Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Big Big Train
Label: English Electric
Release: 2007
Length: 54:50
Rating: 4/5
Big Big Train are an English progressive rock band that showed up on the scene in the first half of the nineties, though their roots reach back even further than most people would guess. Guitarist/keyboardist Gregory Spawton and bassist Andy Poole started making music together as early as the late eighties, after discovering they shared a similar taste in music and a soft spot for prog rock, led by legends like Genesis, King Crimson and Van Der Graaf Generator. Those influences would later show up in Big Big Train’s stylistic approach too.
On top of that, Spawton and Poole, who founded Big Big Train in 1990, were big fans of neo-prog champions IQ. Poole even spent some time as a roadie for them, back when they were still called The Lens. After two demo albums, Big Big Train got a warm reception with their surprisingly good studio debut »Goodbye To The Age Of Steam« (1994), but that didn’t last long, as its less interesting follow-up »English Boy Wonders« (1997) was a cold shower, and for a while they were even in danger of calling it quits because of a general creative drought and apathy that had gripped both founding members.
Still, Spawton and Poole found enough wit and strength to carry on with a revamped lineup. The next two albums, »Bard« (2002) and »Gathering Speed« (2004), reborn them despite constant lineup changes and, with some noticeable shifts in sound, made them relevant again. The response to the revamped Big Big Train in the modern prog rock scene was so good that, before recording their sixth studio album, »The Difference Machine«, they managed to lure in prominent prog musicians like bassist Pete Trewavas (Marillion), American bassist Dave Meros (Spock’s Beard) and American drummer/vocalist Nick D’Virgilio (ex-Spock’s Bead). D’Virgilio got so fired up about the new Big Big Train that he joined as a full member the following year and still plays with them today.
Unlike most third-wave progressive rock bands, Big Big Train only occasionally and vaguely recall certain legendary seventies acts, even though they have plenty of symphonic prog and jazz fusion elements where you can feel the influence of bands like King Crimson, VDGG and Genesis, since on the other hand they also bring quite a lot of new wave and post-rock influences into their sound. The latter are obvious on some, though not all, of the compositions on »The Difference Machine«, so fans of bands like Sigur Rós will find something for themselves too, while thanks to the extensive use of mellotron, saxophone, flute and even strings (a guest viola), Big Big Train are still much closer to King Crimson and VDGG, to the delight of all ‘old school’ lovers. That’s how they manage to bridge different musical worlds and keep pace with the younger prog bands, helped by the more youthful vocal approach of Sean Filkins, for whom »The Difference Machine« was the last album as a member of Big Big Train.
»The Difference Machine« was a concept album in the best prog tradition, exploring through its lyrics a number of serious, dark and above all intellectual themes like chaos theory, death, personal loss and difficult communication. The central thread of the concept is the death of an individual that happens at the same moment as the explosion of a star in a distant galaxy. Most of the compositions on »The Difference Machine« are accordingly marked by a dark, melancholic and fatalistic mood with fleeting moments of ambient light. The main works on »The Difference Machine« are three epics running over twelve minutes, since they’re the most intense in ambient terms and are where the most interesting things happen, making up some of the best moments of the modern prog scene.
The album opens with the symphonic instrumental appetizer »Hope This Finds You«, ruled by mighty wind-and-string arrangements and vast waves of keyboards. The quality only keeps climbing from one track to the next. »Perfect Cosmic Storm« is an almost fifteen-minute complex epic of exceptional ambient intensity and rhythmic and arrangement variety, where the ‘old-timey’ sound of Hammond organs and mellotron and the use of digital samples are equally thrilling. In the opening section, singer Filkins occasionally overdoes the vocoder a bit, needlessly mangling his pleasant voice, while the vast mellotron swells eventually give way to melodic arrangements and tricky time changes that any prog gourmand can enjoy. Jazz fusion fans, meanwhile, can have a blast with the passionate saxophone variations. There’s never a shortage of transitions into complex instrumental sections, while Big Big Train prove themselves masters of hypnotic melody that radiates from most of the arrangements.
»Breathing Space«, a short ambient instrumental with ‘summery’ cricket sounds and mellotron swells that King Crimson wouldn’t be ashamed of, serves as an intro to the next ambitious epic, »Pick Up If You’re There«. Here Big Big Train once again show themselves to be masters of building dramatic atmospheres. The ethereal vocal harmonies, tastefully laid over the vast mellotron swells, deserve special praise. The complex instrumental sections with rustic strings and the fiery Hammond organ passages in between recall some of the best prog rock moments of the last century, while the guitar variety is just as enviable. There’s also enough room within this wonderful epic for folk moments on flute and jazzy mischief on saxophone. Filkins once again shines as a master of emotional exchanges, and is especially effective in the higher vocal registers.
»From The Wide Open Sea« is a short mellotron instrumental overture to the third epic on the album, »Salt Water Falling On Uneven Ground«. The opening section completely enchants right away, while Filkins once again proves his vocal chameleon skills. Here you can pick up on their neo-prog roots and, for the first time on the album, certain sonic similarities with IQ, as Filkins at times channels Peter Nicholls while singing. The sprawling symphonic arrangements are once again a feast for the ears, while mighty drum transitions neatly pave the way to an epic chorus. The middle section brings a pompous post-rock passage with guitar minimalism and vast symphonic swells, where among other things you can even hear a cat meowing. Eventually Filkins’ moving singing kicks in, backed by gorgeous, ethereal harmonies, with the mellotron once again playing the key role. »Summer’s Lease« is a nearly perfect closer for the album. A melancholic opening with a rustic string sound, subtly supported by Hammond organ and saxophone, while Filkins once again shines with his emotionally rich vocal delivery, once again carries an ‘old-school’ prog pulse. The ambient intensity, ruled by a wonderful blend of Celtic and Anglo-Saxon melos, doesn’t let up until the end.
It took Big Big Train quite a long time before most prog rock fans, given their past ups and downs in quality, started taking them more seriously. With »The Difference Machine«, which exceeded absolutely every expectation, they reached a new level of artistic development and finally stepped into the ranks of the most exciting modern prog acts, partly with the help of the prestigious guests mentioned above, among them D’Virgilio, who from here on replaced original member Steve Hughes and was a truly fascinating addition on drums. »The Difference Machine« was thus a thrilling start to the new and most successful era in Big Big Train’s history so far.
Lineup
Sean Filkins – vocals
Steve Hughes – drums
Andy Poole – bass guitar
Gregory Spawton – guitar, keyboards
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Becca King – viola
Tony Wright – alto and tenor saxophone, flute
Nick D’Virgilio (Spock’s Beard) – drums, backing vocals
Dave Meros (Spock’s Beard) – bass guitar
Pete Trewavas (Marillion) – bass guitar
Production
Big Big Train
Track list
1. Hope This Finds You (3:12)
2. Perfect Cosmic Storm (14:40)
3. Breathing Space (1:47)
4. Pick Up If You’re There (13:39)
5. From The Wide Open Sea (1:20)
6. Salt Water Falling On Uneven Ground (12:38)
7. Summer’s Lease (7:34)
