aaamusic | On 08, Jul 2012

Rush’s fanbase may occasionally be viewed as the “Trekkies” of rock, but given my habit of colliding with the sofa at strange hours in the morning and stumbling across Star Trek re-runs, as well as my ability to listen to The Mars Volta’s discography back-to-back, there may be hope for us yet. And this hope pays off. ‘Clockwork Angels’ is a stellar example of how to create an album that is both technically astounding and full of good, catchy songs that I am sure will please both longstanding fans and the uninitiated like myself to whom it may well sound like The Mars Volta writing terrific (and occasionally terrifyingly good) pop-tinged beasts.

‘Caravan’ is a great opening track, with atmospheric chimes and sci-fi-esque melody quickly giving way to a driving heavy rocker of a track that has a killer riff played with absolute rhythmic precision underneath the fluent vocal delivery of some of Rush’s trademark unusual lyrics. Despite occasional baroque flourishes like swirling synth cascades and many-angled fills, the body of the song is a great exercise in songwriting, with a catchy chorus and hooks placed and played with total expertise and a subtly mindblowing instrumental section that shows off every bandmember’s obvious talent. ‘BU2B’ carries on in the same vein, creating a fluid leap between the two songs, yet the bass throb has been honed into a more traditional melodic attack, the synths reined in to allow the guitars to dominate and the vocals play a more key role, with the percussion still acting not so much as drums in a song as almost growing into a deliciously omnipresent lead instrument in and as of themselves, yet out of the chaos rises a crushing stadium-ready behemoth of a melodic song. Another track that just shouldn’t gel as much as it does is ‘The Anarchist’, with its dark basswork and savage drums underpinning a rollercoaster of shifting dynamics and great melody that provides an enthralling use of what seems to be harmonic minor augmented intervals to create a climactic effect.
The title track ‘Clockwork Angels’ isn’t so much a song as it is a fascinating odyssey. Perhaps not as accessible as its predecessors, with a lot of proggy moments in terms of its overall “immense” sound, length, and almost ridiculously technical moments in between its vivid lyrical narrative. The acoustic break might turn a few off the song, but its vertiginous evaporation into the chorus crowns the song. The equally proggy ‘Seven Cities Of Gold’, its lyrical invesntion aside, also achieves a metallic riff sexier than Rush should be allowed to be.
One of the greatest highlights is the incredible ‘Carnies’, a collision between prog-metal heavy enough to crush a neutron star with distorted everything and inhuman drumming, and intricate shimmering guitars, all propped up by the dramatic almost Bowie-meets-Plant vocals. Essentially this song hits every button Tool wishes they could reach, and succeeds where Tool’s failure and overt daft melodrama makes me want to throw the hi-fi out the window. To follow this with the power ballad ‘Halo Effect’ is a brave yet almost perfectly-executed move, with pitch-black sonic Armageddon shifting into massive yet emotive acoustic-driven singalong territory, a similar trick leading into the beautiful, almost stripped-back ‘The Wreckers’, which really does lay on Bowie-meets-intense-technical-prog with the perfect pop chorus.
The last few songs of the album do slow a little. ‘Wish Them Well’ doesn’t quite hold the same effortless charm as The Wreckers’; despite being a great rock song it is overshadowed by the sheer glory of the rest of the album, and ‘The Garden’ suffers as a result, but ultimately prevails, unfurling into a beautiful and lush song that blends heavy bass, yet more great lyrics (“the future disappears into memory” hitting you right when you least expect it) and lush, crystalline orchestral rock.

Yes, on several fronts this won’t convert legions of Mumford & Sons fans, but ‘Clockwork Angels’ is a majestic rock opus, something that at its peak sits almost on a level with Pink Floyd’s finest mixed with Queen and a good dose of finest heavy metal in terms of its sheer musicianship and constant eye on what makes an appealing song just as much as it keeps hold of creating what can only be described as the musical equivalent of a diamond on a neutron star in terms of relentless, intense, heavy brilliance. And when addressing my own demographic here, all I can say is that yes, we all know Muse have lost the plot recently. But here is the plot, and I am sure you too will love it.

★★★★★

Katie H-Halinski