The Theme

when a classic rock sound is mixed with talent and innovation, the result is hardly as refreshing and fun as these tunes. horrible artwork but delightful music.

A must have album for any prog-rock fan! This recording won't give you a single minute to get bored. Definitely my best discovery on Jamendo so far. The guys rock!

The Theme is the one and only full length album by the False Haruspex enigma. Their influences include everything they've experienced in their collective lives so far, and a startling number of those billions and billions (yes, as a matter of fact that was an intentional reference to Carl Sagan) of influences can be felt/heard at various times throughout this album. It's big music... too big for your silly little iPod earbuds, in fact. It's big music that was meant to be heard on big speakers, with the volume control turned up to the big numbers. It's eclectic music. It's all over the fucking place, but not in a haphazard, disjointed way. The Theme is a strange musical journey, filled with unexpected twists, turns, detours and diversions; but it's also a journey that makes absolute sense once you've reached the final destination. It's a goddamn excellent composition, teeming with top notch ensemble playing. There's impressive musicianship throughout, but not in a flashy, instructional video kind of way. The playing is impressive because that's exactly what the composition demands. Sure, there are a few solos, but not in the same way that there are a few solos on a Dream Theater album. Know what I mean? Of course you do. These guys obviously value the composition above all else, and even the way the album is mixed suggests that to be the case.

Chances are that everyone will have their favourite section(s) of the piece, but it should be noted that, above all else, this is an album. It is a single composition, not simply a collection of songs that happen to occupy the same piece of analog or digital media. It's a composition that deserves to be listened to in its entirety, not in bite-sized pieces. Francis Ford Coppola didn't release Apocalypse Now into theaters as a collection of vignettes, did he? That's because he didn't intend for it to be experienced in three-to-five minute sections, with brief intermissions in between. Same deal with The Theme.

--end pretentious rant about respecting the vision and intentions of the artist whose work you are about to enjoy--

So... lock your doors and windows, pull the blinds, dim the lights, prepare a heroic dose of your hallucinogen of choice and gather up an ample supply of your favorite snacks and beverages; have a piss, then pull up a comfy chair and press play.