Ferris Mudd are a three-piece progressive rock band, whose debut self-titled album is a fun listen, filled with lush harmonies, strong guitar playing, precise rhythms, and rich keyboards. There's no doubt after listening to this CD that the band wears their influences on their sleeves-you'll instantly hear the soaring harmonies of Yes, the catchy hooks of Alan Parson's Project, the dense layers of instrumentation found in the music of Kansas, and the driving power of Rush. Despite all this, the music of Ferris Mudd sounds decidedly modern, with songs like "The Move" and "Unrapped" having almost radio friendly qualities, somewhat in the way that 80's/90's Genesis songs had, or even current bands like Spock's Beard, Radiohead, Marillion, and POrcupine Tree. However, there's plenty of progressive bombast here, like the symphonic rock of "Time to Fly", the spacey, almost Pink Floyd sounding keyboard & guitar passages of "Over Your Head", the muscular riffs and tasty keys of "Anyway", and the tender majesty of "You're Alone", a song that features some great acoustic guitar work.
The band is comprised of Steve Richard (lead vocals, lead guitar, guitar synth, acoustic guitar), Danny Dicus (bass, acoustic guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), and Lester Meredith (drums, percussion, keyboards, acoustic guitar, backing vocals), and these three have managed to put together a pretty impressive debut here. For the future, I'd like to see the band break loose a little and really stretch out with some extended interplay. There are some solos here and there, but just when you think one of the guys is going to really wow you, they pull back. Not a terrible thing, but perhaps we can see some more aggressive material next time around. All in all though, there is a lot of promise here that is well worth checking out.
Track Listing
1. Time To Fly
2. The Move
3. Over Your Head
4. Anyway
5. Unrapped
6. End Of Day
7. Call It Your Own
8. You're Alone
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