The missing Prologue
November 23rd, 2009 by Flint
This is the problem with grassroots bands who do not yet have a proper label (major or indie) backing: you get those moments where you begin to wonder if the band even exists anymore because there’s no stable, easy information source.
The Finnish band Prologue released their official debut release, The Stars Are Holes in the Sky EP in 2005. Two years later the Ghost Writing single followed, showing how in those two years the band had managed to add some stellar new sounds to their music. The world was preparing itself for a killer debut album and then… radio silence. The official website is down, the Myspace page has had no updates since 2007 (the last login is a few days ago but that seems to be the case with every single Myspace page so it’s not really reliable). No pieces of news, no articles in Finnish music sites, nothing. It’s like the band simply disappeared.
With good luck we’ll soon be hearing news about a debut album that the band has been preparing for all this time in perfect peace and silence, but as it is now we can’t say for sure. The old material is all we’ve got.
That old material is our treat today, its autumnal sounds wonderfully fitting the current season (even if your current habitat might not have multicolour leaves falling out of trees, covering the world in bittersweet beauty). Prologue circa The Stars Are Holes in the Sky EP owes a great deal of its sound to the classic 90’s-00’s scene of Britpop, the cuddly melodies of late-90’s Travis and the warm intimacy of Parachutes-era Coldplay being the most suiting examples. Wonderful melodies float slowly in a gentle breeze, the close atmosphere being just as important as the hooks when it comes to songwriting. The title track is the stand-out moment of the EP instantly captivating the listener into its brightly sparkling melodies and wonderful, wonderful chorus. “Serpentine” and “Is It People?” are the other shining examples of why the EP is an excellent debut release: the spacey, bedroom warmth of the sound is instantly appealing, soothing the mind and relaxing the body as the melodic hooks swivel around.
The Ghost Writing single on the other hand presented us the title track which took a little step away from the EP’s intimate feel and set its sight towards more different atmospheric routes. Rather than piano dominating the band’s sound, a hazy organ is in its place; rather than the rhythm section slowly grooving its way along and backing the melodies, it’s now up and energised, the speedy drumbeat providing a strong rhythm to the song. Most strikingly the huddled-up, private feel of the music is gone and replaced with a grand anthemic boost. When the backing vocal choir sings along in unison to the rising, massive-sounding outro, it’s like a whole different band – one that’s stepped away from the training space and ready to conquer stadiums.
And now… now we have no idea. Only time will tell if Ghost Writing will get sudden continuation and how different the band sounds then, but it’s bound to be something good.
Listen to Ghost Writing via the band’s MySpace (as well as some of the other songs)
Download Stars Are Holes in the Sky EP from here
Tags: Prologue