The Neal Morse Band — Neal Morse (lead vocals, guitars, keyboards), Mike Portnoy (drums, vocals), Randy George (bass), Bill Hubauer (keyboards, vocals), Eric Gillette (guitars, vocals) — will take fans on “The Great Adventure” with its latest double concept album, due out January 25 on Radiant Records via Metal Blade worldwide. It will be available in three formats: a two-CD package, two-CD/DVD special edition featuring behind-the-scenes video clips of the making of the album, and three vinyl LPs.
The official music video for the ‘Welcome To The World 2’ song, taken from “The Great Adventure”, can be seen below. The clip sees the band recording the song at Morse‘s studio in Nashville.
Portnoy says: “Here’s another taste from the upcoming The Neal Morse Band album, ‘The Great Adventure’. This one shows a bit of a heavier side and features yours truly bringing some sinister flavor to the story. Keep in mind, all of these singles/videos are like scenes from a movie… the big payoff will be when you get to actually experience the ENTIRE journey! And we plan on releasing two more songs over the next two Thursdays leading to the January 25th release.”
The follow-up to 2016’s critically acclaimed “The Similitude Of A Dream” will be the ninth studio album with Morse, Portnoy and George, and the third as a true collaboration with this current lineup. Together, Morse and Portnoy have launched four bands, but the one that has endured the longest and thus with the most musical output has been The Neal Morse Band.
“Let the great adventure now begin…” The closing line of “The Similitude Of A Dream” has proved to be strangely prophetic. The new album is exactly that: a perfect companion piece to “The Similitude Of A Dream”‘s partial retelling of John Bunyan‘s “The Pilgrim’s Progress”. It has everything that fans would expect from an album by The Neal Morse Band, and more: rock, metal, classical and jazz elements appear throughout, as well as some killer melodies, all played faultlessly by some of the greatest rock musicians on the planet.
As Neal Morse explains: “This band continues to amaze me! I have to say it was a little daunting to follow up “The Similitude Of A Dream” as it was such a special album and it delivered every night at our concerts, but I believe that “The Great Adventure” will have a tremendous impact as well. This new double album is everything that I hoped it would be! I listened through last night and I was in tears at the end!”
Mike Portnoy emphatically agrees. He says: “How do you follow an epic double concept album??? Well, create another epic double concept album!! Hahaha. I always knew topping “The Similitude Of A Dream” was going to be difficult, if not impossible, as I held it in such high regard, but alas, I am absolutely blown away with what we achieved here! We’ve created what is the ultimate companion to “The Similitude Of A Dream”.”
“Sometimes there are things that you just can’t mess with,” Randy George continues. “On ‘The Similitude Of A Dream’, we tapped into something special. I was sure that the follow up should be something quite different, but you have to follow your heart and follow the music where it wants to go. ‘The Great Adventure’ is nothing short of a miracle. It’s similar to ‘Similitude’ in concept and form, but yet it’s tougher and deeper in its tone! This is a powerful work and I look forward to playing it live!
True to the album’s title, the creative process was indeed a “great adventure.” Unlike many previous Morse albums, which have often been written and arranged within weeks, this time around these prolific and world-class musicians spent almost a year working on the end result, producing an abundance of top-quality material. This meant some ruthless decision-making: some already completed songs and characters had to go, and — with studio time running out–new links and ideas were being composed and recorded up to the eleventh hour. “A lot of work and re-work has gone into this,” says Morse, “but I know that some of the most successful and far-reaching albums I’ve been involved with have been just like that. ‘Sola Scriptura’ and Spock’s Beard‘s ‘Snow’ album come to mind.”
Another key question that had to be addressed in the studio was how to pull all the ideas together into a coherent whole. In the end, what unlocked this “adventure” for Morse was the realization that ‘The Great Adventure’ needed a new voice and perspective. This time, it is that of the Pilgrim’s abandoned son, a younger, perhaps angrier, voice than was heard on “The Similitude Of A Dream”.
The Neal Morse Band will bring “The Great Adventure” to fans worldwide with a new round of headlining tour dates, which begin February 2, 2019 in Nashville at City Winery.
Tracklist:
Act I:
Chapter 1 (12:50)
1. Overture
2. The Dream Isn’t Over
Chapter 2 (23:48)
3. Welcome To The World
4. A Momentary Change
5. Dark Melody
6. I Got To Run
7. To The River
Chapter 3 (17:59)
8. The Great Adventure
9. Venture In Black
10. Hey Ho Let’s Go
11. Beyond The Borders
Act II:
Chapter 4 (18:13)
1. Overture 2
2. Long Ago
3. The Dream Continues
4. Fighting With Destiny
5. Vanity Fair
Chapter 5 (30:57)
6. Welcome To The World 2
7. The Element Of Fear
8. Child Of Wonder
9. The Great Despair
10. Freedom Calling
11. A Love That Never Dies
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Video for ‘Welcome To The World 2’