Style: prog metal, power/prog, heavy prog (clean vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Dream Theater, Symphony X, Threshold, Fates Warning, Queensrÿche
Review by: Andy
Country: US-PA
Release date: April 1, 1992
Coming from the mean streets of Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania in the early 90s to the late 00s, Shadow Gallery never gained the recognition their music deserved because of two other small, up-and-coming prog metal bands you’ve surely never heard of: Dream Theater and Symphony X. Drowned out in the hype of their peers in that seminal prog metal sphere, Shadow Gallery played live infrequently but quietly released six studio albums over nearly two decades, each an overlooked gem of progressive music rich in vocal harmonies, vintage charm, and a touch of technical wizardry. From the quaint but ambitious self-titled debut to their final tribute album to long-time vocalist Mike Baker, I’ll introduce to you one of my all-time favorite band discographies in a short Lost in Time series!
Shadow Gallery is heavily flawed. Like Dream Theater’s When Dream and Day Unite–a debut less polished than their later output–Shadow Gallery’s eponymous first album has weaker production and more amateurish songwriting than their subsequent albums. It’s cheesy; the band often switches between moods with reckless abandon; many of the riffs throughout the album rely on a similar arpeggiated pattern; some songs end with mediocre fadeouts. Despite all these complaints, I love Shadow Gallery with all of my heart and will defend it to my dying breath as an imperfect masterpiece.
Every detail across the album–from the shreddy yet thoughtful climax of “The Dance of Fools” and the Jethro Tull-like flute of “Darktown” to the fretless bass intro on “The Final Hour”– culminates to form an experience of joyously youthful exuberance. Shadow Gallery captured the once-in-a-lifetime creative spark that only a debut from ambitious musicians has, but in this case, the spark was a solar flare. For instance, “Darktown” weaves its way through a range of emotions, starting with a synth that could have only been on an early prog metal album until the song breaks out into a raucous dance with the aforementioned flute before transitioning into a morose tale of love. At some point in the song, vocalist Mike Baker lets out a wail that blends back into the synth motif, a goofy transition that shows the amateur qualities of the songwriting while still feeling authentic and heartfelt. The track “Questions at Hand” features the most metal riffing across Shadow Gallery, intricate patterns like Symphony X, but to keep you on your toes, the band places a lovely acoustic section a few minutes in before bringing it back into some electric shred.
Even this early in their career, the intricacies of Shadow Gallery’s compositions cannot be understated: contrapuntal, neoclassical licks and riffs layer keyboards and guitar atop (the too quiet) bass. But perhaps the most notable performance on Shadow Gallery comes courtesy of Mike Baker, whose vocals captivate me and whose harmonies with the rest of the band set Shadow Gallery apart from their contemporaries. Whether like the low croons of Geoff Tate (Queensrÿche) or unleashing higher pitched belts like “Darktown,” Mike Baker showcases a mastery of his voice that interacts wonderfully with the instruments and other backing vocalists. Despite not being the primary songwriter, Mike Baker is the face of Shadow Gallery.
I will disclose to you all a secret about the epic finale, “The Queen of the City of Ice”: it is my all-time most scrobbled song by far–all seventeen minutes and eleven seconds of it. I have personal attachments to this song much deeper and more meaningful than I think the music itself will easily translate, but damn do I think it’s perfect in its imperfections. The quiet, arpeggiated intro lasts for a while with gorgeous vocals from most members of the band–who represent a multitude of character–and at about 8:30 in, a significant change in pace occurs: electric guitars dance in from the heavens, heralding the death of the queen of the city of ice. Throughout the rest of the track, we’re treated to many things including a random folk section (which is exquisite, and I wish the band built on more), spoken word and diegetic rain sound clips, and an extended fade out lamenting “goodbye my queen of the city of ice.” Is it all cheesy and a bit silly? Yes. However, the band has so much conviction that I hang onto every word and note. “The Queen of the City of Ice” is a permanent tattoo deep in my brain, imprinted directly onto my soul. The album may vary in quality from person to person depending on how much leniency you are willing to afford a debut, but this album will always have a place among my favorites.
Recommended Tracks: The Dance of Fools, Say Goodbye to the Morning, The Queen of the City of Ice
Final Verdict: 9.5/10
Related links: Wikipedia | Spotify | YouTube | Facebook | Discogs | Metal-Archives page
Label: Magna Carta Records – Bandcamp | Facebook | Metal-Archives page
Shadow Gallery is:
– Mike Baker (lead vocals, R.I.P. 2008)
– Carl Cadden-James (bass, fretless bass, flute, backing vocals)
– Chris Ingles (keyboards)
– Brendt Allman (guitars, backing vocals)
