![]() ![]() Gowan returns to the microphone on the lovely piano ballad “The Greater Good”. “Radio Silence” recalls some of Shaw’s 70s hits like “Boat on a River” at times. It certainly adds atmosphere to an excellent vintage sounding song. Just as interesting as the actual music is the spacey backing sounds. Shaw pours passion into it, as he does the next one “Radio Silence”. This moves into the ballad “Locomotive”, about the brave pilot of the ship Khedive. Problems happen on “Trouble at the Big Show” (vocals by James “JY” Young), a slower groove with killer bluesy guitar work. ![]() Mars was 100 million miles away from Earth as recently as the 2012 opposition. “Hundred Million Miles” is a great song and also fairly accurate. ** When the band harmonizes together, it sounds like vintage Styx. “Hundred Million Miles From Home” (vocals by Tommy Shaw) has a funkier 70s groove. “Light it up, let’s get this show on the road!” This hard rocker came out of nowhere as one of the big surprises this summer. Although it’s about a rocket launch, you might not catch that on first listen. ![]() But you wouldn’t guess that if you only heard the Gowan-sung lead single “Gone Gone Gone”. In many ways The Mission sounds like a lost album from Styx’s progressive rock heyday. Here’s another unexpected twist: The Mission is a concept album about colonizing Mars! It has a coherent story and recurring hooks. Did anyone in 2017 expect Styx to come out with one of the best albums of the year? Even though Styx have successfully carried on with Lawrence ( But You Can Call Me Larry) Gowan on keys and vocals, nobody really predicted this! Yet here it is: The Mission, surely one of the best albums of the year so far, * and the best Styx in decades. ![]()
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