Yoke Shire: And Yet More "Masque of Shadows" Reviews

"Masque of Shadows" is home-cooking that sounds as clean and powerful as any major-label offering. The album is pleasingly schizophrenic, straying from classy hard rock to austere atmospheric progressive, often in the same song. Craig Herlihy is the chief cook… handling most of the composition chores as well as production (excellent, as I´ve noted), playing scads of instruments (impressively) and vocals (deep, echoey and sonorous…).

The CD starts out as heavy rock with an eldritch, medieval flavor: the opening cuts ´Black Tower´ and ´Shape of A Dancer´ have been described as ´Jethro Tull meets Santana´. I can hear echoes of both but neither are dominant, instead the expert mix of various influences and Herlihy´s own muse creates a sonic stew unique unto itself. In fact, the rocking moments on this CD are where Herlihy´s Benedictine-monk-on-blotter-acid vocals come off best. The middle part of Masque is a handful of fragments and longer pieces stitched into a continuity. It is this middle span where the proggiest sections reside, as the music ebbs and flows from muscular rock to ghostly medieval dream-state and back…Yoke Shire have a winner on their hands…they cross the finish line in stride. CDs like this one don´t just indicate how clueless the major labels are these days, they also remind us that, if you´ve got the talent and the will to see it through, you don´t need the majors anymore to get your music out there. Welcome to the new millennium.

     Only a few times have we had the chance to hear a band so original and unclassifiable as Yoke Shire. This enormously talented trio challenges all kind of musical styles and the same song may take us from psychedelia to Latin rock, going through the blues, Celtic folk or the progressive sound of the late 60's. And all this in a four minute song. That's why throughout all of this magnificent album Yoke Shire, led by the multi-instrumentalist Craig Herlihy - who plays instruments so dissimilar such as flute, keyboards, bass, harmonica, dulcimer, mandolin, marimba and the famous "theremin", take us on a ride across every kind of sound and structure. Each song may shift to a totally unexpected passage and they may be related, in this aspect, (though not with the same resources used for the same purpose) with the musical structures of Jethro Tull or Frank Zappa. The biggest virtue of these artists is the ability to surprise with unexpected twists and their technical abilities to achieve complex arrangements without showing any kind of limitations.

     Each song is like a different world, an almost different language. The Celtic influences are evidenced mostly in "Magic Circle", with slight touches of Zeppelin's psychedelic folk; hard rock is showed in "Maiden Voyage" and "Return Voyage" and the most complex prog rock in "The Brook, the Mirror and the Maiden", a real masterpiece. Just look at the complexity of the intro's vocal arrangements and the amazing atmosphere created by the percussion – the responsibility of Brad Dillon- and the acoustic arrangements, reminiscent of the Middle-East, now getting close to the "Songs from the Wood" era Jethro Tull.

     This Massachusetts band incorporates a magic theme, and the darkness of the album reflects that enigmatic feeling, with the vocal work of Craig Herlihy taking us to his own, unique and captivating world. The guitar work of his brother Brian is outstanding, specially in the song "Masque of Shadows", with an spectacular solo at the end.

     The album was recorded with the new HDCD system and the "Intense Headphone Experience", a fact that evidences and allow us to appreciate the meticulous production work, also Craig Herlihy's responsibility. Yoke Shire is a particularly talented band that will allow the listener an original and fresh encounter with the new progressive rock generation.

Yoke Shire are definitely progressive rock, but they sound nothing like the classic seventies prog bands that they list as influences. The band seems to have the same philosophy as Gentle Giant; they love to play multiple instruments, and mix different styles of music within 2-6 minute compositions (although there is one 10-minute piece). The various styles of music include Latin-grooving, heavy riffing, English folk music, fugues, and church-influenced chanting (this sounds great!) just to name a few… The trio seems very interested in building grooves, and creating atmosphere (especially during the longest track "The Brook, the Mirror and the Maiden"). But the mixing of various styles gives an unpredictable quality to the music. You might guess that the musicians are leading towards a certain point, and then suddenly they whip out an unexpected groove or introduce new instruments. The impressive thing is that it all sounds very smooth, and never awkward.

At first, the vocals on a few tracks sort of surprised me, but I quickly started enjoying them. They reminded me of the vocals on Frank Zappa's "One Size Fits All" with their multi-tracked, bluesy feel, and phrasing. The band members also provide wordless chanting on a couple of tracks. There is a non-serious element to them that is unusual when compared to the typical, serious, prog vocals on other modern prog albums. So this might surprise some first-time listeners. But after repeated listenings they become very memorable and fun (like One Size Fits All).

This is one of the top releases from 1999, great modern progressive rock.

The word unique is used often in the world of reviewing and more often than not it is used incorrectly (hey I'm guilty of it myself)! However, unique is a word I will use here as Yoke Shire not only have a name that sounds unique, but their sound is not your common rock sound. So many influences on top of their own sound makes for good listening. Progressive they are, but not in the neo sense. In Craig Herlihy they have a vocalist who is deep and almost distorted – sounds good. His instruments take up a page but he takes on dulcimer, marimba, flute, theremin and melodihorn on top of electric guitar. Other members of the band are Brian Herlihy on electric and acoustic guitar, Brad Dillon on drums, backing vocals and other percussion. The keyboards are a delight and the overall production sounds really good. Yoke Shire is a band to delight classic rock fans the world over. Those with a love of guitar solo's will be in Heaven, and did I mention the tremendous percussion and bass lines too?

I guess there is something gothic about the bands image and the use of more medieval instruments amid acoustic sections adds to the mystery. There is no doubt that Yoke Shire is a band who in total control and who can cool the pace of a track and lift it when they want with ease. The vocal harmonies are top notch too. A bit of Tull about 'em!

Do you believe in faerie tales of Merrie Olde England? Do you think the art-rock of Yes and Jethro Tull and Genesis represent a high point in rock and roll history? Then this one’s for you! Even if you don’t, there is plenty to like here. Concocted by a trio of warlocks, this foray into the wilderness of wonder leads the listener into realms both unknown and familiar. They sound like the above bands from time to time, with the mood swings from electric to acoustic, the grinding bass, the syncopated drumming, the cleanly distorted guitars, the mystery conjured by the lyrics. But while these influences are apparent, the results are more modern and unique. The chugging rhythm of "Black Tower" and its invitation to indulge in explorations of forbidden pleasures yield in the end to a Santana-like groove. "Magic Circle," with its mandolin and dulcimer interplay, minor modes, flutes, and faraway-sounding guitar recall Led Zeppelin in the brief acoustic venture on their third album. The middle of the album is a suite of three songs totaling nearly 17 minutes designed for a musical excursion. Very trippy stuff.