Customer Reviews

Masque of Shadows

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

 

 

It seems a mix of the whole types of rock music,within such hard rock and proto-prog scene of late 60's/early 70's(including also some funky stuff),even though the present issue is dated 1999. However this is the best side but also the main defect regarding this heterogonous/too much diversified work.Nevertheless the vocals are solid and the instrumental skill is almost equal to such music from the dinosaurs of the 70's!In fact the multi-instrument player(Craig Herlihy)plays so many different instruments here,such as the flute,dulcimer,marimba,mandolin, glockenspiel and so on,in a remarkable manner,which represents the gentle side of the band,in comparison to such prog metal bunches of instrumentals!! "Maiden Voyage","The Brook,the Mirror and the Maiden" and "Return Voyage" is the trilogy, gathered in a mini-suite, whose songs are splitted...the main theme is performed in progress within each track,according to a metal prog style,but it's also in the vein of some medieval stuff, by means of a jethro-tullesque flute!! "Ghost notes" duplicates this latter style, with the contribution of a galloping horse, performed through a drumming excursion, which is very original ... finally you find the title track, the melodic rock song in the vein of some stuff by Rush and the conclusive "Magic dust" as well, a dignified piece of music,which resume the spirit of the whole album!!

Recommended, even though this is not my favourite kind of prog music ...

This trio from Boston has been getting positive attention on a few music sites, mostly European ones. Naturally, as these days most good homegrown bands have to go overseas just to get a record deal. Yoke Shire didn't, enacting Plan B (record and release the cd themselves). This isn't amateur hour, however - thanks to high-tech and its increasing affordability, MASQUE OF SHADOWS is home-cooking that sounds as clean and powerful as any major-label offering. The album is pleasingly schizophrenic, moving from classy hard rock to austere atmospheric progressive, often in the same song. Craig Herlihy is the chief cook & bottle washer here, handling most of the composition chores as well as production (excellent, as I've noted), playing scads of instruments (impressively) and vocals (deep, echoey and sonorous - Yoke Shire might want to add a full time singer for future albums). The cd starts out as heavy rock with an eldritch, medieval flavor: the opening cuts "Black Tower" and "Shape Of A Dancer" have been described as 'Jethro Tull meets Santana'. I can hear echoes of both but neither are dominant: the expert mix of various influences and Herlihy's own muse creates a sonic stew unique unto itself. In fact, the rockier moments on this cd are where Herlihy's Benedictine-monk-on-blotter-acid vocals come off best. The middle part of MASQUE is a handful of fragments and longer pieces stitched into a continuity. It is this middle span where the proggiest sections reside, as the music ebbs and flows from muscular rock to ghostly medieval dream-state before surging back to full-throttle, though by the end of the disc Herlihy's endlessly chanted refrain 'She'll be down by the water' begins to grate on my nerves a bit. Make no mistake, however, Yoke Shire have a winner on their hands: they may falter here and there, but they cross the finish line full of run. CDs like this one don't just indicate how clueless the major labels are these days, they also remind us that, if you've got the talent and the will to see it through, you don't need the majors anymore to get your music out there. Nowadays if a cd I love is on Sony or Warner or BMG, it's likely to be by accident: the best new musicians seem to understand they can starve for their art perfectly well without a multi-national corporate hydra's "help". And about time...

The group from New England that just issued their first CD. But it doesn't sound like a debut of young musicians. I listened those guys live in concert and bought the CD. And I have to say I really enjoyed both. They are really strong players. Their leader plays keyboards, fluite, bass guitar and acoustic strings really cool. Drummer and guitarist are cool as well. Speaking about style I can call it progressive metal with some taste of Jethro Tull, early Genesis and, perhaps, Yes. Long epic songs with very professional arrangement and rich sound. Despite the only three players the group sounds like orchestra. If you really like Progrock you'll like this! For me it was wonderful surprice!

this is by far the most refreshing new, as opposed to neo, prog rock cd i have listened to for ages, and after just the first listen, you would recognise straight away what i am talking about. it is a powerful conceptual album, with tunes and choruses that stay with you instantly.
the first mistake though is to compare it to a band like transatlantic, which is a much poorer imitation of the flower kings on a bad day. in contrast, yoke shire music is highly structured, melodic and hard edged. you can not also pigeon hole this group in the metal prog category, because though some of the songs are hard, the listener is pleasently surprised with a 9-minutes epic of very melodic symphonic rock.
overall, this cd is very original, and i easily place it among my top ten. with my 20 years of prog rock collection, and placing bands such as eloy, kansas,camel and porcupine tree in my top five slot, trust me, yoke shire with their debut have earned their place in prog history..can't wait for their second outing, hopefully this time released on an international label, to receive the distribution and recognition they deserve.
buy it!

Breathless is the only way to describe the way you will feel after seeing these guys live. I know I certainly was. All three guys are extremely talented and are very passionate about their music, and it shows. You will not be let down by their music!

This debut from Bostons' own Yokeshire is an amazingly great slab of 70ish prog rock glory! Forget the Santana references (it was one section of one song sheesh) and the tull/zep references (i gotta ask-is that such a BAD thing?) This cd is almost like a concept album, the songs flow from the opener to the classical outro. I've have the pleasure of seeing this 3 pc band play this music live and pull it off amazingly. Hard to believe I know but they do it. Lead maestro Graig Herlihy IS a musical prodigy, able to play several and very different instruments adeptly. The brothers have also mastered the art of playing more than one instrument at a time live! The recording production is awesome, you can tell lots of time was spent getting the right tones and panning just so. I found it very refreshing and a cd that grows on you with subsequent listenings which is a rarity these days. Try it you wont be dissapointed. I highly recommend "The Witching Hour" as well. Great music overall!

Nice thick production that isn't bass shy, this has been referred to as '70s retro-prog, but ressembles the more song oriented hard rock acts of the '70s, like Tull, Santana and Thin Lizzy. In some spots, the musicianship is stunning and layered, recalling Golden Earring's Moontan album in content and execution. Maybe this doesn't sound particularly original, but considering when it was released, it was a long lost, favorite leather jacket compared to the fuzzy booted, cape wearing Genesis/Gentle Giant clones that permiated this timeframe. Chops abound, but its the songs that take center stage, and not the playing. Though the production may let the bass dominate the proceedings in spots, it gives the album a warm analog feel, like early Yes, rather than the sterile synth feel of many neo-prog acts. Highly recommended for those who wished their favorite hard rock album had better production or their fave '70s band still made albums the way they used to.

Yoke Shire is a rather unique band. At the time of this release they were a 3 piece with two brothers Craig and Brian Herlihy on a full arsenal of different instruments and Brad Dillon on drums and percussion. The band reminds me of what would happen if ZZ Top morphed with Jethro Tull. It is a very odd combination and on this album sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. The album in bluesy in spots and progressive rock oriented in others. The second half of the album works as a sort of suite where the main theme appears again and again. I have mixed feelings on this album. Parts I really like and parts I don't particularly care for. It is certainly unique and I am guessing would probably appeal to fans of Jethro Tull especially the early more blues oriented material.