| The
Review |
It was back in 2002 on a small island just off the coast
of Australia, called Tasmania that the seeds of The Third
Ending were sown. Their influences included the wide ranging
styles of Porcupine Tree, Pink Floyd, Spock’s Beard and Dream
Theater. But as with so many things down under, the influences
become so absorbed that it’s difficult to actually hear them.
By the same token the outgrowth of that inspiration takes
on a very original and unique approach. Such is the case with
this band’s self-titled first release The Third Ending.***
This quartet from Hobart, Tasmania consists of Nick Storr
(vocals, keyboards, guitars), Andrew Curtis (guitars, backing
vocals), Cornel Ianculovici (bass, backing vocals) and Andrew
Knott (drums, backing vocals). One of the things you notice
from the line-up right off the bat is that all four contribute
to the vocals and that in and of itself makes from some great
vocal passages. It is from this aspect that many of the songs
gain their strongest feature, melody. But fear not, while
these are song based compositions, there is plenty of room
to display their musical chops.***
The musical approach for The Third Ending revolves around
building a mostly mid-tempo melancholy tension that hooks
the ear. Their compositions balance electric and acoustic
guitars to suit that tension. There are interesting “pregnant
pauses” that lead to satisfying culminations. Many of the
tracks feature Mellotron-like string or choir patches floating
in the background adding to the drama. It’s in the overall
nature of the music that the Porcupine Tree feel comes across
the strongest, but they ad their distinctive multi-part vocals
as well as many other influences to make it their own. None
of these songs is overly long. In fact the longest is just
over seven-minutes. Although it must be said that many of
the songs are linked together making them feel longer than
they actually are, especially the last seven-tracks. A good
many production values are thrown at these pieces with sound
effects and voices showing up in the various tracks. A song
may start out with this effect which then leads to a softer
acoustic introduction which then evolves into a melodic, majestic,
anthemic section before devolving into a more spacey solo
section. Interestingly the production avoids a wall-of-sound
style leaving lots of breathing room. Nothing is really overdone.***
The Third Ending is a fresh take on the progressive rock
style. They’ve managed to incorporate a good many of the classic
elements and repackage them with a very youthful slant. In
fact it caught the attention of my daughter’s friend while
listening to it in the car. The band’s style has the ability
to cross a wide range of age barriers. For a first release
this is a really great effort. It’s stayed on my player a
long time. I really love it. Fans of the bands mentioned will
I think really get into this, but don’t be afraid to play
it for your non-prog friends. The Third Ending gets a strong
recommendation.
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