CRYSTAL PALACE – The System Of Events (2013)

* thanx to Alan J.

CRYSTAL PALACE are a German progressive band from Berlin who have been around for some time honing their chops and advancing their songwriting skills which has led to this little gem: their sixth studio album “The System Of Events”, to be released next October 4th.

Sounding to these ears very similar to label stablemates RPWL (no bad thing, RPWL are one of the finest progressive rock bands around) with a smattering of Hogarth-era Marillion, Pendragon, Arena and, ubiquitously, Porcupine Tree, “The System Of Events” is an eight-track Progressive Rock refined tour-de-force.
Very much set in the present, the band are not only unafraid to tackle the big issues of the day such as the Breivik killings in Norway, the school shootings in America and the Fukushima disaster but are also able to get up-close and personal with people’s everyday trials and tribulations of love and loss.

But what makes “The System Of Events” so great is its musicality.
The history of rock music is peppered with great albums – but the ones that truly sit in the Pantheon of iconic albums are those which have that one defining track, that spark of genius that makes it better than just great.
Obvious examples are ‘Stairway To Heaven’ (Led Zeppelin ‘IV’), ‘Firth Of Fifth’ (Genesis ‘Selling England By The Pound’), ‘Child In Time’ (Deep Purple ‘In Rock’), ‘All Right Now’ (Free’s ‘Fire and Water’) and so on. You get my drift.
Now I’m not saying that “The System Of Events” falls into the ‘iconic album’ category, not yet anyway, but it has got that one track that takes this album into the ‘must-listen’ classification.

The highlight of what is an exceptional piece of work is both the closing and title track of the album; “The System Of Events”. This one would be a standout track on any progressive rock album – and I am not talking about the genre. It’s that good.
The band knew what they had as well, roping in Colin Edwin (Porcupine Tree) and Yogi Lang and Kalle Wallner (RPWL) to add their talents to the thirteen-minute majestic composition.
Giving the band’s take on the Fukushima disaster, the track builds in intensity to the anthemic chorus with some incredible guitar work then cuts unexpectedly to a series of news reports detailing the tsunami and its aftermath layered over acoustic guitar and keyboards before cranking up for the big finish. Staggering stuff.

But there’s much more to enjoy. We have a great reflection put in the arrangements with the use of atmospheric and electronic elements especially on the arty and neo-proggy “As Heaven Dies”, which also features atypically sounding acoustic guitars on par with electrics.
Be ready for some haunting Marillion / IQ melodies on “Beautiful Nightmare”, where the Ibanez Jam of Nils Conrad gets loose for great effect and near the end the whole thing turns a bit Dream Theater-esque.
As we go in the middle of the album, the songs take a more harder trend as on the prog-metal overtones in the second section of “Breathe” for example, adding variation and different textures to this complete recording.

The whole “The System Of Events” is a top-notch effort – much thought has gone into both the subject matter and the music to produce a magnum opus of colossal proportions with exceptional musicianship throughout – taken still further by that monumental title track.
This is that type of records that distinguishes itself through courageous songwriting, intelligent arrangements and a compelling storyline that takes the listener on a thrilling journey of eight brilliantly crafted songs.
Already in my ‘best of the year’ list, Crystal Palace has created an album which exceeds the genres, so no matter which one you prefer, this is pure, high quality music you simply cannot miss.
Jaw-droppingly Good.

01. Chasing Better Days
02. As Heaven Dies
03. Beautiful Nightmare
04. Green Way
05. Sleepless
06. Stunned By The Silence
07. Breathe
08. The System Of Events

Yenz – vocals, bass
Nils Conrad – guitars
Frank Kohler – keys
Frank Brennekam – drums
With:
Yogi Lang (RPWL) – keys
Colin Edwin (Porcupine Tree) – bass
Kalle Walner (RPWL, Blind Ego) – guitar

Pre-Oder;
www.amazon.co.uk/Systems-Events-Crystal-Palace/dp/B00DU3YGN6
.