From the neo-prog revival of the late 80’s and early 90’s, Spock’s Beard have been one of the leading names within the genre. Throughout the years Ryo Okumoto has been working those keys in Spock’s Beard and now, the virtuoso keyboardist has released his debut solo album ‘The Myth of the Mostrophus’.
Much like many of the recent projects undertaken by members and ex-members of Spock’s Beard, Okumoto has assembled a massive cast of help not just in the shape of Nick D’Virgilio, Al Morse, Dave Meros, Ted Leonard and Jimmy Keegan, but also from the likes of Steve Hackett, Mike Keneally, Doug Wimbish and Michael Sadler who bring in all the elements of Transatlantic, Genesis, Frank Zappa and Saga to create something which is wholly enjoyable. Thankfully, this isn’t just an ego trip of a solo project because ‘The Myth…’ is beautifully scored and arranged with tracks such as ‘Mirror Mirror’, ‘Chrysalis’ and the superb title track stand tall, the latter with all the stomping nature of Godzilla as it picks up a bus in the centre of town and throws it back down. There is even a tug on the nostalgia here as ‘The Watchmaker (Time on His Side)’ makes it difficult to not sing Genesis’ ‘Abacab’ alongside it.
‘The Myth…’ shows that when it comes to keyboards, Okumato is still a beast among men because this album is very enjoyable and may, just may be able pull fans in from beyond the progressive spectrum if given the airtime.
