TRACK LIST:
1. Federal Offense 4:16
2. The Vortex 4:23
3. The Positive Side, Part 2 7:29
4. Calling All 3:10
5.Time Unwritten 5:35
6. Desert Sands 8:58
LINE UP :
Jay Heffner - drums, percussion
Kevin McConnell - vocals, piano, keyboards, synthesizers, organ
Joe Monda - bass
Tenk Van Dool - guitars, vocals
Prolusion.
US band Temple of Switches has been around for around a decade at this point, with 2012 stated as the year of formation for the band. The album "Temple of Switches" dates back to 2015, and was the band's debut album.
Analysis.
This debut album comes with a number of different properties attached to it, and one of them is that the style of progressive rock explored on this production appears to be approached from more of a classic rock and hard rock perspective. The opening song 'Federal Offense' in particular strikes me as more of a classic rock than a progressive rock creation, and various aspects of classic era rock and hard rock are distinct features throughout this production.
The compositions starts to gain an increasing progressive rock orientation as this album moves onwards though, with the keyboards given more room and space to shine and backing textures as well as solo runs having a closer relation to progressive rock in general and symphonic progressive rock in particular. While there aren't too many readily distinct pointers and associations, good old Genesis probably merits a mention as a likely influential candidate on a few occasions here and there. We also get a few songs with cosmic and psychedelic elements added to the total experience, in a compelling kind of manner that comes with an invitation to namedrop Pink Floyd.
I also note that the structure of the material gets a bit more advanced after the initial song here, with the structure gaining and growing in terms of alterations in pace, intensity as well as the overall arrangement on a good number of the songs. So while the core foundations of some of the songs may still remain in more of a classic rock tradition, the structure this is applied to is of a more expressive nature.
One letdown on this album is the mix and production, which is one I'd describe as a bit below average in general and primarily hovering around the competent description. Lo-fi and mix, production and mastering done at a set budget limit are the associations I get when trying to summarize what I hear. While not at the level of being detrimental as such for me, this aspect of the album will be a divisive one for some listeners, and this is not a production that will be of interest to strict audiophiles.
Conclusion.
This first album by Temple of Switches, and the sole album they released as a proper, old fashioned band unit, is an album that revolves around progressive rock made and approached from a classic rock and classic hard rock perspective. While the majority of the songs explore progressive rock structures and arrangement choices, with symphonic progressive rock and subtle cosmic flavored creations being the main choices, the classic rock roots of the material does shine through on quite a few compositions. For those who are just as fond of classic rock as progressive rock, and don't mind production values that have more of a budget feel to them, this should be quite the interesting album to become more familiar with.
Progmessor: October 2022
The Rating Room
