Gregorian Rock Christmas "Centuries in the Making"

Hearty and jovial cold weather greetings fellow progheads!  It's crazy to be staring down the barrel of "holiday season 2018" already--there is still Halloween candy hidden in the closet and the bird isn't even stuffed yet.  But the ground has a fresh new white blanket as we round the final turn in what has been an exciting and tumultuous year in the prog garden.

The search for all things prog takes on a festive vibe this week as The Closet Concert Arena reviews a Christmas album that will be released very soon from Gregorian Rock.  This will be album number four from Roland Dale Benedict & Company for those keeping score at home...so let's get right to it...

The album opens with "Coventry Carol."  The mood is set immediately; you are immersed in the chant and chamber music resonance that builds a solid wall of sound...if early Pink Floyd had ventured into the Christmas album arena, I suspect Syd, Roger and the rest of the band would have put together something along these lines.  The stinging guitar that rides a current across the latter part of the song drives a stake right through your auditory sensors.  Starting to feel festive already...

The next song to flow through my headphones is a more traditional piece, "O Come O Come Emmanuel."  With a technological update to back up the vocals, this is an interesting cut.  Dale rides that thin line separating a "reflection" cover and a complete reinterpretation of the song very well...the feeling and mood are ever present, but the drums and keyboards expand the foundation on which the entire piece rests.  The top notes permeating the entire album are a toned down Trans Siberian Orchestra. 

Liner Notes...Dale Benedict is the heart, soul, brains, and life blood behind Gregorian Rock.  Hailing from San Antonio, Texas, Dale has released three albums prior to his venture into the Christmas spirit.  Phil Keaggy, who played guitar on the "Fire" album, also plays on two cuts here.  Classically trained and passionately dedicated to making great prog music, Dale continues to nurture his own unique acreage in the prog garden.  Now back to Christmas and music and celebrating and...

There are classic holiday tunes on the album as well; "The First Noel" and "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" are two that leaped through the headphones like Rudolph blazing across a moonlit sky.  The chanting vocals allow Dale to take the music down an entirely different road and "reinvent" each piece.  With so many songs--especially Christmas classics--being covered by a plethora of artists, the Gregorian spin changes the mood and the ambiance so you don't feel like you have "just another version" of the same-old same-old.  This album is extremely inspired...

One unusual cut from the album, "Personet Hodie," is a more uptempo holiday song that shines like the bright star that lit up the night sky so long ago.  Gregorian Rock has something on this album for every different taste this time of year; the canvas is filled with the bright colors the joy of Christmas brings as well as the more somber introspective hues that delve into the religious importance of what Christmas represents to so many.  Regardless of your vantage point, there is something here destined to seep into your pores and have you emit that "joyous holiday spirit."

Learn more about Gregorian Rock and get in on the Christmas hoopla at Gregorian Rock and follow up the latest on the band's Facebook and Twitter @cantusnovus.  In addition to "Gregorian Rock Christmas" you will find the entire Gregorian Rock catalog.  There is also an opportunity to get some special gifts and extras when ordering the Christmas album.  So please take the time and support the artist...

Normally this is the time and location for a clip from the latest release...however this week I am asking you to purchase the album for yourself and build your holiday music collection.  Rest assured you will be glad you did...and if you play it correctly, so will your neighbors...😄

As the sand empties into the bottom bulb of the hourglass, another week fades from the rear view mirror.  A reminder that 2018 is starting to wane like the Ghost of Christmas Past...but there is always time in the Concert Closet for one more song...

...so let me serve a last slice, "The Angel Gabriel."  A piercing drum leads the chant on this cut; as minimal as the first night in Bethlehem.  Slowly the music begins to erupt in a reserved celebration...and fade to black.  Gregorian Rock scores with this album because Dale understands the many facets that make up the holiday; celebration certainly, but there is also a feeling of awe and  magnificence wrapped around the importance of the season...Dale's music captures that quite beautifully.


One of the pleasures of blogging about up-and-coming, low under the radar prog bands is seeing first hand the progression and maturity of the entire project; writing, musicianship, mixing, producing...when everything comes together it really can be a work of art.  Listening to Gregorian Rock over these past few years has been an exercise in appreciation for me.  Dale is one of those artists who plays what he feels, and the results show it.  A Christmas album is just one more piece of the puzzle that is Gregorian Rock...

Now as I am so fond of saying, the search for all things prog continues. The journey will soon venture beyond 2018, but for the time being let us savor the harvest still waiting in the prog garden...until next time...