One should not trifle with the progressive rock underground, as they pop up when you least expect it, whether in regard to touring or the occasional new recording project. This is a production of Neal Morse, founder of the band Spock's Beard and currently a solo artist, and he has recruited people like Steve Hackett of Genesis, Mike Portnoy of Dream Theatre, Steve Morse of Stage Right and Pete Trewavas of Marillion to put together this progressive rock ride through the holiday world for 2012. Unfortunately, I can't say a lot for this collection. It's almost all instrumental except for "The Little Drummer Boy" and "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing," and most of it is not particularly adventurous, with long stretches of lead guitar playing the straight melody line for each song. "Shred Ride - Sleigh Ride" goes a little crazier with the guitar, but a lot of this is pretty much in Trans-Siberian Orchestra territory. The one breakout cut from this collection is "Frankincense," a takeoff on Edgar Winter's "Frankenstein" with holiday touches, which shows imagination far beyond the rest of the album. Unfortunately, you can only buy the complete CD or download the complete album from Radiant's website. Check out "Frankincense" here.
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