{"id":468,"date":"2011-03-16T05:32:03","date_gmt":"2011-03-16T10:32:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/?p=468"},"modified":"2020-06-25T12:34:13","modified_gmt":"2020-06-25T16:34:13","slug":"album-review-par-lindh-project-time-mirror","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/2011\/03\/16\/album-review-par-lindh-project-time-mirror\/","title":{"rendered":"Album Review: P\u00e4r Lindh Project – Time Mirror"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"If someone told you they wanted you to hear a progressive rock album that centered on keyboards, you might \u2013 assuming you didn\u2019t run for the nearest exit \u2013 expect a pretentious, ponderous collection of songs. P\u00e4r Lindh Project<\/strong>\u2019s Time Mirror<\/em> is not that sort of creature at all. Largely \u2013 but not exclusively \u2013 instrumental, this four-song album does trade in progressive styles, but the hook and melody quotients are high.<\/p>\n

Lindh employs a staggering number of keyboard textures, but they\u2019re never quite over-the-top. Whether it’s Herbie Hancock<\/strong>-style funky synth lines (as heard in the first few minutes of the title track) or cathedral organ chording and scale runs (as found later on the same track), Lindh delivers the goods with style. While there are but four tracks on Time Mirror<\/em>, each number veers through a number of sections \u2013 hell, let\u2019s call \u2018em what they are: movements \u2013 over its runtime. After a vocal section featuring Alan Lewis<\/strong> (Starcastle<\/strong>) \u201cTime Mirror\u201d finds Lindh playing wild west-style tack piano with what sounds like a tap dancer joining in the fun. If the listener\u2019s head isn\u2019t spinning by this point, s\/he’s not paying attention.<\/p>\n

And that scenario\u2019s not likely. Time Mirror<\/em> is not the sort of album that one can ignore. Love it or hate it, the record demands attention. There\u2019s not a note of guitar on Time Mirror<\/em>, but unless you\u2019re a guitar fiend, you won\u2019t miss it. If, on the other hand, you\u2019re a keyboard fanatic, you\u2019ll find a lot to like. If the melodies and arrangements weren\u2019t so strong, Time Mirror<\/em> might come off as some sort of demonstration disc. The liner notes list the arsenal of keyboard instruments at Lindh\u2019s disposal, and the list is quite lengthy. Lindh is pictured (in the album’s digipak) wearing a cape, which is the spot-on sartorial choice for a keyboard player of his stripe.<\/p>\n

Lewis\u2019 vocal style is very similar to Jon Anderson<\/strong>, with a slight rasp that gives it some additional texture and character of its own. The title track\u2019s Lindh-penned lyrics deal with the wings of time and so forth, but then you figured as much, didn\u2019t you? But just wait; there’s some unexpected variety in store.<\/p>\n

On the relatively brief \u201cWaltz Steet,\u201d Lindh plays a manic piano figure while Lewis sings his own lyrics about the recent U.S. financial meltdown. With its references to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the song threatens to be forever fixed in time as an artifact of its era, but the bluesy (by way of Keith Emerson<\/strong>) organ solo is the song\u2019s true highlight. And there\u2019s a further Emerson connection: when the Nice<\/strong> re-formed, Lindh took Emerson\u2019s keyboard role in that group.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a modern dance feel to the tracks on Time Mirror<\/em>; it takes little effort to conjure a mental picture of dancers providing visual interpretations of PLP\u2019s songs. \u201cWith Death Unreconciled\u201d is dedicated to the group\u2019s previous vocalist Magdalena Berg, <\/strong>who passed away in 2007. Lewis sings Lindh\u2019s heartfelt lyrics in tribute to Berg, and while the subject as a whole is sad, it\u2019s a welcome and refreshing departure from prog\u2019s unfortunate tendency toward Dungeons and Dragons-oriented lyrical subject matter. And when Lindh takes his solos \u2013 and he takes them in spades, mind you \u2013 the emphasis is equally placed on melody, hooks and technical brilliance; it\u2019s a sure-footed balance.<\/p>\n

The album\u2019s final track, \u201cSky Door\u201d is completely instrumental. With hard-charging attack, it\u2019s similar to what one might get combining Spock\u2019s Beard<\/strong> with Tales of Topographic Oceans<\/em>-era Yes<\/strong>. Lewis\u2019 drum work and William Kopecky<\/strong>\u2019s bass provide propulsive, sympathetic backing for Lindh\u2019s stratospheric keyboard excursions, and the track gives them a chance to show off their skills (yes, Derek Smalls<\/strong> fans, there\u2019s a bass solo<\/em>) without getting overly indulgent.<\/p>\n

Time Mirror<\/em> blazes by, leaving the listener simultaneously exhausted and yet wanting more. For fans of symphonic prog with heavy emphasis on keyboard, it’s an exemplar of the best the genre has to offer.<\/p>\n

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