Label: Tee Pee Records
Released: February 6, 2007
The problem with Emerson, Lake and Palmer is that they don’t put enough rock in progressive rock. Don’t get me wrong, I like a lot of ELP, but they do tend to lean a bit too far to the classical side. Over 30 years after ELP’s peak, Titan comes along to correct those errors.
A Raining Sun of Light and Love for You and You and You takes ELP in their prime and adds a very healthy dose of heaviness, producing something along the line of progressive stoner rock (ELP meets Boris, perhaps). It seems that some people have been put off by the first minute or so of acoustic intro, but it (along with other quieter moments throughout) really serves to bring the album’s sonic gravity into full relief when the amps kick in. Over the course of the album, the traditional prog keyboards mix it up with fuzzy yet precise guitar parts that alternate between cooperation and opposition. Even when the guitar is more riff than thunder it still feels like they’re turned up to 11. The incredibly tight and dynamic rhythm section keeps the frequent pace changes seemless. The songs are so cohesive that even with all of them clocking in around 10 minutes or so, they never grow dull. Across the first three tracks, there is little distinction even across songs as the album works as a single piece in many ways. The fourth and final track is distinctly different from the others, drawing more from Trevor Rabin-era Yes and early 80s Rush than from the more esoteric sounds of early 70s prog. Still, it works well, letting the listener down easy after the mind-altering ride of the first three quarters of the album.
It’s pretty amazing that Titan spent years honing their skills and exposing their music through self-released CD-Rs. Now that they’ve unleashed themselves upon the world, they sound like they are at their musical peak rather than their formative period. This is a band that blurs musical definitions without losing focus or direction. They are certainly ready for the world, but the question really is, “Is the world ready for Titan?” Probably not, but it should be.
Rating: 9/10