Artist: Life Line Project
Label: Self-released
Release: 2011
Duration: 105:03
Rating: 4.2/5
Life Line Project are old acquaintances of the Dutch symphonic prog scene. The band is defined above all by the moving story of its main man, Erik de Beer, who some time ago was diagnosed with cancer and a short life expectancy. Then the doctors announced it was a mistake, and Erik de Beer, filled with fresh life energy, threw himself into the things he loves. Out of that came Life Line Project, where he pours out all his love, not just for music but for life as such – and music is definitely the medium through which he shows it.
The band already has a pretty impressive discography behind them, one that shows tremendous maturity and consistency. Commercial success hasn’t come yet, though, and, let’s be honest, given today’s music scene it never will. In the end, that’s not the goal anyway, nor something Erik de Beer and the rest of the band are striving for. So far Life Line Project have put out 6 albums, which differ quite a bit stylistically, even though they always stay within the bounds of progressive rock.
The Journey, the latest album from the Dutch proggers, is their most ambitious project to date. The double album, which adds up to an hour and 45 minutes of music, is split into two (epic) parts. The first, a conceptual track running a full hour, is called »The Journey To The Heart Of Your Mind«. It’s divided into 16 parts, which are tied together (besides the obviously shared theme and story) by vocal breaks, orchestral explosions, or simple but gorgeous woodwind passages. The usual lineup is joined by a ton of extra orchestral sections (which add enormously to the symphonic side of Life Line Project’s progressive rock) and by guest musicians, especially female vocalists, who play individual roles in de Beer’s musical story. The first part is quite cheerful, light and positive, mostly steeped in major-key ballads and fairytale melodies, only now and then interrupted by genre detours (from soul and funk excursions to classical solo feats) in line with the story’s concept and the album’s building tension. The focus is on an unknown person walking the road of discovery, and above all of finding themselves.
The biggest forte of the music is definitely its variety and the dynamic shifting of melodies, which still add up to a coherent whole. The organ parts, masterfully handled by Erik de Beer, are especially inspired. They’re brilliantly showcased, particularly in the production, since their volume on the solo parts is higher than on the parts where he plays several instruments. Stylistically it ranges, whatever the story calls for, from medieval-sounding arrangements all the way to stretched-out synthesizer sounds that give the music that modern feel. Some kind of a cappella parts even sneak in, spicing up the already varied music. Despite the occasional mediocrity of the compositions and the ordinariness of the prog-rock style, all that gets lost in the impressive ability to switch styles over such short intervals, as they do all throughout The Journey. The instrumental parts are mostly even stronger than the vocal ones, especially when Erik holds the reins and conjures up all kinds of ambient landscapes with countless keyboard sounds.
The second part of the album is called »The Narrow Path«. It kicks off just as powerfully as »The Journey To The Heart Of Your Mind«, with an ambitious instrumental section where the keyboards dominate again, along with all sorts of playing around with effects. The main attraction on this second CD is definitely the title track »The Narrow Path«, an epic poem and composition in one, with some of the best parts and arrangements Erik de Beer has ever written. A dark, gloomy mellotron melody, with some tribal percussion bits and lurking woodwind sounds. A creepy choir in the background is a factor that cranks up the eeriness in any kind of music, and it has exactly the same effect here. Despite the track’s overall darkness there are some livelier parts, especially during de Beer’s various solos, and it’s built like the first CD – with constant ups and downs, shifts in mood, tempo, rhythm, emotional tension… instrumentally painting a truly thrilling journey. The theme is similar to the previous one – we’re still following some kind of journey of the subject, both inner and actual, which is, as is customary in progressive rock, fantastical.
The Journey, all things considered, is a truly impressive piece of work. So much imagination poured into a single release, which as a result contains every possible mood, style and emotional tension, is hard to come by. And when everything that’s been written is brought together into a graspable and meaningful whole, that’s simply unfathomable. Of course the album has a few downsides – the production occasionally sounds too plastic, the lyrics are a bit cliched, and because of the length we sometimes get the feeling that some part is so-called filler… but in the end, after listening, none of that even matters. All that matters is the feeling that we’ve just walked a path that made us better people.
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Life Line Project is fairly well-known in the Dutch prog rock territory. The band is mostly characterised by the touching story of their leader, Erik de Beer, who was some time ago diagnosed with terminal cancer, but it was later on found that the diagnosis was a mistake and that Erik de Beer is not terminally ill. This gave Erik de Beer a newfound life energy and an urge to concentrate on thins he loves doing. Life Line Project is just that – something where de Beer’s heart truly lies, where he can express his love, not only to music, but to life as such, where music is only the medium for transferring his feelings.
The band has an impressive discography so far, which reflects their maturity and constancy, although there has been no commercial success so far and there will probably be none. But that’s not really what the band is about and what it cares for. The band has, so far, issued 6 albums, which are quite different in their styles, although they are always swimming in the same progressive rock ocean.
