Pendragon
The World

In the splendor of the progressive revival of the '90s, it is essential to mention Pendragon. While the '80s had already been fertile ground for this rediscovery of progressive, thanks to people like Marillion and IQ, in the '90s this revival took a firmer shape (probably because the '80s influences, which were almost imposed in the productions of that period, were no longer a factor). Alongside names like Arena, Spock's Beard, Flower Kings, and others, Pendragon firmly established themselves as part of the best of the new progressive decade. It was during these years that the band, led by keyboardist Clive Nolan and frontman Nick Barrett, produced the three major masterpieces of their remarkable discography.

"The World" is certainly their first truly noteworthy work, marking their artistic maturity, and alongside the following two albums "The Window Of Life" and "The Masquerade Overture," represents the peak of the band's inspiration. Personally, I do not consider Pendragon among the greats of the '80s neo-prog, as during that period they produced albums that had not yet reached their full potential. Examples include a "The Jewel," which was certainly good but not yet fully mature, and a failed commercialization attempt with the album "Kowtow"... but among those of the '90s, I cannot but count them in.

With this now two-decade-old "The World," the band discovered that the sounds which best highlighted their compositional skills were those of a romantic and dreamy progressive rock with tones sometimes almost fairy-tale like. Key to this were Clive Nolan's keyboards with their decidedly invasive approach leaning towards the symphonic yet varied in sounds, ranging from organ pads to atmospheric sounds, from very "fantasy" crystalline sounds to sounds sometimes resembling a mouth harmonica. The work of the other instruments, for example, the guitar, is no less significant; never aggressive, always in line with the album's melodic approach, perhaps not conspicuous during accompaniment but stellar and emotional in solos. Nick Barrett's vocal performance is also stellar, perfectly blending with the album's atmospheres.

Some might criticize the work, like other important neo-prog works, for being "derivative," but I do not quite agree since, while there might be inspiration at the atmospheric level that may in some way recall '70s prog, the melodies and sounds are decidedly more modern and mark a sort of departure from the classic prog line. Others might criticize its somewhat overly catchy approach, but neo-prog most often sees in its greater underlying catchiness a hallmark.

Catchiness takes the lead throughout the album but particularly in the opener "Back In The Spotlight," characterized by a more or less regular structure without too many melody changes, where Clive Nolan's welcoming keyboard provides a backdrop to a guitar riff almost pop-like in U2 style but very effective. More articulated is the second track "The Voyager," which features a delicate acoustical opening, beautiful keyboard sounds in the middle, and a spirited and dreamy end where Barrett's guitar shines with an engaging solo. "Shane," on the other hand, has a more Pink Floyd-esque character, featuring a slow and refined rhythm where once again Nolan provides the backdrop to the light and orderly guitar riffs. In "Prayer," one gets the feeling that Pendragon's romanticism reaches its peak: it's likely once again thanks to Clive Nolan, who with his slow and dreamy keyboard passages, truly transports us into a sort of enchanted world that we can see only with our minds. But it is probably in the 21-minute suite "Queen Of Hearts" that the balance of various elements finds its zenith: the first part showcases Clive Nolan at his best, with excellent romantic passages, while the second is more dynamic but always very atmospheric, with significant guitar work also in the rhythm section where a riff seems to very clearly mark the rhythm; the final part, however, is more catchy and closes the suite fittingly. But the concluding track is also a true gem: "And We'll Go Hunting Deer" is an extremely delicate and melancholic song where a very delicate guitar arpeggio (after the beautiful keyboard intro), always driven by soft keyboard parts, leads us very gently to the end of this excellent work.

And with this great album, the most "fairy-tale" period of Pendragon begins, marking their compositions from 1991-2001, before the next change of direction; a change of direction that would again yield excellent works, albeit more oriented towards a darker and heavier sound. However, the most inspired phase is undoubtedly this one; it is during this phase that Pendragon made their mark as a prominent name in the neo-prog scene, and thus any new album released under the name Pendragon will inevitably be compared to the already mentioned three, regardless of the style proposed.

"The World" is, in any case, excellent for getting closer to the band; it gives a clear idea of what the band's sound was like in their best times and transports the listener to a fairy-tale world where the problems of everyday life do not exist, but imagination and fantasy do.

If you love to be guided by music and the emotions it can give... listen to it!