1. For You the Old Women (8:13)
2. Conversation with Personality Giver (5:36)
3. Light of the Candle (4:22)
4. Number Six (5:04)
5. For Four (14:45)
The American Progressive Rock scene back in the 70's was never particularly noteworthy in the eyes of most music seekers. It was more conveniant to worship Kansas and slap the label of prog. on any band that could get something on radio that was longer than 4 minutes (Styx and Starcastle being big perpetrators).
So in regards to that, all I can say is thank Goddddd for diamonds in the rough like Mirthrandir, who on this sole album (the only one they managed to record in their short time as a band) showed more individuality and showsmanship than most groups could turn out in an entire career. While guitar, keyboard, bass, etc are all to be expected here, its the seamless interplay of the instruments and movement between mood and tempo (the first few minutes on Conversation With Personality Giver and latter half on For Four being particular highlights) that elevates this sound to a place of its own instead of being a clone-copy of Yes, Genesis or Gentle Giant.
Track breakdowns:
For You The Old Women - Starts the album off with some fiery jazzy guitar/keyboard interplay before bringing in some horns and drum emphasis. Slows down dreamily a-la Floyd/Camel through most of the middle and finishes strong at the end. Nice vocals, if nothing particularly striking.
Conversation With Personality Giver - Very lush keyboard and quick drumming takes prominence over guitar, breaking down into slower tempos with piano and horns that for a nice sheen. Great track.
Light Of The Candle - More conventional structurally than the last two tracks and less atmospheric, while being harder on guitar and more straightforward on the keyboards. Vocals are also quite nice here, making this track particularly good and a hightlight of this album IMO.
Number Six - Instrumental song, which builds itself up ever so quietly with flute and sax before the drums come in, followed by some searing guitar and keyboard work spaced over the rest of the time. Technically impressive to say the very least, and ear-pleasing to boot.
For Four - Nearly fifteen minutes of awesome, taking elements of everything you've heard thusfar while throwing some organ and Mellotron into the mix to build foundation around the keyboard-driven parts. And, of course, there's lots of great guitar. A nice way to end the album all in all, and despite the length isn't tedious at all to listen to. My favorite piece off the album.
Conclusion
I heartily recommend this album to anyone who wants to get a better idea of some of the music that was being done on America's progressive front besides Kansas back in the mid to late 70's. The production is steller, and unlike a lot of music from that period, I would say Mirthrandir's
For You The Old Women has aged extraordinarily well; none of it sounds dated in any way, shape or form, and deserves a place in everyone's musical collection.