Metaphor, an American outfit, known from their earlier, well-received albums Starfooted (1999) and Entertaining Thanatos (2004), have come back to the forefront with their new album. The Sparrow is an ambitious undertaking, shaped in a classical rock opera format. The libretto is an adaptation of the novel by the well-known American author Mary Doria Russell. It is a story about a Jesuit expedition to another planet in search of life discovered from radio waves of music, and the story is right on the border of mysticism/philosophy and science fiction. The protagonist is Father Emilio Sandoz, who is part of the crew sent to investigate the existence of unknown creatures on the distant planet of Rakhat. During this expedition he finds a civilization that is completely out of the human approach to life. The people who accompany him meet horrible fates and as the only survivor Father Sandoz comes back to Earth to tell his story.
Jim Anderson (bass), John Mabry (vocals), Greg Miller (drums), Malcolm Smith (guitar) and Marc Spooner (keyboards) present us with a good portion of stylishly diverse music, which they have clearly give a great deal of thought and development. There are 14 musical themes on the album (with playing times ranging from 2 minutes to 12 minutes). Everything is centered around musically illustrating each of the novel’s themes. What I can say about the music is that it is composed of quite complicated structures and often not easy to immediately grasp – especially on the first or the second listening. Doubtless, the time is needed so that the music can sink in and start to make a whole; and doubtless, some listeners’ patience is needed too.
Metaphor started their musical adventure as a cover band of Genesis, which was clearly heard on the first group’s disc. Then, Metaphor followed their own way, but still, if I were to say something about the style of music on The Sparrow, Genesis would be the best comparison. Let’s add, though, that it is the Genesis from their early days, when they played such works of art as: Fountain Of Salmacis, Get’em Out By Friday, The Battle Of Epping Forest or The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway.
Summing up, while The Sparrow may not initially be an easy album to grasp, it is fortunate that by devoting some time to listening to it, some beautiful elements present themselves: atmosphere, melodies, choir vocal parts, perfect instrumentals, and the pleasant vocals of Mabry. When taken together as a whole, the time spent listening to The Sparrow is wonderful. I think that maybe this album is not quite for our times…but thanks to its extraordinary nature and archaic elements, it positively stands out of the crowd of the other progressive rock albums which are released en masse (and which are, let’s face it, albums that virtually sound rather identical). “The Sparrow” is far more interesting than those.
