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North Star is a band that truly, truly gets no respect.
Extremes is the bands fifth release, yet they have a very
low profile in what is already a pretty low profile business.
Most reviews seem to mention something nice about the music,
diss the singer, Joe Newnam and then christen the bands sound
as "average Genesis wannabe, neo-prog". Ok. Is that perhaps
a bit harsh?
Now me for example, I generally enjoy highly derivative
Genesis wannabes, I hear that the band has a genuine keyboard
star in Kevin Leonard and on top of that, the band is from
Pennsylvania, which should get them at least some attention,
as that state seems to be prog central for American progressive
rock. So my opinion is this, this is a very good band with
pretty good songwriting that is more retro progressive than
neo prog. Kevin Leonard is indeed a bona fide keyboard god
and vocalist Joe Newnam is truly one of the worst Gabriel
sound-alikes I've heard. He's just plain bad, bad Gabriel
affectations with a bit of a problem with pitch on any sustained
note. But it's worth it to sit through the small amount of
Newman's singing to hear this disc. None of these tunes are
flat out bad and, indeed, more than half of this material
is quite good, far above average.
The first track, "Midnight Soldier" starts off with an
ELP like synth fanfare set to a martial beat which turns into
a very laid back and melodic tune that reminds me of Khan's
"Driving To Amsterdam" with intertwining organ and guitar
that is quite reminiscent of the work of Dave Stewart and
Steve Hillage. There are a lot of subtle changes of meter
and tempo and the first thing you notice is that there is
little in the way of production on this band's recordings
and that the musicians in North Star are of the very highest
caliber.
Track two, "Star Child" features twin acoustic 12 string
guitars and some very nasty vocals. After the brief vocal
part, the tune rides out with a gorgeous melody that blends
synth and flute tones very nicely.
The next two songs, "Sometimes In The Suburbs" and "Battles
Waged Before" are both spectacular, the first with Steve Howe-like
skittering guitar work similar to "Future Times/Rejoice" and
an overall Yes sound and the second with a strong initial
similarity to Genesis's "The Cinema Show" and a brilliant
center instrumental section that starts out as very Tony Banks
and ends with a Keith Emerson Hammond organ freak out.
The disc continues with "The Form" which to me sounds
like a mediocre song from Genesis's And Then There Were Three.
Despite it being a lackluster moment for me it still features
some very good organ work. The next cut, "Dr. Pill's Backlash
Ballroom is actually two minutes of tape effects and atmospheric
synthesizer doodling.
"Unleashed" really is. It begins with a bang and goes
right into a lengthy instrumental section that is much like
the keyboard section of "The Cinema Show" and has a number
of other familiar Genesis references. This is a very impressive
show of keyboard work, as is a lot of this album. "Live With
Liberty" is actually a reprise of "Star Child", expanded with
a nice lengthy keyboard solo.
Extremes ends on a high point with a couple of very strong
songs, "Stained Glass Doors" which is a short workout in the
style of "Los Endos" and boasts a lot of fast paced, exhilarating
interplay between the keys, guitar and drums. The closer,
"Living On The Fringe" is another fast, driving song that
is a blend of Genesis and ELP with one passage of synthesizer
and fuzz bass that sounds just like UK. It features ripping
organ work from Kevin Leonard and the most over the top guitar
yet from the bands excellent guitarist Dave Johnson.
As important as vocals are in good progressive rock, I
can see why some avoid North Star but I think those people
are really missing out on some great, great keyboard led retro
style prog that offers some of the best, most straightforward
traditional, English style prog rock I've heard in months.
Joe Newnam's vocals will prevent this disc from getting the
rating that it really deserves but I still hold this album
in high regard nonetheless. Highly recommended, and a must
have for keyboard aficionados.
RATING: 4/5
©Thomas Karr May 1, 2006
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