Release date: 05.07.2019
Label: Inside Out Music
Production: John Boegehold
Length: 58:06
Genre: progressive rock
Rating: 9/10
The latest American prog rock supergroup, Pattern-Seeking Animals, was born as a project of current and former Spock’s Beard members: two current ‘Beardians’, singer/guitarist Ted Leonard and bassist Dave Meros, their former drummer Jimmy Keegan, and longtime collaborator John Boegehold, who has been helping those American prog revivalists for years as an ‘outside’ songwriter, keyboardist, guitarist and producer. The result of this rather unexpected collaboration was their self-titled debut, which came out in the second half of 2019.
Boegehold, who is also the driving force behind Pattern-Seeking Animals, which soon turned from a project into a band in the proper sense of the word, said he wanted to give more room to his own songwriting ideas, but ones that differ from what he usually came up with while working with Spock’s Beard. Most of the songs on “Pattern-Seeking Animals” do sound a lot like the ‘Beardians’ at times, but they also have a few more melodic elements that sometimes draw from outside the traditional symphonic prog rock world, along with a quite different approach to guitars and keyboards.
The biggest difference between the music of Pattern-Seeking Animals and Spock’s Beard is undoubtedly in the symphonic arrangements and keyboard passages. The latter are mostly far more compact and rationally organized compared to the much more pompous keyboard technique of the Japanese fast-fingered ‘wizard’ Ryo Okumoto. Perhaps the most pleasant surprise on “Patern-Seeking Animals” is surely Leonard’s progress as lead guitarist. His guitar skills are still simpler and without the obvious jazz elements, compared to a guitar master like Spock’s Beard’s lead guitarist Alan Morse, but in quality and eclecticism they’ve come very close to his singing abilities, even though Boegehold gave him plenty of help on additional guitar.
The differences between the ‘Beardians’ and Pattern-Seeking Animals are already audible on the opening track “No Burden Left to Carry”, even though the vocal harmonies are very reminiscent of Spock’s Beard’s last three albums, made since Leonard joined them. His vocal, which often recalls Steve Walsh, the former singer of the legendary band Kansas, is what gives all the compositions on this album their heart and exceptional emotional depth. “The Same Mistakes Again” is a somewhat more symphonically inclined creation with majestic orchestral arrangements and a nostalgic chorus. On “Orphans of the Universe”, a quality take on old-school symphonic prog rock, you can also clearly hear the vocal talent of drummer Keegan, who is a superb support to Leonard throughout, helping build the multi-part harmonies.
“No One Ever Died and Made Me King” is a much more compact song with a hard rock guitar riff and a quickly accessible chorus. “Fall Away” is a piano-driven ballad that could conditionally belong to Spock’s Beard too. The fairly direct “These Are My Things” and the slightly ominous “We Write the Ghost Stories” come across as far more unique. “No Land’s Man”, marked above all by its epic chorus, is definitely among the more interesting pieces, while “Stars Along the Way”, with its hypnotic central motif, makes for an almost ideal close to the album.
Pattern-Seeking Animals are a band that will surely be talked about a lot among prog rock fans in the years to come. Their debut will of course make all Spock’s Beard fans happiest, since while waiting for the new album from those prog revivalists, they’ve gotten an excellent stand-in for the ‘Beardians’. It’s an excellent debut, which really is no surprise from musicians of this caliber, but there’s still plenty of room for further growth and for moving away from the traditional Spock’s Beard songwriting and arranging tunes. If Pattern-Seeking Animals build on that, they could even become one of the most exciting modern prog rock bands around.
Review by: Peter Podbrežnik
Track list:
1. No Burden Left To Carry (9:38)
2. The Same Mistakes Again (5:10)
3. Orphans Of The Universe (10:28)
4. No One Ever Died And Made Me King (3:54)
5. Fall Away (4:47)
6. These Are My Things (4:52)
7. We Write The Ghost Stories (3:22)
8. No Land’s Man (5:35)
9. Stars Along The Way (10:20)
Pattern-Seeking Animals:
Ted Leonard – vocals, guitar
John Boegehold – synthesizer, programming, guitar, mandolin
Dave Meros – bass guitar
Jimmy Keegan – drums, backing vocals
