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Glass Hammer — On to Evermore: The Story of Arianna and the Sculptor
(Arion SR1127, 1998, CD)

On to Evermore: The Story of Arianna and the Sculptor Cover art

Once again, Glass Hammer graces us with a solid slice of classic progressive rock. This effort is especially well produced, right down to the beautiful packaging, artwork, liner notes, and lyrics. But on to the music... Glass Hammer is a four-piece from Chattanooga consisting of acoustic and electric guitars, plenty of analog and digital keys, bass, and drums. This album is built out of a slightly warped fairy tale concept (similar to some of Renaissance's work), using songs as both character studies and as plot development. The music is quite strong throughout, beginning with the opening title track. This is a powerful piece with shimmering acoustic guitars building up the full band attack. The second track, "The Mayor of Longview" (one of the main characters), reminded me of pop at first, until I realized what "pop" I was thinking of — namely, late 70s to early 80s Camel, the band and era that got me started on prog in the first place! So I loved it after that! The album's centerpiece is the 16-minute "Arianna," which is quintessential symphonic progressive storytelling. This is one big song. The only track that bummed me out was the nine-minute "Junkyard Angel," which seems to plod on in a power ballad style without enough excitement to keep me interested. Glass Hammer is a very promising symphonic progressive band with solid roots in the late 70s style (though with a few modern synths thrown in, but these guys are definitely performers, not programmers). Highly recommended.

by Steve Robey, Published 1998-07-01

A concept album with a medieval story-line complete with sorcerers and angels, On to Evermore shows Glass Hammer further refining their brand of keyboard-driven music. The songwriting sounds more balanced than on previous releases, though the keyboards are still the obvious dominant instrument. The vocals have improved dramatically too. There are still multiple lead vocalists, but all are capable. The alternating male vocalists are reminiscent of Kansas, and one of the vocalists (check out "The Conflict") sounds vaguely like a certain Steve Walsh. The music sounds influenced by Pink Floyd (the mellow groove parts), Yes (the clanging bass and bass pedal parts), ELP (the portamento lead synths), and the aforementioned Kansas. The album contains a 17 minute epic, "Arianna," which has great examples of the Floydian mellowness and cranking keyboards that define Glass Hammer's sound. Though the band is doing fine as they are, a healthier dose of smoking guitar work would complement the keyboards nicely. Perhaps more than any of their previous albums, On to Evermore is clearly song and vocal based. Those who enjoy song-based melodic progressive rock should have a pleasant journey down the road on to Evermore.

by Mike Grimes, Published 1998-07-01

Over the span of three studio albums, Glass Hammer has evolved from a two-piece studio project lost in a sea of ideas into a first-rate working band with a solid foundation rooted in the classic 70s progressive rock style. While the listener might draw some parallels with the music of classic Yes, Argent, Rundgren, a bit of Genesis, and even Klaatu, Glass Hammer’s style is a well steeped synthesis of many influences and offers few overt references — a trait which clearly separates them from others like Spock’s Beard, whose compositions tend to offer more of a paste-up collage of identifiable quotes. The sound here is a mixture of keyboard dominated symphonics, and lighter acoustic guitar driven pieces, with some shred guitarwork by David Carter (of special note: “Only Red”). Bassist / keyboardist Steve Babb and drummer Walter Moore support the effort well, while keyboard / multi-instrumentalist Fred Schendel brings in a variety of additional sounds with flute, sitar, mandolin, and percussion. All four members sing lead and harmonies at various times, and there is no one dominant voice throughout, giving the effort a stronger than usual sense of variety, which works to its advantage over the long haul. The centerpiece of this concept album is the seventeen minute “Arianna,” an opus which moves through many sections and moods. “Junkyard Angel” is another prominent multi-part piece, clocking in at an even nine. Several shorter guitar driven tunes punctuate the longer pieces, as well as “The Mayor of Longview,” a very tasty pop track (in the respectable 70s sense) that might have fit well on Something / Anything. Be it composition, arrangement, or musicianship, On to Evermore is a solid step forward on all fronts. Fans of the 70s symphonic rock sound would do well to check this out. Don’t be surprised if this turns up on a lot of ‘Best of ‘98’ lists next year.

by Peter Thelen, Published 1998-07-01

I hadn't heard Glass Hammer's previous releases, Journey of the Dunadan or Perelandra, but I had heard the buzz going around about these guys so I was intrigued to finally check 'em out and I'm happy to report that Glass Hammer are the real McCoy. Let me be clear that this band will not be everybody's cup of tea and will most appeal to those who like their prog sunny side up without a lot of fuss and complication. No Zeuhl or RIO here to be sure! On to Evermore follows a story line similar to the Yes classic "Turn of the Century," though more heavily steeped in swords and sorcery fantasy. Mid-period Yes and Genesis are obvious musical influences for Glass Hammer but Spock's Beard is a strong point of comparison as a contemporary. Vintage keys and bass are liberally employed, along with modern production savvy and engaging, melodic song writing. And, like Spock's Beard, Glass Hammer are unafraid of dense multi-part harmonies. Lead vocals as well as many of the instrumental chores are equally and ably shared between Fred Schendel and Steve Babb with Walter Moore and David Carter rounding out the lineup on drums and guitars, respectively. I suppose what I admire and find most refreshing about what Glass Hammer has achieved here is that, even with such a colorful canvas of sounds and textures at their disposal, these guys never let the music come before the song. From the dreamy and ethereal strains of "Twilight on Longview" to the more urgent rock of "The Conflict," there's a keen eye toward nuance and dynamics as well as rich and harmonically colorful arranging that sets this collection above the prog mainstream. On to Evermore is one disc due for heavy rotation and a sure bet for my Best of '98 list.

by Paul Hightower, Published 1998-07-01

Filed under: New releases, Issue 15, 1998 releases

Related artist(s): Glass Hammer

 

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