There’s a band called The Pineapple Thief which deserves way more attention and recognition than it normally receives. Peddling in the artful science of progressive rock, they blend melancholy, electronica and guitars in order to bravely carry on the legacy first set forth by Porcupine Tree. However, they’re hardly a copy and a lot of that is due to the incomparable talents of one Bruce Soord, who does vocals and is in charge of a lot of the band’s style and sound. Now, after a long career as part of the group, Soord has released a self titled, solo album. And it’s brilliant.
This teaser does a good job, for a teaser, but fails to truly capture the wonder and majesty of this album. It does give you a fair idea of the sounds contained within: chilling piano, haunted vocals, light guitars and an electronic fringe to a lot of it. However, it doesn’t convey the full depth that this album can achieve. It sees Soord experimenting with his sound like never before, introducing dissonance, wind instruments and much more. To that effect, the track where he most departs from what you would expect from this album are the most successful.
Take “A Thousand Daggers” for example. Sure, the lyrics are great and moving but where the track truly shines is the use of wind instruments. They accentuate the somber nature of the rest of the compisition in a way that is not only intelligent but, more importantly, highly poignant and effective. The rest of the album is filled with these moments as well, where Soord constructs new additions to his established sound. For that, if nothing more, you owe yourself this album. You can get it from our good friends, Kscope.
-EK