I was REALLY impressed the first time I heard "The Great Divide". It opens with a ten minute track titled "Perpetual Child". One of the first things I noticed is how Josh Pincus sounds like a combination of James LaBrie from Dream Theater and Dennis DeYoung from STYX. I would listen to Ice Age if JUST for Josh Pincus' vocals! The guitar sound is rather hard and crunchy on this song...Great sound to go with the powerful vocals!
The next song "Sleepwalker" opens with a wee bit of a drum solo by Hal Aponte...Then goes into some remarkable guitar work. This song is full of SO much energy it is amazing. I think one of the hardest things for a progressive metal band these days is to find their own unique sound so they can catch the attention of fans. Ice Age is NOT just another Dream Theater wannabee!
"Join" has the HOOK most definitely! I heard that song once and I was singing it all day! Although this song is catchy...It is very complex at the same time. One of the things I really love about this song is the contrast between heavy and light parts. "Masterful is the night sky...When shadows conceal the light..."
"Spare Chicken Parts" is an over 8 minute long extremely self-indulgent instrumental song! I LOVE IT!
"Because of You" opens with some synthesizer and is appealing like the song "Join". It is really great to hear a band who are incredible musically and can STILL write lyrics that have substance, melody, and meaning.
I like "The Bottom Line" a lot. It is a very upbeat and heavy song. It builds throughout getting heavier and heavier. I just love Josh Pincus' "heeeeeeeeey" at the end of the song!
"Ice Age" begins with some ambient/trippy keyboard work. Then there is a recording that says (?) "Trust...Trust is a tough thing to come by these days". I thought that was interesting. Both "Ice Age" and "One Look Away" have VERY good keyboard work. The latter is done almost entirely on piano. It is a nice ballad.
I love the guitar work by Jimmy Pappas on "Miles to Go". What I really like about Ice Age once again is the contrast their music has. That really shows on this song. The guitars are heavy and suddenly they will stop and make room for a cheery keyboard solo courtesy of Josh Pincus.
"To Say Goodbye"...Now THERE is an awesome Prog song! It clocks in at about 12 minutes and the first three minutes are instrumental. Jimmy Pappas, Arron DiCesare, and Hal Aponte really show off their musical skills here! The keyboard and guitar work is mind-boggling. And let's not forget the bass and drum work!
I had only heard one song by Ice Age before I bought the album ("Join") and I was truly flabbergasted by their musical ability. This CD has had a permanent place in my CD player for months! The only rival it has is Ice Age's newest album "Liberation"...
Review of "Liberation" coming soon!