Comments:
One of rock's most progressive bands of all time is probably Kansas.
The band's long spanning career was marked by many highs and lows,
yet the band always managed to surprise with memorable releases. Never
letting down their fans, and always able to freshen up for a new round
of instrumental perfection. Whether it was their mega progressive
early days, the chartbusting era, their illusive AOR melodic rock
time, or the return to the sound of their greatness, Kansas did what
they do best: capture a creative momentum, not often matched by any
band.
Works
in Progress is an overview of their third decade, marked by numerous
live outputs, warping the band back into the spotlight. CD 1 of this
collection is the audio library, where CD 2 is the DVD collection
of some monumental performances of the band.
Audio
in the best possible live settings. From the enervating "Always
Never the Same" where they teamed up with the London Symphony
Orchestra, all the way to the more stripped down your face performance
from the Live at the Whiskey CD. Differing like day and night,
soundwise (obvious), but especially with Walsh' voice showing wear
during the Whiskey Club sessions. Even better to hear, the
man with the expressive and theatrical voice, has recovered well,
shown on the DVD section with outtakes from their acclaimed Device
- Voice - Drum release. Without doubt, the most sensational impersonation
of classic contemporary rock, boosted by a classical orchestra are
those captured on "Always…".
The
powerful versions of "Hold On,""Song for America,"
and the flowing and lingering camp fire classic "Dust in the
Wind" all stood the test of time swiftly and gotten a remarkable
revival thanks to this collaboration. Alongside all these living memories
in front of audiences world wide, the band presents some of the highlights
of their productivity in that period. Some faves are featured like
the violin driven pomp classic "Under the Knife,""I
Fly" or the mighty "Black Phantom 4." All (& some
more- YEAH!) from the under rated Freaks of Nature album.
The
second part contains an overview of Kansas 1992-2002 as well, except
presented in sight and sound (5.1!!). See this remarkable band perform
in front of an audience and spicing up their classic rock songs with
lots of enthusiasm and spirit. Again spotlighting the remarkable voice
of Walsh, the violin and voice of Steinhardt (and Ragsdale) with it's
renewing in music, over the impressive playing of Williams and Livgren
with their great melodies, and the solid foundation provided by Ehart
and Greer. The band is impressive and at their best on "Icarus"
and "Icarus II," where the second chapter perhaps can be
counted to their best songs ever. The mid section with an air battle
unleashing, is breathtaking and essential to the song. It creates
depth and empowers the lyrics about the airmen caught up in this story
of fear, hope and true heroism. You literally can relate to the feelings
of the airmen, and the epic ending gives hope …
Hope
we can also cling to in the future with this band being productive
as always. Though studio releases are taking many years to produce,
the band releases enough to keep fans satisfied without being ripped
off. Works in Progress might not be an addition to the collection
of every Kansas fan -- it is to fans of rock in general. Those that
lost track of this remarkable band, can easily catch up with their
last decade as can new fans and everyone interested in exceptional
and true at heart progressive rock music. The overview is simply well
put together, the sound is magnificent, and the digibook looks great.
On top: It is easier to take this along for the car stereo than a
pile of Kansas CDs, ain't it?!
www.kansasband.com
Line-Up:
Steve Walsh - vocals, keyboards
Richard Williams - guitars
Kerry Livgren - guitars and arrangements
Billy Greer - bass
Phil Ehart - drums
Robby Steinhardt - violin, vocals
David Ragsdale - violin
HRH
Rating: No rating
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