Search - Cathedral :: Kingdom of Ends

Keys

Mama Joe Besser | Moscow | 06/08/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I've done better keyboards in my sleep. The rest of the band is bloody excellent. Jon Anderson would be a fool not to work with the remaining band members of Cathedral."

Decent progressive rock album

Justin Gaines | Northern Virginia | 05/26/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"It's interesting that the previous three reviewers of this album all posted very brief 5-star reviews and then disappeared, never to be heard from again. I smell something fishy.



Anyway, Kingdom of Ends was the 1992 debut album by the progressive rock group Cathedral. This is not the doom metal band of the same name, nor is it the British prog band from the early 70's. This particular Cathedral was a DC-area band that was active in the early 90's. The band's sound is greatly influenced by Marillion and early Genesis, though I hear a fair amount of It Bites and later Yes in their sound. The band manages to avoid the self-indulgent instrumental excesses that often plague this genre (only one track on Kingdom of Ends hits the 10-minute mark), instead opting for a more ethereal and fey sound that fans of the Fish-era Marillion albums will no doubt find familiar. It's almost new-agey at times, and while that's an interesting enough approach, I can't help but wish they'd rock out a bit. A few power chords never hurt anyone, right?



Ultimately, Kingdom of Ends is a solid enough progressive rock album, but Cathedral really isn't offering up anything we haven't heard before. The truth is, if I'm in the mood for this kind of music I'm far more likely to take Misplaced Childhood (Marillion) or Once Around the World (It Bites) off the shelf.

"