This is another artist I have never reviewed in myprogmusic but who already has a solo career of almost 20 years with, to the key, more than twenty albums, which is to say the impressive production of the Briton who re-released at the beginning of April 2025 a new album, 'Stories from the Old Church Lane', after three albums in the last two years: 'The Luxury Of Stopping' (Qobuz link, Spotify link) and 'Galatea's Holiday' (Qobuz link, Spotify link) in 2023 and 'Favourite Places' (Qobuz link, Spotify link) in 2024. This latest opus takes us to a village church, probably where 'Brendan Perkins' lives, and which tells us the story of the people of this place, stories that are as old as the church itself. Musically, it's progressive rock with a serene atmosphere, and in 'Stories from the Old Church Lane' I find the vibes of 'Chris Engels' with his project 'CEN-Projekt'.
Six compositions for about three-quarters of an hour of listening time, this is the menu of this album, which offers durations around 7 minutes: 'Another Eveningtime' opens the ball in a relaxing atmosphere with a mid-tempo in which we surrender to the beautiful melody, lulled by the soaring vocals of 'Bredan Perkins', his partner 'Helen Flunder' accompanying him on the backing vocals. With 'Olivia Ruth', which is an old woman who collects many objects, we continue with a slow-tempo ballad that develops a gentle atmosphere conducive to escape, then, 'Amalia's Wedding' invites us to a wedding on a mid-tempo which again unfolds a very pleasant melody, the keyboards weaving an atmospheric soundscape and the two guitar solos embellishing the whole. We continue with 'Bram’s Return (from Metro Fair)' which is again a very beautiful ballad that certainly tells us about the experience of the multi-instrumentalist who returned to live in the countryside after living in the city, the atmosphere of this composition completely showing this passage to a much more relaxed and less stressful life. Next comes 'Ned and Mary,' the shortest and certainly the most refined track, which tells the story of an old couple celebrating their long life together in the village church, exuding a beautiful emotional intensity. Then, 'Summer's End,' which tells of the celebrations organized by the villagers at harvest time, concludes the album with a new melodic gem that reminds me, this time, of the atmospheres developed by the Germans of 'RPWL', especially since, in this track, 'Brendan Perkins' has the intonations of 'Yogi Lang', bringing a very particular softness.
In short, this new album by 'Brendan Perkins' takes us into his progressive universe made of softness and serenity telling the authentic life of a small village gathered around its church, and 'Stories from the Old Church Lane' can be enjoyed quietly, headphones on, to relax after a stressful day, replacing all the antidepressants on earth... | |
