I was somewhat surprised to realise I had not reviewed this album from the end of 2021, as generally Galahad hit the player as soon as it arrives but given this was from the Stu/Dean side project it obviously got put to one side until I was ready and I promptly forgot about it (sorry guys). GEC is just Stu (vocals) and Dean (keyboards), and the first time the name was used was back in the Nineties when ‘Following Ghosts’ was somewhat rethought and released in a very different form as ‘Deconstructing Ghosts’. They followed this up in 2020 with ‘When The Battle Is Over’, coming back with this one less than a year later. Towards the end of that year they wrote seven songs in a four week period, and this combined with some left over from the previous recording process meant there was enough for an album.
Of course, this being the time it was, Stu and Dean were unable to physically work together, with everything being completed remotely. I often find electronica to be somewhat soulless, as opposed to therapy, but there is no doubt that while this album is again in that genre, there are far more progressive tendencies than on the last one. Stu was also mourning the death of his mother after a five-year battle against cancer, and no less than six of the tracks relate directly to that. Consequently, there is a great deal of emotion in this, with Stu pouring everything into his words while Dean provides the backdrop. Galahad have never been afraid of showcasing their singer, but with no guitars/bass and only electronic percussion he stands out ever more than normal while Dean shows why he has been such a major asset since joining the band nearly 25 years ago.
Although this may not be exactly what progheads may think of from Galahad, this is an interesting sidestep which provides a different way of hearing their music and it is not difficult to imagine some of these becoming belters if they ever wanted to revisit them with the full band.
