Riffstone - Richard 111 Progressive Voyages Review PV017
Riffstone - Richard 111 – Progressive Voyages Review PV017
There is an interesting back story to this album in that David Allen wrote this album for his wife as a birthday present. As she is a Ricardian Enthusiast,( a Ricardian is one who is interested in the life of Richard 111) after hearing Colin Powell’s album A Templars Tale, he reached out to Colin and they decided to revisit and refresh the original recordings. So whilst doing the reconstruction of the original recording they decided to release it together as Riffstone. The album is large instrumental in tone and sound and is pretty epic (as it is a double cd) in its scope, Think of Genesis, Rick Wakeman and the like when you hear this most interesting album release. Much of the tale is told by means of narration which helps you concentrate more fully on the music although there are a few vocal tracks it is largely either narration or instrumental in nature.
The album is released on the 22nd August and will be available as a download or a double cd.
It is a concept album that looks at the life of Richard 111 and his subsequent discovery of his final resting place beneath a car park in Leicester in what was Greyfriar’s church, that was dissolved in the 1530’s with its location being lost over time,
The album begins with a narration, that sets the stall for our tale. After this a good guitar line is introduced against which the keyboards play underneath. It also has a strong bass line that marries and ties in with the epic guitar lines, It is a great opening statement of intent that bodes well for all that is to follow.
Second track is 1452 which is a chronologically detailed list of Richard 111’s lineage and his succession to the throne of England, the last Plantagenet becoming king in June 1483. If you like history this album will definitely appeal to you as it is historically accurate and is well thought out and delivered by David Allen and Colin Powell who between them have made a very musically interesting and well performed album together.
There is a good middle section to this song with strong guitar work and good keyboard sounds, a strong synth solo takes this excellent track to it conclusion, surprisingly strong and memorable chorus in this song which stays with you. Track 3 Plantagenet has a great opening with strong organs and guitar lines, and an equally impressive middle section of interaction between the guitars and keyboards.
Track 4 House Of York details the 30 year long war between the cousins of York and Lancaster, in this you get a sense of the bitterness that existed between the two houses. This is a very atmospheric track with great guitar lines and sympathetic keyboard textures and sounds. What impresses on this album is how dynamically satisfyingly arranged this album is, even if the historical aspect is not to your liking there is still a lot of tastefully curated and performed musical sections and sequences to satisfy anyone.
Fotheringhay Castle is next, delicate and gentle at first it tells the story of the castle that was the place of Richard’s ɓirth in 1452 although his childhood home was actually Middleham castle in North Yorkshire. This leads onto the next track Middleham this song is about Richard and his wife queen Anne and the birth of their short-lived son Edward.
The next track War Of The Roses is very sombre in tone as it details with the wars between the houses of York and Lancaster detailing the toll it takes on each house in the process, this song has a muscular middle section of guitars bass and drums that sounds very effective indeed.
There is some great guitar in this track, very impressive music performances on offer here.
We then have to change to disc 2 for the remainder of the tale. Disc 2 starts with Anne Neville which is about Richard 111’s wife who had previously been King Edward V’s queen. After his death she was incarcerated whilst the next king was being considered by Warwick the Kingmaker. Richard rescued her from incarnation after the battle of Tewkesbury in 1471, where Prince Edward who was betrothed to Warwick’s daughter in a deal that sought to end the Wars Of The Roses, was killed before the deal could be completed. This is a very atmospheric instrumental track. I may have some of this history wrong as it is a little Convoluted and obscure, maybe you can do your own research into this historically interesting period.
Lord Protector is about Richard becoming lord protector of the realm as Prince Edward was too young to reign, the history around this time is somewhat convoluted and difficult to follow.
Richard 111 is next and this is about Richard’s progress as a Knight and the loss of his son as a child, and his subsequent possession of the throne of England,
The Princes In The Tower is next which is about the timely disappearance of the two Princes Edward and Richard who were the sons of the late Edward V who were declared illegitimate paving the way for Richard to become Richard 111 as they posed the biggest threat to Richard’s kingship. This is a hard hitting song as the mystery remains unresolved to this day.
Bosworth tells the tale of the famous battle of Bosworth field in 1485 where Richard met his end. Again this is an atmospheric track with battle sounds included. The Victor, Henry Tudor, became king Henry V11 .
Eulogy tells the story of the battle
Here lies the king is the story of the recent (2012) discovery of the skeleton of Richard 111 under a car park in Leicester and his subsequent internment at Leicester cathedral in 2015.
This album is a great listen even if the history is bit difficult to follow in places. It shows the usual political manoeuvring and actions that plague English history. It is a worthwhile listen and one I will definitely return to again and do my own research to gain my own understanding of that turbulent period of English history and folklore.
Info here: www.riffstone.bandcamp.com
Author John We