Royal Oak, Michigan seems to be fertile ground for American prog bands. One house number away from the P.O. Box of Discipline is House of Usher, which also features the former drummer of the local band Tiles (also reviewed in this issue). No less amazing is that these three bands are playing at the same point in time. But as close as the local connection is, their styles are very different. While Discipline lies more in the 70's era, offering first-rate epics on their latest CD release Unfolded like Staircase, and Tiles has sprung from the seeds of Rush-oriented prog rock, House of Usher plays in a more melodic style.
On first listen, their debut CD Body of Mind is an experienced American production. This collection of compact, almost radio-friendly songs concludes with a complex, bombastic 12-minute epic. Interspersed are two short solos, one on acoustic guitar by string virtuoso Michael Allen Moore, the other a classically influenced keyboard statement by Richard Kaczynski. As is the case for many melodic prog productions from the U.S.A., the music is involved well in the ear, the singer's catchy melodies fit well into the mix, and, here and there, a few progressive flourishes: everything perfectly co-ordinated. But House of Usher's music isn't perfect. Body of Mind is a really good album, but nevertheless is missing something to lift it to the extraordinary level. A well done first effort which will surely appeal to fans of melodic rock combined with progressive rock. KS