The Journey, their latest album, is probably their most ambitious project so far. Double album that lasts an hour and 45 minutes, consists of two (epic) parts. The first one, which is an hour long conceptual piece, is called »The Journey To The Heart Of Your Mind«. It is broken down into 16 tracks, which are intertwined (apart from the same subject matter and story) either with vocal breaks or with orchestral explosions or even with simple, yet beautiful passages of woodwinds. Many guests have been featured along with the regular group for this album, and these guests usually play the instruments that are suitable for orchestra and therefore bring a lot to the symphonic part of Life Line Project’s progressive rock. The first part of the album sounds quite festive, light and of positive nature, more or less full of ballads and fairytaleish melodies, which are here and there discontinued by various genre changes (from soul and funk expeditions to solo classical ventures) in accordance with the story’s concept and album’s tension. The focus is on an unknown person that is on a path to knowing themselves.
The band’s biggest forte is their diversity and dynamics of the melody changing which, no matter what, always sounds coherent. The parts with mellotron and organ are especially inspired, but that is always expected from the maestro Erik de Beer. Stylistically the parts change from Middle Ages-inspired compositions to the more modern-sounding ones with synthesizer being all over the place and such. There are even some “a capella”-resembling parts. Even though there are some pretty average parts in the terms of quality and some very worn-out progressive rock to be heard the listener hardly notices it as he is so indulged in the constant melody changes, which are really impressive. The instrumental part of the album is even better than those with vocals, especially where the focus is solely on de Beer and his musical ambiance.
The second part of the double album is called “The Narrow Path”. It begins as fiercely as the »The Journey To The Heart Of Your Mind« with an ambitious instrumental section, where the keyboards are again the dominant instrument. The main attraction on this second CD is definitely the title track, “The Narrow Path”. It definitely consists of some of the best work from Erik de Beer. Dark, brooding mellotron melody with some kind of tribal percussion parts and creepy woodwind sounds pervades all through the track. Horror-like choir sounds in the background add to the scariness of the song. The song, of course, consists of some brighter parts, as was expected, as every piece of music on the double album is never in only one mood. And the rest of the CD is in the similar fashion – with constant tempo, rhythm, mood, tension changes. A really exciting adventure. The subject matter is already familiar from the first CD – some kind of a search for inner self, which is reflected through real-life situations.
With everything said, The Journey amounts to a truly impressive work of art. So much imagination is needed to create such a product, so much imagination to create so many moods, tensions, styles etc. But when all these are connected into a coherent whole, you know that what lies in front of you is something hardly imaginable. There are definitely some poor sides of the album – its production sometimes fails and makes the instrument sounds a bit plastic, the lyrics are a bit clicheish, because of the album’s length there are some fillers. But in the end all that is meaningless. All that counts is that we have gone through a path that left us feel good.
Line-up
Marion Brinkman-Stroetinga – vocals | lead & harmony vocals
Maruschka Kartosonto – vocals | lead & harmony vocals
Peter van der Stel – vocals | lead & harmony vocals (King Of Make-Believe)
Liset Dullaart – vocals | lead & harmony vocals (Miss Fortune)
Anja Sides-Dirkzwager – vocals | lead vocals (Does It Help?)
Johan van der Stel – voice | money making yuppie (Join Us)
Maarten Mol – voice | mad preacher (Join Us)
Elsa de Beer – flute, voice | flute & Wendy the Brainless Rapper (Join Us)
Dineke Visser – oboe | oboe
Anneke Verhage – clarinet | clarinet
Lisette Harms – clarinet | clarinet (Forgotten Page)
Ada Bienfait – bassoon | bassoon
Jody van der Gijze – electric and acoustic guitars, vocals | electric & acoustic guitars, lots of harmony vocals & additional lead vocals
Iris Sagan – bass guitar, vocals, voice | bass guitar, harmony vocals & the socialist (Join Us)
Erik de Beer – acoustic and electric pianos, Moog, Hammond organ, pipe organ, harpsichord, synthesizers, assorted guitars, mandolin, lute, chitarrone, acoustic bass guitar, vocals | acoustic & electric pianos, Moogs, Hammond organ, pipe organ,
harpsichord, synthesizers, guitars, mandolin, lute, chitarrone, baroque guitar,
acoustic bass guitar, lead & harmony vocals
Production
Erik de Beer
Track list
CD 1: “Journey To The Heart Of Your Mind”
1. Blank Page (7:19)
2. The Journey Begins (4:57)
3. Join Us ! (3:49)
4. Doubt (1:29)
5. Fight The World (5:17)
6. Longing For My Childhood (4:46)
7. Interlude “Turn The Page” (0:55)
8. Bright Spots (5:17)
9. Envy (1:33)
10. Interlude “Dark Page” (1:00)
11. Miss Fortune (3:45)
12. Interlude “Forgotten Page” (1:30)
13. The King Of Make-Believe (5:16)
14. Free ! (3:07)
15. Credo (5:01)
16. The Last Page (5:07)
(60:17)
CD 2: “The Narrow Path”
1. Turn The Key (5:35)
2. Miniature 8 “La Mélancolie” (2:32)
3. The Narrow Path (11:57)
4. Monkey Business (2:56)
5. Happiness Theme (3:56)
6. Collage ’11 (3:08)
7. Miniature 6 “La Flegmatique” (2:24)
8. Does It Help ? (7:34)
9. The French Wrench (4:22)
(44:46)
