Product Description

On "En Route," Hermetic Science's third album, Ed Macan, a key player in the progressive revival of the nineties, turns in one of the great multi-instrumental performances in recent memory. Fans are already familiar with his amazing mallet percussion and acoustic piano work, and there's plenty of that here. But "En Route" is also a great keyboard album, with Macan turning in stunning multi-layered performances on Hammond organ, ARP string ensemble, Micromoog, Fender Rhodes electric piano, digital pipe organ, and electronic harpsichord--not to mention the "oddball" instruments (recorders, 10-string lyre) that are a mandatory part of any Hermetic Science album. On "En Route" Macan is joined by multi-instrumentalist Jason Hoopes (bass, guitar, sitar, piano), an exciting young prog composer, and Joe Nagy, a formidable drummer who rejoins the band after a four-year absence. The title track, "En Route," a seven-movement, 45-minute suite, represents the band's greatest achievement--surpassing even the monumental "Prophesies" suite of their second album--and is likely to rank as one of the classic prog compositions of its era.

About the Artist

Hermetic Science, one of the most innovative and distinctive instrumental rock trios in a long time, is led by mallet percussion/keyboards wizard Ed Macan, a key player in the progressive music revival of the 1990s. Hermetic Science rattled the teeth of conformists everywhere with their unclassifiable fusion of progressive, ECM-style spatial jazz, fourth world, and contemporary classical styles that characterized their debut album of 1997. Featuring some of the most innovative vibes work in a generation, "Ed Macan's Hermetic Science" forged one of the few instantly recognizable signature sounds in contemporary instrumental music of any kind during the late 1990s. The band's second CD, "Prophesies" (1999), boldly continued the explorations of the debut album. While the new CD once again featured Ed Macan's mallet percussion pyrotechnics--his vibes playing on "Prophesies" is, if anything, even more astounding than before--it featured his formidable keyboard work, especially on acoustic piano, far more prominently than the debut CD. With the release of "En Route" in November 2001, Hermetic Science open an entirely new chapter in their development. To be sure, everything the first two Hermetic Science albms were admired for is here--the expertly-structured, richly-detailed compositions; the intricately-interlocking textures; the biting harmonies and curious polyrhythms; the skillful use of dynamics. But there is new ground broken, too. The music is heavier now, absolutely massive at times; darker, harder-rocking, more richly orchestrated, and more electronic, with a breathtaking range of dynamics.