Customer Reviews

Fly Paper

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

 

 

Once again, Tiles for their fifth release certainly delivers. It has all the elements that one has come to expect from this group. I've had this album as a download for about a month now from a mp3 website overseas that actually had it for sale (don't know how they got it or if the band even knows about this site - maybe the band leaked it out) so I've had the pleasure of listening to it before the official release. Overall, not a bad song here and it stills carries their prog type sound. Missing though is the one song that would stand out as their epic song from this cd, but that shouldn't prevent you from picking this up. The guest appearances on this album , as stated in the previous review are there, but very hard to tell if they really influenced the band on this album. If you like progressive, but don't like it extremely heavy then check out Tiles and you'll be pleasantly surprised by their unique take on the prog world. It's always great to see when a band can deliver album after album, making them different from their predecessor, but also giving the listener the quality that one has come to expect from the band. Great job!

This Detroit based band has released the first great progressive rock album of 2008. Considering their close proximity to Canada, its not a stretch to say that there is a strong Canadian influence/connection. Three major Canadian artists (Alex Lifeson, Kim Mitchell, and Alannah Myles) from around the Toronto area (about a 4 hour drive from Detroit) make a guest appearance on this disc. Add to that the groups STRONG resemblance to Rush (and possibly some Max Webster - Kim Mitchell's former band) in much of their music, and you see that this band has certainly been influenced by the artist in the Southern Ontario region.

The album's sound goes beyond the Rush influence, adding a neo-prog emphasis, and their own style. Tiles has enough of their own distinctive style and musical creativity/energy to make this release an absolute progressive pleasure.

Although the band has used a number of interesting guest, none of them seem to make any real difference to the already established style/sound of Tiles. They just happen to be there. The one exception to this is Kim Mitchell. His guitar playing strikes a significant difference in sound, and adds his unique style without overpowering the Tiles sound. He has made a worthy contribution to this record. BTW, he is known for his involvement with the band - Max Webster, but was pretty successful on his own in the latter half of the 80's.

All the songs meet and pass the true test of progressive rock quality. The album ends with sort of a hidden track - which is very relaxed and beautiful piano based piece.

Highly recommended!!!!

Tiles' latest release has a very Rush-ish look & feel, for well-known reasons. The package looks very nice indeed with artwork by Hugh Syme, but I was a little disappointed with the content. The songs just aren't strong enough. The odd-time signatures and theme changes seemed a little pretentious and, quite frankly, the guys are not quite on the same skill level as Dream Theater or Rush. There are good moments as well. "Sacred and Mundane" is a strong piece with great tunescapes by Alex Lifeson. "Back and Forth" has a catchy appeal and the closing track before the bonus track, "Hide and Seek" ends with a great classic and epic solo part. Of course, with only a few listenings under my belt, my opinion about the album might change, but at the moment I'd say that I've heard better stuff from Tiles than "Fly Paper".

As a hometown Tiles fan since the mid-90's I am admittedly a bit biased (I catch them live around Detroit at least a couple times a year). Anyway, my opinion still counts ;-) and I have to say this is probably my favorite of the band's five CDs. It's immediately accessible yet detailed enough to reveal something new even after many spins. The band has always been more Hard Rock than Metal with song structures & arrangements that get labeled "progressive." 'Fly Paper' doesn't stray from this sound and the band also manages to integrate improvised instrumental sections (Back & Forth; Hide & Seek). The band infuses interesting percussion arrangements, lush background vocals, and a healthy dose of mandolin (ala Jethro Tull) to create a pretty unique sound - although detractors seem to always overstate the Rush influence (it's there, but no where near alleged "clone" levels).

The tunes are mostly uptempo with catchy melodies and great riffs. Lyrically, the songs are pretty dark. As far as I can tell they deal with relationships and personal challenges (indecision, being introverted, and maybe depression); but don't come across as downers. There's lot of great guitar work and the special guests add a lot. Alex Lifeson of Rush cranks all over "Sacred & Mundane," Kim Mitchell's solo on "Dragons..." is on the edge, Alannah Myles' vocals on "Back & Forth" add a great vibe, and Hugh Syme's piano on "Passing Notes" is hauntingly beautiful.

For what it's worth, and biased or not, I think this is an excellent progressive hard rock CD. I can only hope their next one is as good.

I always liked Tiles as a fan of prog rock for many years. Enjoyed Rush, Porcupine Tree, Portal, and Threshold as favorites and with this album can now place Tiles in that group. I have always liked 1,2, or maybe 3 songs from the different Tiles albums but I thoroughly enjoyed this all the way thru. There is alot to compare with Rush regarding this album...possibly since Alex Lifeson appears and had some influence. But, their musicianship just busted thru for me on this one. It resonates as somewhat more diverse than their previous work where there was occasional monotony (songs sounded similiar or ran together) to me. Summary is great album for my ears and really appreciate the work/effort.

Great job Chris!

With their earlier CDs I was always disappointed by this band's inherent lack of memorable songs. They fixed that on this CD and have finally come up with a great set of songs. If there was a God, this CD would make this band a HUGE success.