Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Kansas
Label: Epic Records
Release: 1977
Length: 43:59
Rating: 5/5
With “Point of Know Return,” Kansas truly hit the point of no return, where there was no more looking back, because this record brought them their biggest commercial success and, at the same time, one of the creative peaks of their career. With it, the boys from Topeka, the capital of the US state they took their name from, broke out of their home turf and won over fans around the world. They were finally no longer total paupers who had to play smoky bars of dubious repute in threadbare cowboy rags for pocket change and a few ounces of mustard from the cafeteria. The band was reborn as one of the leading names in so-called arena rock. After the big breakthrough with the masterpiece “Leftoverture” (1976), they decided not to rest on their laurels and to build on that success even further.
“Point of Know Return” also marked a key turning point in their transformation from progressive rock waters toward a more commercially appealing arena rock, which was sprouting at the time through the work of bands like Styx, Boston, Queen, ELO and so on. Their trademark sound, built mainly on the legacy of British symphonic prog rock with a heavy emphasis on orchestral arrangements weaving violin and keyboards together, got kneaded into somewhat shorter and slightly less complex songs than before, while the amount of melodic harmony went up even further. That was largely thanks to the legendary singer and keyboardist Steve Walsh, who played a key role in writing most of the material for this album.
Unlike guitarist and occasional keyboardist Kerry Livgren, who had always been a progressive and an experimenter heart and soul, Walsh had always leaned toward a more compact, classic rock and hard rock sound. While “Leftoverture” was their prog rock peak, “Point of Know Return” is their most balanced album and a bridge between the two musical styles that dominated most of their career: prog rock and melodic rock.
The fact that Walsh got a bigger songwriting role on this album (usually Livgren was the band’s central figure in that department) was the result of a major conflict that erupted between him and the rest of the band before the album came together. Walsh, who was already unhappy with the band’s further evolution, even threatened to leave and sulked in hiding for several weeks, but in the end the rest of the band decided to give in to his demands, since they simply couldn’t afford to lose a singer of that caliber. The friction between Walsh and Livgren would only keep growing in the years to come.
On “Point of Know Return,” the band’s direction became even friendlier for those who were most into their melodic rock side, which goes above all for Walsh’s title track, a mega-successful hit and Kansas classic that brought them real chart success on the radio stations of the day. The song is packed with their trademark pomp, especially through tasteful baroque arrangements on violin and keyboards that bring majestic symphonic touches into an otherwise melodic rock structure with an anthemic chorus. And of course there’s Walsh’s superb singing, which charms the listener on the spot. The most interesting thing about this classic is that it was added to the album at the very last moment and written last, even though it opens the record. After that bombastic intro comes the far more complex “Paradox,” where Steinhardt’s violin takes center stage. His baroque solos are accompanied by Livgren’s witty guitar flourishes, while the whole thing is propped up by the clever yet mighty rhythmic shifts of the Ehart/Hope duo.
The sprawling instrumental “The Spider” also contains plenty of trademark symphonic prog rock elements, with majestic passages on Hammond organ and violin. Once again we get their signature, high-level virtuosity, which still inspires many modern prog rock bands today. One of the album’s better pieces is definitely “Portrait (He Knew),” whose lyrics are about Albert Einstein. It’s a somewhat more direct, almost hard rock number with a string of sharpened guitar riffs around the central theme, great vocals and interesting rhythmic twists. The excellent prog rock epic “Closet Chronicles,” with its odd lyrics about the eccentric millionaire Howard Hughes, is built on lots of grand symphonic arrangements. It also has a very interesting instrumental section in the middle, with plenty of outstanding solos on violin, guitar and keyboards, and a superb contrast between Walsh’s and Steinhardt’s vocals.
A rather atypical number is the punchy, hard-rock-leaning “Ligthning’s Hand,” where Steinhardt takes the lead vocals and tries to work in some theatrical vocal mannerisms in the style of Peter Gabriel. It’s one of the few less interesting moments on the album, as it’s a fairly generic hard rock tune built mainly on sharpened guitar riffs and solos and massive drum fills. Those looking for the roots of progressive metal may see more charm in it, while for prog lovers it’s nothing special.
Walsh may have brought the band a big hit with the title track, but the song that wrote Kansas into the immortals for all time and secured them a place in the annals of classic rock is the gorgeous yet unbelievably sad acoustic ballad “Dust In The Wind,” which became their best-known classic. Its author Kerry Livgren came up with it completely by accident while messing around with his wife, which is often how the greatest masterpieces happen. Because it’s entirely acoustic, it’s a totally atypical piece for Kansas, and he originally even had doubts about whether it should make the album at all. Who would have thought it’d become their biggest hit. The melancholic melody is built on Livgren’s harmonic chords, while violin and keyboards in the background deepen the heart-wrenching atmosphere even more. But what moves and shakes you most about this song is Walsh’s singing and the lyrics themselves, which are about human mortality and our insignificance in the boundless depths of time and space.
“Spark Of The Tempest,” which deals with the cycles of revolution that have appeared throughout history, brings a total contrast and a sudden lift in mood. It’s another great piece that captures all the band’s key elements: mighty vocals, punchy, juicy guitar passages and potent drum fills form a hard rock skeleton, which is then joined by epic symphonic passages on violin. On “Nobody’s Home,” whose lyrics tell of aliens encountering a fallen civilization, Steinhardt is once again front and center, and besides very good singing he delivers regal solos on his violin and, through many symphonic arrangements that heighten the melancholic atmosphere, leads it toward the album’s closing peak. That means the majestic prog rock epic “Hopelessly Human,” one of the best epics of their career, which often feels like one of the forgotten songs from “Leftoverture.” This time too they first slowly build up the grand atmosphere through a series of mighty riffs and dramatic singing before rich orchestral arrangements crash in. The middle of the composition is full of virtuosic instrumental solos that still inspire bands like Spock’s Beard and Dream Theater today. After this instrumental interlude comes the dramatic climax and the closing toll of church bells.
“Point of Know Return” was the creative and commercial peak of a legendary band that suddenly moved from dusty dives to big stadiums around the world. Creating a successor to an album like “Leftoverture,” which remains their greatest masterpiece, was a very tall order, but they pulled it off with flying colors anyway. In many ways it was an even more mature product than its famous predecessor. Neither before nor after did Kansas sound so convincing as a collective. Today the album is as much a prog rock masterpiece as an arena rock one. In places you can already hear the sonic seeds of the later AOR direction that dominated their sound through the ’80s. As for commercial success, in America it improved on their best chart position and doubled the sales of its predecessor. The peak had been reached, and from here on Kansas slowly began waving goodbye to prog rock.
Lineup
Steve Walsh – vocals, keyboards
Kerry Livgren – guitar, keyboards
Robby Steinhardt – violin, vocals
Rich Williams – electric guitar
Dave Hope – bass guitar
Phil Ehart – drums
Production
Jeff Glixman
Tracklist
1. Point Of Know Return
2. Paradox
3. The Spider
4. Portrait (He Knew)
5. Closet Chronicles
6. Lightning’s Hand
7. Dust In The Wind
8. Sparks Of The Tempest
9. Nobody’s Home
10. Hopelessly Human
