Spock's Beard - 2025 - The Archaeoptimist

(61:00; Madfish)






















I have been a fan of Spock’s Beard ever since Martin Orford sent me a copy of the American version of ‘The Light’, informing me that GEP were going to be releasing it in Europe. I saw the original line-up play a few times when they came to the UK, interviewed Neal, Nick and Alan at different times, and also saw the Nick-fronted version with Jimmy on drums. That night they were supported by CGT and Enchant, and I cannot have been the only one who was surprised when Ted Leonard later became the new frontman. It is seven years since ‘Noise Floor’, and I honestly thought the band was over given that Ted, Dave Meros and Jimmy had formed Pattern-Seeking Animals with John Boegehold and released five albums in the same period. But no, Ted and Dave have joined together again with Alan and Ryo and new drummer Nick Potter to provide us with ‘The Archaeoptimist’.

Nick is a very special find, as one would expect given whose shoes he has had to fill, and he fits in seamlessly, as if he has been there forever. Dave is the powering melodic strength he has always been, while Ted has always been a great singer and lyricist, but in many ways this album belongs to Ryo and Alan. They have turned it up and turned it back, as there are solos which sound as if they belong on the earlier albums as opposed to something 30 years on from the debut. Ryo has a wonderful breadth of sound, and is always in control, whether it is on delicate piano or bombastic organ, while Alan has really let himself rip out some wonderful power chords and solos. I must confess to not being a huge fan of his recent solo album, but here he definitely redeems himself with his wonderfully expressive and dynamic technique.

I was somewhat confused by “Afourthoughts” until I got my head around it, as there are so many themes here being repeated which were originally on “Thoughts” from ‘Beware of Darkness’, but this is the fourth in the series following on from “Thoughts (Part II)” and “Afterthoughts”. We get a nice epic in “The Archaeoptimist” which is more than twenty minutes in length and sounds like a mix between Spock’s Beard and the more commercial sound of Enchant, very palatable indeed.

The album is thoroughly enjoyable, but not as essential as the more recent ones, and are we going to have to wait so long for the next one, and what does this mean for Pattern-Seeking Animals? It is strange to realise that ‘Snow’ came out more than 20 years ago, and that and the debut will always be my favourite SB releases, but this is an enjoyable album which will please many progheads who also thought their journey was over. 

Kev Rowland, January 2026

Links:
https://www.spocksbeard.com/
https://madfishmusic.com/

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