Label: Bloodfish Music
Release date: 8/31/2018
Production: Gabriel Moffat
Album length: 89.04 min
Genre: Progressive Rock
Rating: 9.0/10
“Infernal” was the long-awaited ninth studio album from the brilliant American musician Phideaux Xavier, who never stops wowing us with superbly arranged, mostly conceptual progressive rock albums. The new double album, “Infernal”, closes out Xavier’s conceptual trilogy and picks up where “The Great Leap” (2006, RockLine review) and “Doomsday Afternoon” (2007, RockLine review) left off, and we had to wait a full seven years for it. That’s exactly how long it’s been since his previous album, the excellent “Snowtorch” (2011, RockLine review).
The concept behind “Infernal” is Phideaux’s closing chapter in a socially critical saga about authoritarian regimes under the rule of a “Big Brother” and endless ecological crises as the fallout of neoliberal and fascistoid governments. That makes it very timely reading for anyone planning to dig into the individual lyrics of this album, which were posted on the Facebook page of this ambitious multi-instrumentalist, singer and composer, before an increasingly police-state, authoritarian Slovenia finally turns into a hard-to-swallow Hungarian salami.
In seven years Phideaux created a ton of new music, so it’s no surprise that “Infernal”, whose release date got pushed back more than once, came out as a double album. A huge amount of eclectic, experimentally tinged but mostly melodically arranged music, with lovely male-female vocal harmonies, can often be a double-edged sword, but not for a musical master like Phideaux, who has proven many times over that he’s one of the most gifted musicians on the modern prog scene and one of the few whose music can win over both the old guard and new generations of progressive rock fans.
“Infernal” opens with the pompous “Cast Out and Cold”, where ethereal female vocal harmonies reign until things get “complicated” when Xavier’s vocals, distorted guitar passages and majestic symphonic keyboard arrangements crash in. The theatrical “The Error Lives On” brings a dramatic rhythmic build-up and a sarcastic vocal approach. “Inquisitor” opens with a guitar solo that sounds a lot like something David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) might have forged, until melancholic piano arrangements take the lead.
“We Only Have Eyes For You”, which also came out as an EP, has an evenly spread mix of psychedelic influences from the Beatles and Pink Floyd, while an enviable harmony reigns between the male and female vocal contributions the whole way through. “Sourdome” puts the spotlight on a short but sweet guitar solo. Fans of Genesis and Renaissance will surely appreciate “The Walker”, where the female vocal sits in an ideal balance with the symphonic arrangements and ethereal atmosphere. “Wake the Sleeper” is a short lament and an intro to the next track. “C99” is a romantic instrumental with quite a few parallels to Genesis from the 1976-1977 period. “Tumbleweed” is a beautifully sung, melodramatic ballad with a focus on piano.
The second disc opens with the instrumental “The Order of Protetction (One)”, where you can mainly marvel at the eclectic, energetic guitar solo. “Metro Deathfire”, which has plenty of Mellotron textures, is an art rock treat with cleverly distributed influences from symphonic prog rock, psychedelic rock and pop rock. The dramatic “In Dissonance We Play” is one of the punchier moments on the album, while the acoustic-leaning “The Sleeper Wake”, which also has a few folk elements, makes for a perfectly ambient contrast.
The dark “The Order of Protection (Two)”, which at times sounds like a close encounter between Peter Gabriel-era Genesis and Pink Floyd from the second half of the seventies, wins you over mostly with its socially critical lyrics and an outstanding closing section. The epic adventure “From Hydrogen to Love”, which never loses the plot, is one of the highlights of “Infernal” and stands out with eclectic arrangements, chameleon-like mood shifts and unexpected time changes. “Eternal” is a melancholic yet triumphant ballad with gorgeous female vocal harmonies, “Celtic” guitar passages and subtle symphonic arrangements that could appeal to plenty of Mike Oldfield fans too. The album wraps up with the orchestral climax of “Endgame – An End”.
With “Infernal”, Xavier Phideaux has created yet another modern progressive rock masterpiece, which came as no real surprise to anyone familiar with his body of work so far. Despite its impressive length, “Infernal” doesn’t have a single boring or tiresome moment, which is yet another impressive achievement for the maestro Phideaux and his many fine musical collaborators, who keep the balance between old-school and modern prog rock elements spot on from start to finish.
Author: Peter “Dr. ProgRock” Podbrežnik
Track list:
CD 1 (42:12)
1. Cast Out and Cold (5:33)
2. The Error Lives On (7:15)
3. Crumble (0:58)
4. Inquisitor (8:22)
5. We Only Have Eyes for You (4:00)
6. Sourdome (1:31)
7. The Walker (4:39)
8. Wake the Sleeper (1:30)
9. C99 (3:25)
10. Tumbleweed (4:59)
CD 2 (46:52)
11. The Order of Protection (One) (4:35)
12. Metro Deathfire (4:58)
13. Transit (Instrumental) (1:14)
14. In Dissonance We Play (2:49)
15. The Sleepers Wake (5:22)
16. The Order of Protection (Two) (4:34)
17. From Hydrogen to Love (14:04)
18. Eternal (5:46)
19. Endgame – An End (3:30)
Lineup:
Phideaux Xavier – vocals, piano, guitar
Valerie Gracious – vocals
Molly Ruttan – vocals
Linda Ruttan-Moldawsky – vocals
Gabriel Moffat – electric guitar, dobro
Johnny Unicorn – keyboards, saxophones, vocals
Mark Sherkus – keyboards
Ariel Farber – violin, vocals
Matthew Kennedy – bass guitar
Rich Hutchins – drums
Guest musicians:
Andy Camou – trumpet
Stefanie Fife – cello
Frank Valentini – flugelhorn
Doug Moldawsky – backing vocals
Nina Moldawsky – backing vocals
Caroline Oster – backing vocals
Mary Kelly Weir – backing vocals
