Big Big Train's The Underfall Yard seems to get a lot of plaudits from the prog crowd but personally I don't see the appeal. With a few Genesis-isms slipped in here and there (in particular, there's a pinch of Steve Hackett's classic "weeping guitar" sound present), the group I most immediately thought of here was Spock's Beard, particularly when it comes to the use of vocal harmonies. (And what do you know - Nick D'Virgilio was pulling drummer duty in the band during the recording of this album!) Maybe that's the problem - I've never been able to stand Spock's Beard, finding their aesthetic a bit artificial and phony, and The Underfall Yard also feels like a facade to me. Either the band sincerely believe in this tedious Victorian-era nostalgia codswallop, or they don't; if they do they're cranks, if they don't they're just singing about a whole bunch of stuff they don't sincerely buy into, which if anything is worse. Ho hum. Warthur | 3/5 |
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