I have probably never looked forward to an album more than the new ICE album Man In The Moon. The wait lasted no less than 15 years. I knew the album was coming and that it was even ready. Then waiting takes a very long time, I can assure you. But in July 2024 it was finally time, Man In The Moon, the second album of the Dutch progressive rock formation ICE was a fact. ICE was founded around the year 2000 and consists largely of band members who previously played in the progressive rock band Maryson. Insiders will know that Maryson is the brainchild of W.J. Maryson aka Wim Stolk. The band made two albums that were related to the books of Wim Stolk, which he wrote as a fantasy writer. Wim Stolk himself played the keyboards in Maryson. In 2000 Wim Stolk left the band and the remaining quartet, supplemented with a new keyboardist, continued under the name ICE. In 2005 ICE released their debut album The Saga. The album was generally well received. The Saga is a strong concept album and it is in line with the Maryson material. However, there are also trend lines that are bent. ICE has a heavier character than Maryson and it is also more melodic. Personally, the album touched the sensitive strings for me. Long story short, The Saga is an album that I play very often. It is an album that occupies an important place in my life. And in 2005 the waiting started for the second album. Finally after 15 years of waiting we were rewarded with Man On The Moon. ICE has in 2024 the following line-up: Hein Van Den Broek (lead and backing vocals, guitar), Chris Van Hoogdalem (guitars, backing vocals), Ardie Westdijk (keyboards, Synthesizers), René Sterk (bass) and Rob Boshuijzen (drums, percussion). Guest musicians on the album are: Irma van den Broek, Fleur Westdijk, Merel van Hoogdalem (all backing vocals) and Leslie van der Heul (saxophone on track no 12) In the meantime, the song Man In The Moon was released in 2019. This song was a tribute to everyone who had been involved in the Apollo project in 1969. For me, this was a kind of treat. Anyone who knows me well knows that I think ICE is one of the best Dutch progressive rock bands of all time. This despite their meager oeuvre. You can consider this a spoiler alert. That all said it's time to dive deeper into the new ICE album. Man In The Moon is the title track of this album and, as I already mentioned, it was released in 2019. The 7 minute track is mid-tempo and has a more or less cinematic character. The song contains sound fragments of American President John F. Kennedy, in which he addresses the American people and tells them that the United States would be the first country to send people to the moon. Furthermore, sound fragments from the Apollo 11 mission are woven into the track. Within this song, all of this fits wonderfully. Man In The Moon is a fantastic opening track. The album continues with The Voice Of Black Mountain. The song usually has a lingering character and is alternated with somewhat more up-tempo bridges. Above all, it is a song with many beautiful melody lines. I personally think melodic melody lines are the trademark of this band. At the end of the song there is a great guitar solo by Chris Van Hoogdalem, who is one of my favorite progressive rock guitarists. He is technically excellent and has a great sound, but he always chooses creative and melodic solutions instead of playing complex solo's that nobody understands. The intro of the song Inside The Bulb consists of a somewhat dark carpet of synthesizer sounds. The title of the song already reveals that it is not a cheerful theme. Personally, I often feel a form of "threatening" atmosphere in various ICE songs. This was also the case on the previous album. The song then continues at a low tempo when all the instruments and vocals join in. However, the vibe remains, as usual, great. The bridges and choruses have a bit more tempo and especially more power. The kick-off of this album is phenomenal in my opinion. The Dreams That Never Were starts with a Supertramp-like intro where only keyboard, acoustic guitar and vocals merge into a catchy melody line. Slowly, multiple instruments join in and a beautiful, accessible track is created. Because the song is composed so openly, you can hear the layering of the instruments very well. The vocals come into their own in the song. Furthermore, the song is extremely melodic and is radio-worthy in my opinion. The album continues its way with the song At The Break Of Dawn and Across The Frozen Lake. Here the atmosphere changes again and everything becomes a bit darker or more melancholic. At The Break Of Dawn is a cinematic intro with diverse sound fragments, it could have come straight from a Pink Floyd album. For me this is one of the most beautiful intros I have heard in recent years. The build-up of tension in this two-minute intro is of premier league level. The song continues with the second part, Across The Frozen Lake. This is a mid-tempo track with excellent vocal melodies and varied soundscapes. As in all the tracks the rhythm section is tight and forms the base of the tracks. For me personally this incredible track is one of the highlights of the album. A musical box sound is used for the opening of Cambridge. The tempo of the track is once more mid-tempo and it drags on in a way only ICE is able to do. What I mean is that ICE is always capable of creating melodic tracks from rather dark and dragging type of songs. The guitar solo at the end is really phenomenal in my opinion, Chris van Hoogdalem is a very underrated guitar player. He plays with the heart and is therefore incredibly melodic. The album continues with Returning To The Day. The intro has some staccato-like keyboard parts, which are sounding strange in a positive way. The track develops itself in a way where the intro melody is repeated and alternated by other beautiful up-tempo bridges and choruses. With just a little more than 4 minutes this is the shortest track of the album. The following song Waves And The Wind is a low-tempo-, very dark and cinematic track. The keyboards and vocals are taking the lead in this track. As said, they create a very dark atmosphere. But once again, it is melodic from beginning to end. This makes the music "easy" to listen to. The Wizard is the penultimate song of the album. The song title immediately reminds me of the band Maryson. The lyrics of Maryson were, as previously stated , based on the Master Magician novels series of Wim Stolk. Must confess that the entire song breathes the atmosphere of Maryson. But probably that is the nostalgia that I want to hear in this song too! Lost In The Blue is the last song of this album and it's a 6 minute treat of the best melodic- and progressive rock someone can ask for. This mid-tempo song has several beautiful soundscapes and an outstanding chorus. At the end of the song there's a great saxophone solo. This album closes in style. The lyrics of this track are also speaking for the rest of the album. In my opinion this albums theme is "losing course during the life journey" and "it's struggle against it". Man In The Moon is an extraordinary album, an album without any weak spots and eventually only highlights and besides that an album that is excellently produced. I really like the melancholy cast in very strong melodic parts. Nevertheless I think that ICE is underrated in some way. The band deserves a wider audience. This albums is one of the best albums I know. I will be coming back on this one and on their first album The Saga, time and time again. I must confess that I am totally biased. Because ICE is one of my favorite bands ever. The only wish I have right now: I don't hope it will take another 15 years to make the successor of this album. I can only rate this album with 5 out of 5 points. Actually my rating should be even higher. This to express my deepest feelings towards this album. ***** Aad Bannink (edited by Tracy van Os van den Abeelen) Where to buy? |
