Customer Reviews

Spirit of Autumn Past

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Just one listen to "The Gap Is Too Wide" will convince you that this is no ordinary album. The only word to describe this song is "transcendent". It is a progressive rock CLASSIC! It starts out very mellow, with acoustic guitar, cello, and flute. Sad lyrics are sung dripping with emotion by one of the most beautiful female voices I have ever heard. There is a gradual transition to a melodic, electric-guitar-driven flight to another time and place. Eventually, bagpipes come in, in unison with the electric guitar, only to have the guitar fade until we are left with bagpipes alone, and finally, the babbling of a brook alone. Of particular note among the albums other numerous highlights are "Winter Mountain" and "Evergreen." "Winter Mountain" is a folksy hard rocker which builds to a furious eerie-keyboard-dominated climax. "Evergreen" has poignant lyrics and a catchy melody that sticks in your head, starting softly and the shifting into high gear. While there is an underlying traditional folk feel to the album (in terms of the lyrics, style of singing, and song titles), this is far from traditional folk. Mostly Autumn uses influences from a wide variety of styles (folk, Celtic, New Age, hard rock) and a wide variety of groups (their sound could best be described as a rocked-up combination of Renaissance, George Winston, REM, Penntangle, and Mike Oldfield with occasional sprinklings of very early Kansas and early Pink Floyd) while utilizing a wide variety of instruments (acoustic & electric guitar, bass, drums, synthesizers, organ, piano, flute, whistles, cellos, violins, bagpipes) to create a sound that is refreshing. While each of the aforementioned influences are evident, Mostly Autumn doesn't sound like a clone of anyone. Add quality musicianship, intelligent, thought-provoking lyrics, and very good production, and you have a definite winner. This is music which moves and evokes feelings in the listener; it is one of the best albums I have heard in some time - definitely one you'll be playing over and over.

The Spirit of Autumn Past is an extraordinary album in many respects, not least through its ability to capture a lifetime of emotions and effortlessly transform them into musical expressions. Each track demands understanding, with echoes of Pink Floyd to be heard within the meandering chords, haunting suspensions and inspired melodies. So much energy though is reserved for the lyrics, from the simple poetic imagery of 'Evergreen' through to the poignant and beautiful, "The Gap is too Wide". The Spirit of Autumn Past is a rare achievement, and contains the creativity, uniqueness and quality to potentially live with any other album, past or present.

Wow, what an album, I had written a long review and decided to shorten it up a bit. The band has three studio albums and this is definately the best. The band sounds like a mixture of Renaissance, Floyd, and has Celtic moments. Vocals are shared by the guitarist and a female vocalist who has to have the best voice since Annie Haslam of Renaissance. Winter Mountain starts the album off on a high note and features both singers with Heather doing mostly backgrounds.
Pieces of love is a beautiful Heather track that is a ballad with great atmospheric guitar. The Spirit of Autumn Past is a two part tune with again, great Floyd like leads and vocals from both singers. The last song is the over 10 minute highlight of the cd, The Gap is Too Wide which is great and goes through various musical passages with the two vocalists. If you like a type of atmospheric progressive music with great guitar, vocals, and flute, this album is a must and goes through celtic, harder prog, folk prog, and atmospheric musical excerpts all in one album. Fans of October Project, Iona, Renaissance, Karnataka, and Fairport Convention will absolutely love this album. This is the one to start with and then get For All We Shared and The Last Bright Light.

Mostly Autumn achieve a unique sound and good measures of integrity and authenticity by seamlessly drawing on impulses from several genres. The roots are folksy, to be sure. But this is progressive rock, too. However, Mostly Autumn avoid the worst excesses of prog rock. Some of the arrangements are grand, but they never come across as pompous. And the perfomances display more caution than pretentiousness: the songs are NOT showcases for individual virtuosity. That being said, the playing is skilled and beautiful. Mostly Autumn use a wide variety of instruments, which combined with the complexity of the compositions makes for far-reaching, fascinating and rewarding listening.

Their music is just as thrilling and emotional as the best prog rock, but because they play with more restraint than most prog rockers (notorious for driving ambition to excess) the whole album acieves a dignity which underscores its majesty.

Everything by Mostly Autumn has amazed me, often from the very first notes of the album. _The Spirit of Autumn Past_ - the band's second album - however, worked its magic much less rapidly. Does this suggest one of those dreaded "sophomore slumps"? Nyet! I think the reason for _The Spirit of Autumn Past_ being more difficult to digest is that the mix is far less robust. Where the debut _For All We Shared_ had the immediacy and spring of a live performance, this release sounds more subdued and lulling. The opener "Winter Mountain" places a lot of emphasis on texture and an exotic melody, rather than the nonstop hooks of the debut's opening ("Nowhere to Hide").

