I remember Credo from their first album, Field of Vision, from 1994. The band took 11 years to do a follow-up, Rhetoric as well as a live dvd, This Is What We Do, released five years later. I had the pleasure of reviewing that dvd which shows the band in it’s top form. It was also a way that I could relive their first album.
In 2011, they released their third album, Against Reason. The line-up on this album are Mark Colton (vocals), Mike Varty (keyboards), Tim Birrell (guitars), Jim Murdoch (bass) and Martin Meads (drums).The album is dominated by several epics starting with the opening track, “Staring At The Sun” (10:02) with it’s very catchy chorus. The next track, “Cardinal Sin” (12:02) reminds me musically of Twelfth Night combined with vocals ala Fish. This is also one of the highlights for me.
The next four tracks are under the 9 minute mark, with the title track (“Against Reason”) which clocks in at three and a half minutes. Of these four songs, I find myself wanting to listen to “Insane” (8:01), which reminds me of classic 80s neo-prog with an updated sound.
On “Conspiracy (MCF)” (10:51) we’re returned to the ten plus minute song format. Then ending off the album is longest track, “Ghosts Of Yesterday” (13:34). It’s a somber ballad and ends off the album perfectly, in my opinion.
So in closing, I found Against Reason to be one of the best examples of modern neo-prog as well as symphonic based rock. If you’re a fan of Twelfth Night or Fish-era Marillion or the previous Credo releases, then this needs to be in your collection as soon as possible. Highly recommended!
Reviewed by Ron Fuchs on December 18th, 2011
