Veteran progsters The Tirith follow-up their magnificent 2022 album Return of the Lydia with an even mightier album – Quetzalcoatl.
These chaps know their stuff. And this album is much more than “just” prog.
A sweeping, atmospheric, expansive and majestic listen which delivers the lot as it veers from chunky heaviness to pastoral typically English folk and everting in between such is the range of the composition and arrangements.
Soaring keyboard swells and runs, solid, driving guitar, well placed solos, tight vocals and a rhythm section so locked in it’s ridiculous.
The basslines so melodic and the drumming so effective it doesn’t waste a beat.
The brief intro leads straight in to the title track. An immediate attention grabber of heavy guitars and atmospheric keyboards creating a mystical atmosphere as the song drives along invoking that ancient South American Aztec/Mayan type feel. Sublime stuff indeed.
The Slide comes next going in to what you’d call more “traditional” rock territory as a hooky guitar based song. Then the band demonstrate their variety and scale with Moon King. A quite beautiful emotional sweeping ballad with lush symphonics, tinkling piano and heartfelt vocals.
Back to Space is proper thumping neo-prog with wight and purpose. It links in with the running theme which runs through the band’s previous albums and that spaceship of theirs – the Lydia. The lyrics are clever too.
Rabbit Ings takes things in to that pastoral English folk territory. It’s a bit trippy too and has some upscale passages in with the folksy acoustics. Rather engaging. Close to where I live is a country part called Rabbit Ings. The lyrics tend to suggest it could be related. I did ask – though apparently it’s a secret. Intriguing……
Dancing With Vampires brings yet more variety being a nice slow burner.
Spirit of the Volcano pumps up the heavy prog again. Masters of Highways broods away then comes Save the Oak. A really catchy chugfest with a folksy undercurrent – and you can probably guess what it’s all about. Have a look at the video:
No Mind is quite fun then the closer of The Riddles is a clever song lyrically a with some superb guitar giving a masterful end to an album to which that word can be used to sum it all up – masterful.
Bag it from The Tirith’s BandCamp page why don’t you?
https://thetirith.bandcamp.com/album/quetzalcoatl
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