My musical journey with Legacy Pilots is like a case of the dripping of water that wears away at the rock. I made a few unflattering comments on MLWZ.pl while reviewing their album "Thru The Lens." I wasn't entirely thrilled with their latest offering, even though many well-known musicians participated in its recording. But the dripping of water wears away at the rock... dripping with individual pieces of information and interviews that appeared practically shortly after the release of the previous album, which could be summed up by quoting a fragment of a recent interview with Frank Us: "I like the idea that you can choose which album to listen to, depending on your mood. 'Camera Obscura' is the biggest and most polished production Pilots have released to date. I think it will take listeners weeks to truly get to know this material, because we've incorporated an incredible number of ideas into the songs, and there's a lot to discover."I am deeply convinced that we have managed to create something more than just a few exceptional songs here." These words were the proverbial last straw before we began listening to the contents of the two albums that the band had prepared this time.
For the first time in their history, Legacy Pilots have recorded a double album, presenting for the first time over ninety minutes of music, which has two facets, almost in keeping with the division into albums subtitled vol. 1 and vol. 2. Of course, the lineup of musicians participating in this "musical process" is also impressive: Todd Sucherman (Styx), Marco Minnemann (The Aristocrats), Lars Slowak, Finally George (by the way, I encourage you to read his solo album by Tomasz Dudkowski on MLWZ.pl), Pete Trewavas (Marillion), Steve Morse (Deep Purple, Kansas), the ubiquitous John Mitchell, and vocalists Jake Livgren and Liza. Almost all of them had already participated in the recording of the band's previous releases. And after these more or less formal pieces of information and remarks, I can finally say:… and this time they managed to carve a hole in my musical heart and soul, into which the entire contents of this release have poured. Each of the two discs is a set of lenses that convey a diminished and slightly "inverted" (i.e. processed for the purposes of musical display) image of the world around us. Both discs are "camera obscuras," painting a real picture of the world around us with musical descriptions that are sometimes soft and gentle, sometimes blurred, sometimes revealing the depth of infinite sharpness, sometimes scaling the interpreted images to the dimensions of individual musical pieces. And, in keeping with the quoted words of the interview, they create the possibility of any interpretation and choice, dependent solely on our cognitive desires.
The album, subtitled Vol. 1, is a masterful display of composition and arrangement. The band begins their narrative in an incredibly cohesive and perfectly played manner with a three-part piece titled "Midnight Tide," which, although just over eight minutes long, demonstrates that this album will combine symphonic elements, lightly improvised jazz sounds, and delicate progressive passagework. The middle, instrumental section of this piece sounds exceptional, providing a perfect transition between the slightly jazz-rock first part, whose main theme is an "analysis" of the passage of time: "Though small our footprint in unfolding time / In living we reclaim our quiet rhyme”, and the third part, which returns to the jazz-rock style of the first part with additional, stronger elements. What distinguishes this composition? The wonderful vocal lines truly sound exquisite.
They say you only look your best in a photo with your friends – you're probably familiar with this rather pessimistic saying. The song "My Anchor" featuring Liza on vocals, contradicts this thesis: "You, you're my best friend / You are the light in my life / You stand by me as I stand by you for the rest of our lives / We've had our storms, our nights of rain / Words like thunder, hearts in pain / But when silence falls, and shadows grow / I see the light in you—I know." And it's not just a contradiction; it's also a very atmospheric song that leads the listener into a land straight from Madonna's calmer songs. Yes… I know how it sounded, but please listen carefully to the vocal line, which, despite the similarity (in my opinion), is very catchy and, together with the music, creates a very pleasant atmosphere.
From there, it only gets better, as the band invites the listener on a shared flight into the heavens. In the instrumental track "Cloud City," featuring Todd Sucherman and Lars Slowak, you can simply feel how each guitar chord allows for a languid immersion in the entire landscape of delicate sounds. The musical expanse opens up, inviting you to join them in traversing the vastness of space. Listen to the synthesizers halfway through the third minute—we're on the bright side of the sun.
The spirit of space travel also permeates the composition "A Fleeting Echo": "In the quiet of the stars, / The Earth's just a dot in the endless dark / The countries fade, the lines erase / What's a kingdom when the world's in space?" I won't deny that this part of the first disc is one of my favorites. And if you're looking for songs that play with the deepest emotions, this is the time to start. Finally George's wonderful vocals and Seth Hankerson's (Emerald City Council) guitar work wonderfully together to create this incredibly relaxing song. There's not a single unnecessary note, nor any unnecessary musical showoff… it's the pure musical essence of the best sounds, and it lasts over ten minutes. And those synthesizers… but that was already mentioned… and on top of that, eight minutes and thirty-two seconds – the apogee of beauty!
