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No Hill For A Climber by Neal Morse & The Resonance, 2024
This album features the multi-instrumentalist genius Neal Morse and the Resonance, a band of young musicians from the Nashville progressive scene whom Neal has known for a long time, having often featured them at local events, but who had never directly contributed to one of his albums.
A progressive rock album, or more precisely, Symphonic Rock, a genre in which the great Neal Morse excels with large-scale compositions in his numerous projects. Their epic sound features long, seventies-inspired tracks, grand orchestrations with strings and horns, all positively influenced by Resonance's more modern progressive metal style.
In Morse, he delights us with his grand symphonic finales, crescendos, and splendid vocal melodies, along with innovative ideas that are the new band's contribution, bringing a sort of shift from the classic sound Morse has offered us in the past.
The performances are excellent, with Resonance's playing prowess and Morse's undisputed prowess.
Two lengthy suites, twenty-one and twenty-nine minutes long, open and close the album, with a central section consisting of three more songs, totaling over an hour. These are the tracks I enjoyed most:
- "Eternity In Your Eyes" is an album opener in perfect Morse style, a long, epic track of great compositional quality.
- "Thief" is a beautiful piece featuring a truly interesting, experimental jazz influence.
- "All The Rage" is a rock track with a great vocal from Morse.
- "Ever Interceding" is a short piece featuring the truly beautiful vocals of Resonance's Johnny Bisaha.
- The title track, No Hill for a Climber, closes the album, an epic track lasting about 29 minutes, with a complex structure and a powerful, imposing sound—pure symphonic rock.
An album that doesn't disappoint. For those familiar with Neal Morse, we're talking about a very high level of both compositional and performance work. Resonance, while lacking in peak performance, does a great job. I recommend it to Neal Morse fans and those who enjoy progressive metal, which is one of the album's hallmarks.
Great album, I hope there's a sequel!
Note: All links to the musicians' works are in the TAGS under the article title or on the "Artists" page.
Tracklist
1. Eternity in Your Eyes (20:56) :
- i. Prelude to Eternity
- ii. I See the Sun
- iii. Northern Lights
- iv. Echoes of Forever
- v. The Dream's Still Alive
- vi. Hammer and Nail
- vii. Daylight
2. Thief (5:23)
3. All the Rage (5:34)
4. Ever Interceding (6:31)
5. No Hill for a Climber (28:50) :
- i. The Mountain and the Valley
- ii. A Hill So High
- iii. Burn It Down
- iv. Love Is All
- v. The Resonance
- vi. The Mountaintop Beyond the Sky
Duration 67:14
LineUp
- Neal Morse - keyboards, guitars, bass, percussion, lead vocals and backing vocals
- Chris Riley - keyboards, guitars, bass, lead vocals
- Andre Madatian - guitars, orchestration
- Johnny Bisaha - lead vocals
- Philip Martin - drums (2-5)
- Joe Ganzelli - drums (1, 2, 5)
- Chris Carmichael - violin, viola, cello
- Amy Pippin - backing vocals
- Julie Harrison - backing vocals
- Chris West - trumpet, flugelhorn
- Desmond Ng - trombone, euphonium
