made album available here.

There are two things of note here. Number one is that this is purely a work from two hard-core prog-rock lovers. This is a set of songs made straight from their love of the genre and straight from their hearts. Yes,it's a duo! They really can play all of this live too. How many prog-rock duos can you name off the top of your head? Here is a set of original songs that are in the vein of classics like ELP and the vocals are very much like Jon Anderson's(more here on that next),so if you don't like those sounds this is not for you. But if you like classic prog-rock,...and you'd like to support two "dreamers" of that era's sound,...this will not disappoint. Oh yes, "thing of note" NUMBER TWO,....Al Lewis the vocalist here is now Starcastle's singer! A nice "pat on the back" for our local man,....and proof that he does have the vocal chops needed for bigger things. Hear Starcastle's "Song of Times" for that proof.

No,they don't "break new ground",but they have made a nice new set of tunes that will send you back to music's more elaborate era of sounds. As I've said this isn't built-up from layers of recording,they have played this live and it sounds full and even symphonic in parts. The amount of passion and musical virtuosity displayed by this "couple of local guys" should make any dreamer proud of what they've accomplished. "Great album guys!" ,I say,...and damn if they didn't do it all with their own paychecks and their hearts on their sleeves for all to see too!

Like someone else said here in a review(in many more words,'though...),...."Now where's the next album,guys?" This one's for all the people who can appreciate all the hard work it takes to pull off a beautiful DIY release like this. File this under "Local dreamers do well"!!

Sorry for the low rate, but this work doesn't add any thing else in comparison to the greatest works of symphonic prog ... The timbre of the vocalist is a bit resembling that one of Jon Anderson by Yes; otherwise this recent US band, sounding in the middle rightly between Yes and ELP, hasn't composed an original debut album, nor They have showed any new fresh idea in the usual symphonic themes of the keyboards.Yet I trust this band, talking about their next productions... of course now there isn't any track which can be remarked by means of a special mention, nor this album stimulates an enthusiastic opinion: but if you look at other similar US bands(such as Cairo, Mastermind or the argentinian Nexus), at their debut They were criticized in the same manner, becoming more interesting afterwards ... for this reason also Alaska, in the prosecution of their career, perhaps will grow and produce something more original and personal.
We look forward to hearing something fresh by one modern symphonic band under the leading course of PROG MUSIC(listen for example to the fantastic ensemble of After Crying -for these latter such label being absolutely appropriate to describe their incredible style- or to another great band, Isildurs Bane, coming from another planet!!)

STAY ALERTED ABOUT THE POSSIBLE GROWTH OF THIS BAND IN THE FUTURE!!