Eclipse a year later

[steveo777]

The album is not for everyone. Sonically, I appreciate it, as it is well mastered and David Kalmusky did a hell of a job. The musicianship and Neal's guitar playing are outstanding. Pineda's vocals really have range and show what he can do. I have no complaints about AP's vocals on this. The songs, as others have said, stray away from what one would expect from a Journey album.

Hates:
City of Hope
Ritual

Likes:
Tantra
She's a Mystery

Loves:
Anything Is Possible
Someone
Chain Of Love
Resonate

Still, for me, a solid effort and I play it regularly. I've take a special liking to Jeremey's album and I play it a lot lately too.

[Arkansas]

The whole problem with Eclipse is that it didn't go far enough. Schon had no real direction. He just wanted to do his own thing, but maybe in an Enigma-esqe fashion. I mean, before the album was done, they were hyping some Gregorian mysticism, but they never totally got there. And then Schon kept layering guitars, but when he tried to go heavy, he went controlled instead of loose & alive. And, he kept playing and playing and playing...geez.

All of that vagueness left me with no real want to keep listening. I did though, I mean I really tried. But after a dozen or so spins, and some selective study, Eclipse made me tired. I got tired of trying to 'get something' that I wasn't even sure was ever there. So, it got shelved. I honestly don't even know where it is now.


later~

[JohnH]

I have loved Eclipse when I got it and now. I still play it about once a month and I think it's a great album. This forum is a tough crowd, but everyone's taste are different.

[musicfan17]

Eclipse.... Hmmm... Recording, mix, guitar vocals..... all very strong... There are a handful of tunes that I added to my journey mix, but the album as a whole just didn't take with me. Overall I liked Revelation better... but Eclipse is good, just not great.

[strangegrey]

I wish I could come in here and go "It fucking sucked last year and it sucks just as much now"...it would actually make me feel good, because disparaging anything Neal Schon is connected to, makes me feel good....


But having said that, I can't. I actually have started to play it more recently and find it to be much better a year later. It's very different, I will say that, than most previous Journey releases...but I don't care. I enjoy it for what it is. I still think Neal Schon is a douchebag! so take that for what it's worth.


If I were to use Andrew's scale, I wouldn't give Eclipse anything even close to the 90s. I wouldn't even go in the 80s...but last year, I wouldn't have given this album a score above 50. It's grown on me....I'll give it about a 79 now.

Contrast that with Night Ranger's Somewhere in cali album, which was always a 95 to me, and will remain a 95.

Further contrast that with Van Halen's A Different Kind of Truth, where I wouldn't give that piece of shit a grade higher than 30%. Worst VH album ever. I would rather be strapped to a fucking mid-80s era Harlem boom box listening to Diver Down on repeat for the rest of my life than have to fucking listen to one more second of that piece of shit album they released this past february.

[AR]

Further contrast that with Van Halen's A Different Kind of Truth, where I wouldn't give that piece of shit a grade higher than 30%. Worst VH album ever. I would rather be strapped to a fucking mid-80s era Harlem boom box listening to Diver Down on repeat for the rest of my life than have to fucking listen to one more second of that piece of shit album they released this past february.

I'm going to see Van Halen again.



Tattoo, Tattoo!!!!!!!

[musicfan17]

Yep... the new VH album is pretty bland for all the hype. As I said over in the VH threads... Dave's voice is fairly shot and Eddie's playing is all over the place. The album might satisfy total VH fanboys, but I'd be mighty let down if I waited all that time for an album like that. Glad I didn't!

[Archetype]

I broke out Eclipse for the first time since last summer on Sunday. Gotta say, I dug it. The only songs I really don't like is Chain of Love