Mining Company CD review

Mining Company

CHRIS STAAB – PROGRESSIVE ROCK GUIDE – CD REVIEW – DISCIPLINE

Dateline: January 14, 1998

I must say I am pleasantly surprised by the latest CD Unfolded Like Staircase by the band Discipline. I had a bad feeling as I put the CD into the CD ROM and put on the headphones. I thought to myself – “OK, the band’s name is Discipline, must be a King Crimson clone band.” As I hit play I realized this was no Crimson clone band, but an original progressive band. No neo prefix necessary for this band. The music is truly original and should appeal to fans of all types of progressive music.

Perhaps what I enjoy most about this CD is the variety of sounds which the band brings to the table with them. With a varied instrumentation which includes saxophone and violin as well as the more typical guitars, keyboards, and judicious use of Mellotron, the music is quite exciting.

There are only four tracks on this 65 minute CD, but there are very few instances in which the tracks seem to labor under their extended length. For me, this band sounds like what I think Genesis could have sounded like if they had chosen to stay within the world of progressive rock, rather than step into pop. The music varies from quieter acoustic portions to more aggressive sections without a hitch.

On top of this roller coaster of music styles and moods, Matthew Parmenter’s vocals and lyrics are just as impressive. His voice is not of the strained, overdramatic school of prog singing which plagues many other current releases (thankfully). Rather, his passionate vocals fit very easily with the music. If you would like to hear the album, check out Hank’s Home for Progressive Rock where it is currently the CD available in RealAudio (not sure how long). Hearing the music itself will surely give better justice to this outstanding release than I could hope to give with words alone. What a great way to start the new year off!

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