Artist/ Band: Greylyng
Title: I Keep Silence...
Label: Dove & Figure
Year of Release: 2011
Offical Artist/ Band Link

The Review:

A Connecticut trio, Jeff Cedrone (guitars, keyboards, electronics), John C. Miller (synthesizer, electronics, tapes), and Stephen Zieminski (drums, percussion, vibraphone) make up Greylyng, who produce a second recording of multi styled progressive music, which brings in both old and new styles of the wide genre. “I Keep Silence...” begins with a song called ‘Gaslight Eyes’ which sounds like a perfect blend of Furhs & Frohling ( from SFF fame) mixed with Steve Hackett’s more magical moments. Oddly enough, the second song kicks into a more electric rock attack, soon giving way to more Genesis fantasy moving to various stages of Happy the Man, Camel, and more Steve Hackett. That song could easily go on to be epic! I give these two songs as a very accurate example of what Greylyng do throughout the CD.

They have a really nice formula of using the delicate acoustic dream world of masters like Anthony Phillips and Steve Hackett did on both their incredible debut solos, and adding heavy does of Happy the Man, Genesis, Camel, and a light dusting of Canterbury. The tempos they picked are superb as they give both the playfulness of Anthony Phillips and the drive of Steve Hackett, sporadically ducking into odd electronic touches to ornament the compositions.

What Greylyng do different with all these progressive styles is add a kick of classic rock in small does here and there. It’s not enough to detract or turn things into classic rock ‘n’ roll whatsoever, but just to kick things around a bit. It also acts as a good boost to the overall line up of songs. They also add some odd and often static electronics to the background ( Bark Psychosis style). It’s all about textures and progression, and clearly Greylng understand how to make both these concepts happen quite nicely. If you think you can predict where each song is going upon first listen, you’d be wrong. Although I give plenty of references as to what one might compare the sound to, I need to qualify that there are more musical entities at work in many of the compositions. I found the CD to be much fresher and high end than I first anticipated. The skill level of the musicians is excellent, the thinking that went into this release was very smart, and the layout of the song order was just right. Every type emotion is covered in this set of songs. And often times, several emotions all in one tune. You get nearly an hour of music.

I can’t imagine a fan of both old and new school progressive music not liking this disc. It has all the markings of what has made both eras great. It leaves out the fluff of both. And allows the listener to absorb. You even get a surprise King Crimson style jolt a couple of times. I’d say Richard Pinhas influence was also an influence to the guitarist. You get a lot for the money with ‘I Keep Silence...’ and don’t be surprised if a few seconds of eastern motif pops up, or heavenly Mellotron, or bits and pieces of your favorite progressive rock band from any decade. I totally enjoyed listening to this. I’ll be filing it away to enjoy many more days in the future and I will be looking forward to the third release from Greylyng. Recommended!

Reviewed by Lee Henderson on November 7th, 2011

Tracks:

01. Gaslight Eyes

02. Viburnum

03. Memories of Plastic Sunshine

04. The Sleep Projector

05. Showdown of the Concord Sphere

06. Between Scylla and Charybois

07. Static/Murmur/Battle

08. You and Your Bleeding Heart

Reviewed Discography

• Greylyng - “I Keep Silence” 2011
• Otowala - "Otowala" 2011

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