CD Review: Neal Morse - Testimony Two

Written by Ray Dunkle Wednesday, 11 May 2011 12:40

Artist: Neal Morse
Title: Testimony Two
Genre: Prog Rock / Christian Rock
Release Date: 20th May 2011
Label: Insideout

Album Review

Once upon a time NEAL MORSE had problems. Then he became a re-born Christian. Now it is us who have the problem! You may wonder how the combination of (boring) Progressive Rock with Christian Rock sounds like; I’ll put it simply. Had the Romans never crucified Jesus he would nail himself upon the cross on hearing this music. By the second track I was wondering if the non-sense prophesies of the Mayas about the end of the world are gonna be true to save at least the listeners from the torture of having that kind of music around.

The old formulas and patterns of Progressive Rock are repeated here almost ad infinitum, to the point of nausea and without any particular technical skills expected from the genre. And by that I mean here solely Neal’s skills, because the skills of the other band members are well known. Why is this not their band but his, is beyond me, surely they’d come up with better ideas if it was left to them and with a more original content. What happened? He gathered all the church charities from Tennessee in order to create that album? But overall, the fans of this music will gladly take the blue pill in order to forget it. From the Gregorian monks and Bach till the Gospel music there have been tremendous proofs that religious music can be amazing and inspiring. This sadly, is not the case with this album.

Emil Cioran once said “without Bach, God would be a complete second rate figure" and we have to thank NEAL MORSE for reminding us that God is a second rate figure from a b-movie with a lame soundtrack. And in order to prove Cioran’s thought, Morse, without being restrained by this CD actually wrote a book about his spiritual journey. Judging from the profanity of his music I guess that it is the book that would have turned Nietzsche blind. And do me a favour Neal; do not stand in the middle of a field like you do in the photo of the cover. A thunder might strike your pride. This music is for restless Christians (thank you Lord for this snack bite - sound of huge crunch...) and sadomasochists (come here to show you my Opus Dei...). But of course the one does not exclude the other... Hear and whip!


Tracklist

CD 1
01. Mercy Street – 5:12
02. Overture No.4 – 5:25
03. Time Changer – 6:08
04. Jayda – 6:05
05. Nighttime Collectors – 4:25
06. Time has come Today – 4:55
07. Jesus’ Blood – 5:26
08. The Truth Will Set You Free – 8:07
09. Chance of a Lifetime – 7:02
10. Jesus Bring Me Home – 4:59
11. Road Dog Blues – 3:06
12. It’s For You – 5:42
13. Crossing Over Mercy Street Reprise – 11:46

CD 2
14. Absolute Beginner – 4:41
15. Supernatural – 6:11
16. Seeds of Gold – 25:59


Line-up

Neal Morse – Vocals and various instruments
Randy George – Bass
Mike Portnoy – Drums

And guests Nick D'Virgilio, Alan Morse, Dave Morse, Steve Morse, Paul Bielatowicz, Matthew Ward, Eric Brenton, Members of the Nashville Symphony


Websites

http://www.nealmorse.com/ / http://www.myspace.com/nealmorse / https://www.facebook.com/nealmorse


Cover Picture




Rating

Music: 2
Sound: 5
Total: 3.5 / 10