Thanks Jerry Lucky from the Progressive Rock files for this review: By my count this is Matt Stevens’ fourth studio recording and this time he’s really gone all-out in terms of expanding his musical pallet. Lucid brings together the musical talents of not only Stevens but a host of guests – sort of a prog who’s who. The list includes: Pat Mastelotto (King Crimson), Bass guitarists Lorenzo Feliciati (Naked Truth), Charlie Cawood (Knifeworld) and Kev Feazey, keyboard players Jem Godfrey (Frost) and Emmett Elvin (Chrome Hoof / Guapo), violinist Chrissie Caulfield (Helicopter Quartet / Crippled Black Phoenix), vibe player Jon Hart and Nicholas Wyatt Duke (Trojan Horse) on Spoken Word. As on previous releases, the starting point for many of these compositions is his guitar and the many unusual textures he’s able to coax from his instrument of choice. Lucid features a total of forty-two minutes of music spread over eleven tracks, most of which or shorter in length. Most of these tunes flow seamlessly into one another sort of presenting one longer varied musical landscape. I say seamlessly but that’s not quite the case, many times the music will work itself into quite a frenzy only to end abruptly allowing the next track to start in some other fashion. The focus here is not only on sounds but also on performance. Being mostly instrumental there are lots of notes flying about and whether it’s the guitar, the bass, the drums or the keyboard, everyone is doing a lot of playing. There is a fair bit of brash, angularity in these tunes, but it stays melodic enough so as not to frighten even the most timid listener. In addition Steven’s style is one that might be considered a “gateway” style that could lead to the listening of even more complex music. That said, not everything is busy and loud. A number of the compositions display a slower more subdued pace, but even in these tunes, musical layer is built upon musical layer most times ending in grander fashion than started with. Matt Stevens’ confidence and technique have clearly reached new heights on Lucid. He retains much of his early vibe but presents it in a more assured fashion. It bears repeating, Matt Stevens’ music is quite captivating. If you appreciative of the work of artists like Robert Fripp, Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips, the music on Lucid will be right up your alley. Highly recommended not only to guitar fanatics but for prog fans looking for some excellent guitar led instrumental music with plenty of progressive rock attitude. jerrylucky/
Posted on: Fri, 16 May 2014 15:53:54 +0000
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