|  Comments:
I will be honest with you. I truly never thought The Sign would
be able to top their magnificent debut CD Signs of Life.
What the band created on The Second Coming however is not
only an improvement, but they actually managed to record one of
melodic rock and pop rock’s finest releases of the decade.
The
Second Coming tells us the (continued) story of “Aryon”
from disc one. The story is unfolding and proves to be an ear-mingling
rock opera in the vein of The Who’s Tommy and the
Destiny Faire debut release. Front to back it is packed with hyper
active, keyboard and guitar driven (pop) rock that warps you to
the days bands like Zon, Styx, Streets, Starcastle, etc., ruled
the radio waves. An album you need to absorb several times to let
it unveil its true potential.
Masterminds
Mark Mangold (Touch, Drive She Said, Mystic Healer) and Terry Brock
(Strangeways, and solo) teamed up once more with Randy Jackson (Zebra).
Guitar shredder extraordinaire Jon Bivona (Trans Siberian Orchestra)
and none other than power vocalist Danny Vaughn of Tyketto and Vaughn
fame, complete the all star cast. It is especially the intense interaction
between Brock and Vaughn that catches the ear immediately. Add in
the high pitched Zepp-ish voice of Jackson and you have an setting
to start off a unique and intriguing story. Songs like the opening
“Aryon Overture” and “Stained” warp us back
to the debut and will kick into gear almost instantly.
The
next bunch of songs keeps the story going and grabs you by the throat.
This one won’t let go, folks! For over 60 minutes straight
you will be in the front row of this play. Superb songs are packed
upon another woven around the storyline, with true gems like the
ultimate rock ballad “Keep on Breathin” and the pop
hymn “Stained” with Brock showcasing his enormous skills.
The marvelous “If For a Moment,” perhaps their best
song ever. The most unique and renewing sound is found in the breathtaking
“Flame of the Oracle,” which brings back memories of
musicals and opera’s from Webber’s many Broadway hits.
But above all it is the structure in its entire form that is simply
remarkable.
The
instrumental parts like “The Ooze,”“Bliss”
and “Inner Child” are the ties that bind, as are the
returning fractures of songs from the album in several tracks. They
can be heard although the album. It is a unique and intriguing album
that keeps growing on you. Not an album you can easily absorb, but
once you kick back and relax, to let the music do the talking, you
will most definitely feel that you bought yourself a gem. The
Second Coming is more progressive, more elegant, intriguing
and daring than all the records released in the last decade. Yes…Pride
of Lions included!! Listen to the bonus track “Maniacs.”
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