Regardless, the band's second album is full of incredible music. They continue to mix Floydian rock with Celtic influences and their own compositional magic for some of the best music out there. The title track is split into two parts, the first featuring an ethereal piano melody reminiscent of Pink Floyd. Part II brings in the hub of the song with powerful melodies and atmospheres, not to mention an unforgettable guitar solo from Brian Josh. This man could bring peace to the Middle East with his solos, they are so beautiful. "Please" is gorgeous melancholy. The instrumental trio of "Styhead Tarn", "Shindig", and "Blakey Ridge/When Waters Meet" emphasizes the band's instrumental finesse and Celtic influences.

A extra plus aside from the sheer goodness of the music is that Heather Findlay sings lead on several songs rather than just one: the crying, stately "Evergreen"; the enchanting, bittersweet "Pieces of Love"; the jaw-dropper "The Gap Is Too Wide"...

"The Gap Is Too Wide" alone makes this album a must-have. The song is nothing short of stunning, from Heather Findlay's delicate singing at the beginning, to the slow build-up of ethereal strings to the choral vocal cadences, which ebbs into Brian Josh's incredible, mountainous guitar solo, which retreats to the ghostly call of bagpipes. If you doubt your humanity, listen to this. If you don't feel get goosebumps as is builds around you, you very well might be an ice ghoul!

If you haven't checked this band out, you're missing out. No promises, but I think that will appeal to many different types of listeners. Maybe one of them will be you.

This album is full of pleasant surprises, particularly the song "Evergreen" which has a wonderful arrangement and soaring guitar solos to die for. The whole album is a really interesting experience - the music is fresh, the songwriting first class, the musicianship wonderful. I can't recommend this band highly enough - their music is so infectious - a mixture of folk, Pink Floyd, and other wonderful progressive references. This album will have you feeling VERY pleased with yourself at having had the good sense to buy it!

I read reviews that describe this CD as 'Folk', or as 'Progressive'. I bought the CD because I like both. What I discovered was that it really sort of defies classification to any single genre. I read that this band writes 'mature' songs with haunting lyrics. This is very true. I know when I purchased this CD, the first time I listened to it, I really wasn't sure I liked it. Elements seemed disjointed, yet everything seemed to work together. With each listen I grew to appreciate this more and more to where it has become one of my favorites. It has a melancholy overtone, but speaks of beauty - not destruction and darkness. This is an impressive offering for a mature and discerning ear. It defines it's own way and doesn't try to fit into a mold. Quite a beautiful and unique CD from a very original band - very refreshing. I will be adding more from them to my collection.

I bought this ablum on a whim, not knowing who this group is - and never hearing them before. Man... this is one of the best albums I've heard in a long time!!! Kind of a blend of progressive, folk, and even a few tinges of jazz - it executes cleanly between vocals and instrumentals (or instrumental sections) - which is evenly divided between the two. The band definitely has defined their own sound, not a imitation of other groups, but a distinctive sound. Track 10 is about the only song that didn't do anything for me, the rest - especially "The Gap Is Too Wide" are absolutely stunning! I've played it for others, who everyone has commented that this is a great album.

This album (and all the others by Mostly Autumn) is simply superb!!! I cannot begin to express the emotional ride I get with this group's outstanding work. Mostly Autumn incorporates a mixture of celtic, symphonic, rock, etc to produce a magnificent blend of listening enjoyment. My favorite song (especially the last two minutes) is "The Spirit of Autumn Past - Part II. "I highly recommend this album!

This album is terrific. It blends folk and prog elements pretty well, and features male and female vocals that work very well together and on their own. The songs tend to be introspective, and while often catchy, there's far more to them than just melodies.

I love when I can listen to an album dozens of times and still pick out new layered elements to focus on. I also get random pieces of almost any of these songs stuck in my head; sitting at work I'll get the female vocals "I'm coming hoooommmme" in my head from Winter Mountain.

I don't think they are distributed through an American company, and as such these high prices result from importing, so give a listen to the samples.

I would personally describe this as "progressive celtic folk" with some solid rock undertones here and there, as well as some quirky pop elements. Some of the songs are also pretty, slow, and mellow, working well individually and amongst each other.