Detailed Reviews [Neil Campbell - 2024 - "The Smoky God"]

Prolusion. For the past couple of decades UK composer and musician Neil Campbell have made a name for himself in the world of progressive rock as well as the world of music in general, with his use of the guitar as an instrument and the acoustic guitar in particular as the element most often singled out by fans and critics for specific praise. Campbell is now out with the studio album "The Smoky God", which was self released in the early spring of 2024.

Analysis. I first came across Campbell back in 2008, when he released the splendid, elegant and at times magnificent album "Particle Theory", a creation where his talent as a songwriter and musician really managed to combine into a greater whole. The songs that struck me most from that album are songs that I still play on regular occasion for mere enjoyment. And being a person that literally receive thousands of albums of music in a normal year, it does take a little bit extra to manage to create music that gives me the need to revisit every so often. While I have enjoyed Campbell's later albums to a great extent too, or at least the ones that have come my way, this older album from 2008 did come with a few additional traits that for me at least made it just a bit more memorable than many of the later ones I have had the pleasure of experiencing over the years. Everything I have encountered by Campbell have been high quality material of course, but this is the case of the fine dividing line between what is great and solid and what is brilliant and magical. This time around we do get an album that strikes me as having the potential to, over time, become just as much a presence in terms of featuring music I want to revisit as the described album from back in 2008. For a couple of specific reasons. As usual we get the elegant, wandering acoustic guitar textures of Campbell, with at least one of the most striking of these moods also being at least partially revisited unless I'm much mistaken. Or at least that is the impression I get when comparing the songs 'Setting Sail' and 'The Opening'. But on this album the acoustic guitar doesn't carry the album to such a great extent than on many of the previous albums by Campbell I have encountered in the past decade or so. We get a few songs with a more prominent use of keyboards for starters, both as a more subtle and unobtrusive support presence but also as a dominant part of the arrangements. With the most intriguing cases for me at least being the ones where the songs get a little bit of a cosmic vibe due to the presence of the keyboards. Clean and elegant acoustic guitars pairs off really well with a cosmic vibe. We also get a little bit of an expansion into the world of progressive electronic music on this occasion, as 'Fresh Water Streams' is a charming and entertaining affair that to my mind at least comes with a little bit of a Tangerine Dream feel to it at times, and with clever use of guitar riffs as an impact effect. Another expansion of the landscapes explored on this production is that the electric guitar has been invited to the party, and on an occasion or two in a manner that does strike that Latimer association just a little bit. Most prominently so on the title track 'The Smoky God'. Hence this album experience is one that comes with a bit more of an expansive and expressive side to it, and while everything is still instrumental the width and scope makes this a more intriguing journey into the landscapes crafted by Campbell. Ranging from elegant and acoustic dominated creations that draw in subtle impulses from classical and jazz to more futuristic excursions set inside of a progressive electronic sphere there is plenty to enjoy here for those who relish variation and a little bit of unpredictability.

Conclusion. As with all albums I have encountered by this fine UK artist so far, this is a high quality creation through and through. The acoustic guitar is arguably still the most striking singular element, but we get some fine examples of mesmerizing songs without the acoustic guitar present as a dominant instrument too, and many fine and brilliant moments where the acoustic guitar combines with additional dominant instruments in a brilliantly transfixing manner. A very strong album that merits a check by those with an interest in instrumental progressive rock of the kind that exits a little bit on the side of the more common progressive rock variations.

Progmessor: March 2024