This lineup is almost a guarantee of hearing something interesting: Finally George, Marco Minnemann, Seth Hankerson, and Pete Trewavas. And so it is. "Time Never Pauses" – despite the ticking clock, it doesn't allow for a second of rest. Our melodic-songy flight continues. "Time feels endless / When you were so young / Now every second leaves a trace / A quiet ache we can’t erase / Time never pauses, it only runs / From rising moons to setting suns / The days we hold, the breath we take / Are borrowed moments we can’t remake." Musically, another excellent composition.
The first disc ends with a hit. "Afterglow" is one of the most beautiful songs of the past six months. John Mitchell's voice adds a dramatic, yet deeply moving tone to the incredibly lulling music. Make a note of this title somewhere; it could be the song of the year. What's more, the album also includes a radio version, less than three minutes shorter, perfect for even very pop radio stations.
Album number two...? Don't ask. The band takes liberties, and the six songs on it reveal not only the band's ambiguous side, but also (for me) a completely new side... full of improvisation, experimentation, sounds that are at least unconventional and seem to be in slight contrast to the first disc. This is certainly a conscious decision, if you remember the excerpt from the interview with Frank Us quoted at the beginning – after all, the instigator of this "commotion."
Listen to the nearly sixteen-minute composition "The Illusion of Knowing," divided into six scenes. A short introduction ("Introduction") takes us to a musical observation of self-doubt, the downplaying of insufficient knowledge when performing important tasks, and, in short, an analysis of Dunning-Kruger syndrome ("An Observation by Dunning-Kruger"), which follows a path marked by symphonic arrangements with a very delicate vocal line. Subsequent scenes in this story ("Echoes of Belief (Inspired by Confirmation Bias)" and "Against the Ivory Tower") delight with their combination of symphonic sweep and incredibly delicate and highly narrative vocals. Jake Livgren and Liza create incredible duets, a dialogue that explores issues of everyday life and the importance of scientific evidence. An additional element of attraction is the guitar playing, which in the final part ("Reprise") together with synthesizers creates an incredibly dramatic atmosphere expressed in the words: "...But can they break free from the prison of their belief? / Face the storm and the questioning sea? / Prophets fall when the seekers rise / Reclaiming the truth from the web of lies".
Immediately after this composition, a continuation, as it were, begins. Of course, the narrative arc once again centered around the issue of self-belief – “You should start shining / Just stand in for yourself / Their views can be a self-made cage / Limiting your steps, fueling rage.” Musically, “Leave the Prison” is simply magnificent. Full of melancholy and a glimmer of hope, conjured up by a very delicate melody.
What would someone who can't sleep, weary of life, of everyday life, of themselves, see in a camera obscura? – "We're riding for years in a tunnel of horror / And these ghosts we can't get rid of / They haunt me almost every night / I toss and turn I'm still awake." The song "Hounted House" doesn't answer this question, it only asks it. Musically, it forces us to submit to sadness and melancholy, resounding like a complaining mantra on a restless night.
The fourth track is an instrumental piece titled "Fear Pt. Three (Continuation)"... a continuation of... what? A continuation of the two parts of "Fear" from 2020's "Aviation"? Is this the third part, following the two included on that album – "Fear Part One - Proximity and Distance" and "Fear Part Two - Hope and Failure"? Dark and unsettling, full of organ improvisations, as trippy and jarring as the fear each of us has probably experienced. These are questions for each of us to answer individually.
The penultimate track from the second album is like the words of the chorus – "I'm dreaming, yeah / I'm dreaming / While I'm running" (I dream, / I dream / when I run. "I'm Running" sounds like an uninhibited musical display based on wonderful synthesizer work, a light touch that embellishes this composition somewhat in the style of The Alan Parsons Project. Although the final two minutes provide many experimental and improvisational passages.
And finally, the end... an instrumental composition with the perverse title – "So Obvious While Obscura". Was the best saved for last...? For those seeking uninhibited, improvisational musical expression, this track will undoubtedly be the perfect culmination of the album (well, both albums). Other listeners shouldn't be disappointed either. Despite a certain amount of improvisation, it's a perfect example of a symphonic jumble with such wonderful shifts in rhythm, tempo, and mood. To paraphrase the title, one could say... it's obvious this is how this album (these albums) had to end. And yet, it's somehow perversely obscure. After all, it's a distorted image of what's around us – beware, it's a camera obscura...! After all, every image can be inverted.
This album has carved a large hole in my musical heart and soul, into which all the sounds recorded here fall. I can't say it's an album to listen to again and again. It's a rarity that requires the right occasion and the right attitude. It's not a record that will make you shiver. It requires focus and willingness, but in return we get two full-length releases full of incredible compositions that flow with the power of symphonic rock mixed with a touch of improvisation, experimentation, and rock swagger. Most importantly, all of this works together for over ninety-four minutes to create a magnificent double album. I recommend it, although it will take some effort to appreciate its beauty.
