"Welcome to The Grand Illusion; come on in and see what's happening! Pay the price; get your tickets for the show. The stage is set; the band starts playing. Suddenly your heart is pounding, wishing secretly you were a star."Ahh, this album's lyrics are just the first thing that make me love it so much. The Grand Illusion is the seventh studio album to be released by Styx. SEVENTH! By the time most bands hit their seventh album, they're on the way down, falling into obscurity. This is the exact opposite for Styx. They had just reached their first of four consecutive albums to go multi-platinum. In addition, they were only on their third of 8 to go gold! Also, you have to commend a band that releases 9 albums in 9 years consecutively. Talk about consistency! Enough, though, about the band, and a little bit about the album.
When I say this was the beginning of Styx's prime, you'll understand what I mean just by listening to the title track. It starts out very regal, like a royal procession. Then, it unfolds into the intro I quoted above, sung in a very 'circus-announcer' style. The verse is very much in the style of late 70's classic rock. When the refrain hits, though, you're gonna want to sing along. It's very catchy, and has what I've come to call the "Chris Rodey Bass Part" simply because he pointed out how much of a fan of it he is. Just listen; you'll like it, too. The short guitar solo changes gears a bit to a hard rock style before repeating earlier sections. It sounds like a lot of styles, but the way it comes together really makes for a solid hit.
After the head of the album, you get "Fooling Yourself" and "Superstars." My favorite part about the former is the way the sounds share the spotlight. Listening to the verse and refrain, you'll hear solo vocals bouncing off of synthesizer, trading with background vocals. The balance makes this a really fun tune. "Superstars" has a lot more chorus sections. It trades off between the thinly orchestrated verse, and the slow, powerful refrain section. After the guitar solo, it gets real quiet, building to Dennis DeYoung laughing and yelling in that circus-announcer voice. It's a good song to really get into.
Now, I assume that the average listener has heard at least 3 songs by Styx: "Lady," "Renegade" and "Come Sail Away." You'll find the first two on Styx II and Pieces of Eight, respectively, but you'll find the soaring vocals of Dennis DeYoung singing about angels and aliens on this wonderful album. I feel as though I don't need to say anything about this song, so I'll leave it at that. After a few other good tunes, you come to a song that most of you are unfamiliar with. I plan to change that. Your homework (yes, you have homework for reading my blog) is to listen to "Castle Walls." Starting out with a haunting single-note bass part, and developing into a creepy, yet satisfying ballad, it's not something that should be missed.
I won't take up any more space with this album, but, as I'm sure you can gather, it comes highly recommended. Go and check it out! Do your homework!
Free link to the album on Napster:
http://free.napster.com/view/album/index.html?id=10501564
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