I just love when I open my e-mail and see a review request, as it gives purpose to my 55-year-old pro-bono thankless pastime/obsession with maintaining the prog flame. Andrew Dickson is a seasoned progressive multi-instrumentalist whose main weapon remains an arsenal of keyboards that glitter like gold, and he asked me if I would honor him with a review. How could I refuse such a kind request?
“Andy Dickson has been playing music since he was 8 and I’m bass since he was 16. As a multi-instrumentalist, he has found time to create and record his own material over recent years since retiring. Using a home studio and layering up his musical ideas, creating drum patterns on keyboards and mixing on Logic Pro. He performs bass, guitar, keyboards and vocals. His fourth album, out now, called The Paradox of Time…. another prog album with the characteristics those who are fans of the genre will recognise, with complex guitar and synth interactions and a theme that explore the very essence of the universe and its beginnings and trajectory…”
After an initial run through, I was relieved halfway through already to really enjoy the elements that leapt out at me like a dragon’s tongue! The genuine sincerity and the melodic focus were immediately apparent and certainly found immediate favour with my ear’s receptors.
Like an evening breeze after a warm summer day, “Day’s Daze” sets the table for the events that will follow, the serpentine upfront bass and heartfelt voice gliding a top a keyboard horizon, groovy e-piano and organ discreetly stitching the arrangement. The instrumental prowess is evident, never coming across as self-indulgent or senselessly exhibitionist, laden with classy moves and expressions that have meaning. The bluesy guitar hems the impression, as the chill is now completely fulfilled.
The two part “Evolution” suite clocks in a second over 10 minutes (the paradox of time, me thinks!) and forms the next echelon of the album’s expansion, hence the title. Weaving rivulets of piano and synthesizers form a whirlpool of sonic wonder, Andy’s distant voice agreeably restrained, the surging bass stomping through the swamp, as the hypnotic tempo drenches the nodes with intense and constantly developing repetition. After a lengthy stretch of eschewing any sudden shifts, breaks or variations, the unforeseeable voice and piano duet launches into an orchestral section that does soothe all the progression, asking all the right questions with sorrowful authority. The second part (Evolution’s End) is a brief reflection on consequence and hope for the future, the instruments now playing a more fatalistic tune that ends appropriately, most suddenly.
Does “Gravity” mean somber, solemn or rather Newton’s reflection on a falling apple? Well, that is up to the beholder , though the musical tone is definitely drenched in severe atmospheric pressure, a compressed wallop that oozes a desperate melancholia, with a clanging guitar and organ interface. A nice, somewhat retro prog feel that has a delightful 80s sheen bent on answering the question above.
Speaking of time and distance, why not venture further out in the cosmos, after all “Interstellar” has been done before, at least in terms of cinema. Andy has now assigned his guitar skills to bask in the spotlight, at least for an orbit or two, before unleashing his electronic keyboard skills. A swooning cosmic chant that sounds both timeless and effortless, floating in the wide expanse of outer space.
The title track reverts to a doomier tinge, the raspy guitar and swirling electronics recalling a gentler version of some ‘eagle gale’ (wink), Andy’s bass etching the canvas with absurd devotion, the guitar solo squawking like a warrior on the edge of time. Even the voice has a Calvertian disposition, forlorn and ageless.
The gorgeous melody announcing “Remember that Time” offers an immediate impression, a happy recollection of a moment long gone but never forgotten, the deserved reward for a life well lived, at least for just a moment. Its just plain stunning, a ballad for the ages and my favourite track here, complete with a sensitive organ flurry straight out of Procol Harum’s repertoire, boldly caressed by a guitar riff and a looping bass embrace. This should be playing on progressive radio, and I will certainly promote such a prospect with my colleagues in progland.
You know when an album is worthy when the pacing and structure makes absolute sense, as it does here in closing with the crowning instrumental “Stratospheric”. Best described as a compelling reference of all the music heard before, it encapsulates the entire mood and marrow of this work. Enchantingly galactic with grandiose piano movements, broad orchestrations, muscular pace where required (that fluttering bass is just delicious!), with a positive sense of freedom and liberation.
If you are searching for a personal musical declaration of honesty and respectful interface, this artist clearly deserves your attention, I daresay, consideration. The lovely cover art, the intimate production and a set list of songs that please the senses, give it a whirl. The clock is ticking …
4 alarming contradictions