"Razia's Shadow: A Musical" by Forgive Durden

Like some other albums I put on this blog, this CD is definitely an acquired taste. The album artwork, though freakin' awesome in my opinion, should serve as a little warning of that.

Why? It's a musical, plot, narrator and all.

If you're still here, let's get to it. "Razia's Shadow" is brilliant. It's a full scale musical in terms of instrumentation, orchestra and cinematic music fills every song. That, and the songs are all incredibly diverse. Have I said it's brilliant yet?

Most notably, not one song has traditional "rock band" instrumentation. This may be surprising and a bad thing for some, but in my opinion it was extremely well done, as well as being very refreshing. The music is at times light, at times twisted, and at times majestic to the umpteenth degree.

The story is solid as well. A plethora of characters (played by various guest artists) play out a complex, sweeping plot line that takes place over the span of more than one hundred years in about an hour. It is a story of love, finding yourself, dealing with your heritage, and, ultimately, deciding who you really are and dealing with the consequences of that choice.

The plot is well thought out, and all the songs combine to make one emotional roller-coaster. The final song may very well put an apple in your throat.

If you're in the mood for a theatrical musical experience without having to spend sixty bucks on theater tickets, this is the perfect album for you. You can also listen in your pj's, something frowned upon at most theater houses, last time I checked.

This album is one of my all-time favorites. Yes, it may be partially because I'm a sucker for musicals and symphonic orchestration, but it's also because this is a bold, incredibly original and incredibly well done set of songs.

My three favorite songs on the album are: "The Missing Piece," "The Exit," and "The End and the Beginning." Honorable mention goes to "Life Is Looking Up."

A side note is that there is also a purely instrumental version of the album available for download, something I highly recommend.

Here's a link to Forgive Durden's Myspace.

http://www.myspace.com/forgivedurden

Until next time, enjoy some music, try something new :)

Andrew