I love to see older bands produce at such a heated rate. Galahad just released The Last Great Adventurer last year, and here they are already with a new one, The Long Goodbye. It releases today, October 20th, on CD, and will be available digitally in November.
I love Galahad. I’ve been a fan for over a decade now, and their brand of modern melodic and progressive rock really speaks to me. The lineup remains the same as the previous album: Stu Nicholson on vocals, Lee Abraham on guitar, Dean Baker on keyboards, Mark Spencer on bass, and Spencer Luckman on drums.
The band is known for two sides to their sound: the prog rock side and the electronica-laced melodic rock side. This album leans far more into the electronica side, which happens to be my favorite side of the band. I’m not saying this album lacks prog rock, but I am saying that I barely notice it because I’m too excited about the amazing electronica, sweeping synth, and also the heaping bounty of orchestrations. There is so much beauty to be found here.
The album has plenty of lyrical bite, too, which I’ve always found to be the case with Galahad’s works. The last album was about Stu’s father and his adventures, and this album is less of a concept album, though it hinges upon the title track and its discussion of aging and dementia. There are some rather emotional moments to be had, and the potency is undeniable.
The Long Goodbye has five tracks, plus two bonus songs. All five core songs are terrific. I especially love the piercing electronic beauty of the opener ”Behind the Veil of a Smile”. This song illustrates what I like so much about this album. It has the synth and electronic sounds, but it also has plenty of rock bite, Lee’s guitar soloing is tremendous, and the groove of Mark’s bass line is killer. Put it all together with Stu’s iconic voice and Spencer’s thundering drum performance, and it’s a winner, no doubt.
But the album even gets better from there. One of my favorites is “Everything’s Changed” and its outstanding guitar work. I love the main riff, but I also love the trippy hoppy section in the second half with its excellent beat. “Shadow in the Corner” is decidedly darker and has more edge, and I love the guitar fireworks near the end; it would be a perfect single. “The Righteous and the Damned” has perhaps the most commentative lyrics on the album, and it is effective. I like how off the wall the song is at points, and how satirical it feels.
The title track ends the album proper, and is a 13-minute piece that will easily be a favorite song this year. It is understandably a little more reserved in how it builds its layers of sound, but right from the beginning it is still seriously groovy and simply cool. The second half is a towering epic with Lee’s emotional guitars hitting every nerve in my body, and the gorgeous orchestrations blasting this song into the cinematic stratosphere. What a song!
The bonus tunes are both good, too. My favorite of them is “Darker Days”, which actually might have the catchiest chorus on the whole album. “Open Water” is something of a rarity for Galahad, being mostly a piano ballad medium for Stu to emote. I like him in this setting, in this raw and vulnerable sound.
Galahad has yet again released two great albums close together. While I think I like The Last Great Adventurer a little more, The Long Goodbye is growing on me, and I think it boasts the best guitar work from Lee since he joined the band. There are truly some spectacular moments here, and it is another classic from this band.
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The PROG Mind 