1986 - "The Wedge"
Tracklist:
will be soon
Line-up:
will be soon
"The Wedge" album. The second Pallas album is even more heavier, but less progressive than "The Sentinel", though structurally "The Wedge", on the whole, follows the 'canons' of the band's original stylistics formed on the previous album. Unfortunately, being quite a heavy album, "The Wedge" hasn't that firm Proto-metallic backbone the band invented in the process of composing of "The Sentinel". Still very interesting in its own way, the second one is, however, quite accessible on the whole. Stylistically, most of the songs of this album can be described as Progressive Hard Rock and just the only song from the original edition of "The Wedge" album has pure progressive
structures. Fortunately, the CD edition of "The Wedge" contains also all songs featured the band's only EP "Knightmoves" of 1985 and one of these newly added songs - Sanctuary - becomes the CD's
second (and probably the most) progressive song with obvious epic tendencies. Back to "The Wedge"
album as a whole, I like it almost as much as I like "The Sentinel". It is because I like any original proto-progressive bands (most of whose are the units of the Hard Rock genre - this is the
fact, but not my own opinion) and consider their creation as an important stage for the beginners
- potentially true Prog-lovers - to comprehend more complex progressive structures.
1998 - "Beat the Drum"
Tracklist:
2. Beat the Drum
3. Hide'n'Seek
4. Insomniac
5. All of Nothing
6. Spirits
7. Man of Principle
8. Ghosts
9. Blood'n'Roses
10. Wilderness Years
11. Fragments of the Sun
Line-up:
Alan Reed - vocals
Graeme Murray - bass
Niall Mathewson - guitars;
Colin Fraser - drums;
Ronnie Brown - keyboards, percussion.
Produced by N.Mathewson & G.Murray.
Prologue. This is my first aquaintance with Pallas. Earlier, I've read about this band in
Gibraltar, not to mention some progressive rock sites. Most critics consider Pallas as a
mediocre, on the whole, Neo band... So, sad to think, I was deceived by that online
Encyclopedia more than once, as well as by these (the same!) progressive rock sites. So,
sad to learn that "thanks" to them all I avoided one of the most important (does it mean one
of the best? I think so, though) progressive rock bands ever appeared in the "dark decade"
(of the '80s, of course). Sad to say, I have avoided it up to now.
The Album. I don't even know how I can write about each song on this album separately -
there are eleven songs here, each a real killer. Just recently I wrote that Yoke Shire's
"Masque of Shadows" (such a special) album must be a stage, an impulse to the return of a
really obvious interest in Progressive Music like it was in the good old years... Now I only
can say the same words - with the only exception, though - the step forward towards the
general public was done by Pallas, too, but it was done even a year before by Yoke Shire.
The 72 minute album is full of excellent music that combines in itself beautiful melodies and
quite profound arrangements, or better to say, the music of Pallas is full of catchy melodies.
Whether it's Neo Prog or not, it absolutely doesn't matter, because this is the Music of
Inspiration - very mature music. By the way, don't look here for any analogies (I don't mean
stylistical analogies, of course) with other bands, all you'll find is exceptional originality.
Remember how original were (and still are) Yes, King Crimson, Jethro Tull - Pallas' music is
of the same kind of maturity, though more accessible. Their music is like a bridge between
two coasts... Do you understand what I mean? I hope so. I am also amazed at a really "deep" proGfessionalism of the Pallas musicians. They well know what they do! Each of these five musicians shows really a highest level of professionalism. It is such a pleasure to listen how they play together (I mean "general" arrangements) and separately (I mean solos by the main soloists - guitarist and keyboardist) in the accompaniment of their friends playing! The rhythm-section works like a watch mechanism. It's a Kingdom of Harmony! As for the vocalist, I enjoyed Alan Reed's abilities no less than these of Jon Anderson or Steve Walsh. I'll even dare to say, there are by far not many singers on the current progressive scene with the level of Alan: his singing is a
whole song, a whole "separate" story. Need I say more? Just listen more attentively to what he is
able "to do" with his voice!
Summary. Well, I'm writing and enjoying: such a favorable review on "Beat the drum" I'm doing. But this album more than simply deserves it! So, it wasn't hard, listening to the Pallas, to find that this is a unique yet quite underrated from the direction of "progressive" reviewers band. I'm glad to make sure that these days we have bands like Pallas that can broaden the horizons of progressive rock, in the way Pink Floyd did it in the '70s. Therefore, Pallas has done enough to go into the history of rock music for all time.
VM. March 30, 2001
Oh, I did forget to tell you that I myself avoided purchasing the Pallas CDs (when I was in Moscow
the few years ago), being misled (deceived!) by the same article of Pallas in the GEPR. That's what
happens when some people stick their noses into other people's affairs. And the number of pseudo
prog-reviewers is still as large as the number of Pseudo Prog-bands (I might have created a section
"devoted" to them a long time ago, but a problem of getting a 48-hours day is still on my agenda).
