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| | Dark Matter | | | Music Artist : | | IQ | | Music Style : | | General | | Record Label : | | Inside Out U.S. | | Release Date : | | 2004-06-29 | | Store Price : | | $16.98 | | Artistopia's Price: $16.98 | |
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CD Tracks/Songs
Disc 11. Sacred Sound
2. Red Dust Shadow
3. You Never Will
4. .Born Brilliant
5. Harvest Of Souls
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Other Artist Albums
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Customer Reviews of This Album/CD |
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 Not very high
Submitted on: 2008-12-21 |
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2 1/2
Being a band in this genre named IQ, you would expect some intelligently structured, unlifted material, but the bland pop-prog manages to convey an epic mediocrity and copycat nature above all else. |
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 Intelligence Quotinet Scores Highly
Submitted on: 2008-10-06 |
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My previous exposure to IQ was the woefully commercial 'Are You Sitting Comfortably', which had few highlights, so I approached this album with serious caution.
First impression was favourable which was enhanced by the fact that original vocalist (a fact I became aware of in hindsight) Peter Nicholls had returned to the fold and actually carries the odd weak moment. Having listened once it was immediately spinning again and in the subsequent week was a constant on the car CD and at home. It grows with copious listens and my appreciation for the many reviewers praising this release is immense. It would have been so easy to overlook other product from IQ after such a bad introduction but this was well worth the investment.
Yes I can hear Marillion. Yes I can hear Genesis, but it's all fresh and retro at the same time (if that's not a contradiction in terms). Now that is progressive, from Genesis to IQ calling at all stations but stamping their own identity.
The opening and closing epics are the pick of the five tracks and the bulk of this release. Harvest of Souls harks back to days when one donned the headphones and became totally obsorbed in the listening process to the exclusion of all else, what a rare treat. Born Brilliant is one of the shorter tracks which lyrically would not have been out of place on a 10cc album. The weakest moment comes with Red Dust Shadow but even that is listenable and I've yet to skip around it. Jowitt and Cook's playing is amazing throughout and the keyboard work on Sacred Sound is just beautiful.
This has to be one of the better, if not best, latter day prog releases which is why I gave it 4 stars but in retrospect maybe 4.5 would have been nearer the mark. |
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 Embarrassingly un-original!
Submitted on: 2008-04-17 |
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Wow, what a shame to listen to something like this. I mean, if you're young and/or not familiar with progressive rock in it's prime (i.e. the 1970's), then you might not realize how uncreative and unoriginal this is. You are probably dazzled and amazed, as many of the reviewers here obviously show.
As a big fan of classic bands like Genesis and later bands such as Marillion, as well as being a musician, I can spot musical talent and musical ripoffs. Sometimes the influence of previous music is inevitible, but the band will put it's own spin on it. Then there are others (posers) that are obviously going out of their way to try to sound exactly like predecessors. IQ follows in this latter and loathsome category.
Listening to Dark Matter is listening to a band follow of pattern of total unoriginality and lack of anything creative or new. It's as though they sat down and said: "Okay, look, we're going to start off sounding like Peter Gabriel era Genesis, then we're going to switch to Marillion with Peter Hogarth, then we're going to sound like Steve Hackett solo...".
The singer especially goes out of his way to sound like Peter Hogarth or Peter Gabriel, down to the breathing approaches and phrasing. The end result should leave one saying "What does he really sound like, if he sang as himself??" He also over-sings everything; adding way to much emphasis, as if to sound dramatic or deep. It really just plain sounds stupid.
Sorry to be blunt and speak the truth, but there's nothing here but a bunch of prog. rock posers and fakes. The music is decent and updated, so not bad in that sense. But listen to a lie? You are being played for as a fool, and that's not cool. |
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 Awsome Progessive
Submitted on: 2008-02-10 |
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| I.Q. is an amazing band in a class by itself. If you are into progressive music you have to get this album, it will take your music library to a new level. |
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Excellent mix
Submitted on: 2007-10-20 |
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As a long time Genesis fan I was thrilled when I discovered IQ a few years ago. And I have to say that Dark Matter is their best work.
The compositions are all satisfying, but the real icing on the cake is the mix and production values, all of which are top notch.
This album deserves a re-release in DVD-Audio or SACD so we can hear every last shred of depth in the mix.
One of the attractions of good prog is the orchestrations, and this album is a great example of how to do it right. The layering Orford uses on keyboards along with the rest of the band is astounding.
The CD is very good, but on a high-end system, it's clear that more can be had from a high-rez version, and this music deserves it.
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