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I’m lost? Boy, am I ever. At regular intervals during this hour-plus love letter to narcoleptics, I wondered if it would ever draw to a close. This is instrumental guitar-prog so stultifying in its dullness that it almost boggles the senses how or why it was committed to record. Though it occasionally reminds me of the jagged, stop-start leanings of Rush circa Hemispheres, mostly it consists of noncommittal etudes that go on seemingly forever. Yes, there’s a distinct neoclassical vibe at work, but it works best in its most basic format – i.e. the acoustic “Centurion’s Outpost” – which underscores just how impoverished the prog-metal songs are otherwise. The guitar tone sounds like Joey DiMaio’s (Manowar) bass tone, the actual bass is inaudible, drums and cymbals (programmed, I presume?) chime in almost as afterthoughts, and the production is not too far removed from bargain-basement grind or black metal. The saving grace, if this album has one, is that it emphasizes riff and texture over all-out shred, giving this a consistency of atmosphere and maturity, if not tactile quality. Kelly McKee seems like a reasonable and sensitive guy, so I’m hopeful that he can reach into his bag o’ tricks and come up with musical concepts to match his farflung thematic ideas for each respective song, but right now this is monotonous, patience-trying stuff that doesn’t cut it. Oh, and if that’s you singing like cracked-out Procol Harum on the ninth track, “Into the Night,” please just don’t.
| Tracklist |
| 1. I'll Never Be Your Automaton |
| 2. Statue Courtyard |
| 3. Battleground |
| 4. Turn of the Century |
| 5. Centurion's Outpost |
| 6. Tiger Tiger |
| 7. Into the Night |
| 8. Running Out of Time |
: 62:14
| Buy other Kelly McKee albums |
