MR

It's been a few months, what are the current thoughts on Eclipse? Has it stood the test of time?

I still have AIP, Someone and Ritual in my playlist. It's slipped behind Arrival a bit on my order of all things Journey. Overall, I do consider Eclipse a good record.

Why La Do Da is on the setlist now instead of Anything Is Possible is a mystery to me. All I can think of is that the former, along with WYLAW aren't as taxing on the vocal cords as the material on Eclipse.
When You Love A Woman is a great song but it's still a damaged Perry croaking out the lyrics for beter or worse, nothing spectacular to blast from the voice box with that song.

Still, the question was about Eclipse and I still believe that is a good effort and and a superior product compared to the original songs from Revelation (with the exception of NWA and TDTWT).

Several weeks later ... I really like Resonate, Chain Of Love, Tantra and Anything Is Possible. I find City Of Hope to be pretty bad and She's A Mystery to be one of their worst songs ever, right up there with Lights, LTS, Patiently and Baby I'm Leavin' You.

I just tried to listen to Tantra again and it was like opening the door of a broken refrigerator and getting hit in the face with the stench of a decomposed steak.

Still digging the hell out of it. I'm going to ruin my car's speakers.

Still awesome.

Resonate!
You make me feel sweet vibrations.

Love most of Eclipse, although I haven't played it in a few weeks, as I've been hooked on Night Ranger's new one. Still my most frequently played Journey CD is Captured.

Andrew wrote:Still awesome.

Rick wrote:Still digging the hell out of it. I'm going to ruin my car's speakers.

Pretty much my consensus, too. If anything, my affection and appreciation for the album has increased in the past several months. In fact, and I'm sure very few will agree with me, I believe Eclipse to be their best album.

It's a good album....but bad timing. The songs on here should have been on Revelation...and maybe some of the rock singles could have hit radio. Doing it now is FAR too late. Too bad they sold their souls to nostalgia.

Still doesn't pass Arrival as my favorite post-Perry output, but it's stronger and has more staying power than Revelation. I'd put Resonate and Edge Of The Moment in particular with Remember Me, Higher Place and To Be Alive Again fairly high in Journey's all-time catalog.

Gideon wrote:

Andrew wrote:Still awesome.

Rick wrote:Still digging the hell out of it. I'm going to ruin my car's speakers.

Pretty much my consensus, too. If anything, my affection and appreciation for the album has increased in the past several months. In fact, and I'm sure very few will agree with me, I believe Eclipse to be their best album.

That's a bold statement!

Interesting thoughts, folks. (It would be nice to hear from those who voted 'bad' for Eclipse, we won't bite!)

I took stock of Journey's albums today and I was surprised to see just how much I hated Generations. I always thought I'd hate Evolution more.

City of Hope: 8/10; I've learned to appreciate the song a lot more, though I could do without Neal's solo.

Edge of the Moment: 8/10; it's a very good, interesting in that it deals with straightforward sexuality, unlike most of Journey's work.

Chain of Love: 10/10; easily one of their best and hardest rock songs.

Tantra: 7/10; lyrically compelling and musically strong, though I don't like the outro at all.

Anything Is Possible: 7/10; another solid track, though it's a little too soft for me. I like the chorus and outro very much.

Resonate: 10/10; my personal favorite on the album and, with CoL, one of their finest and heaviest rockers.

She's a Mystery: 8/10; great accoustic track, harkens back to 'Patiently', brilliant playing by Neal and Jon here.

Human Feel: 9/10; lyrically mature, a treatise against reliance on technology, with a fantastic rhythm and chorus.

Ritual: 8/10; very solid, catchy as hell, with an eclectic jam session around the 2:40 mark that adds some further dimensions to an otherwise straightforward and lyrically typical song.

To Whom It May Concern: 8/10; Journey spreading its wings with a song concerning the healing powers of religion; nice duet between Arnel and Neal's guitar after the first chorus, reminds me of 'Why Can't This Night Go On Forever'.

Someone: 9/10; I've really come around on this song, it's catchy as hell.

Rick wrote:

Gideon wrote:

Andrew wrote:Still awesome.

Rick wrote:Still digging the hell out of it. I'm going to ruin my car's speakers.

Pretty much my consensus, too. If anything, my affection and appreciation for the album has increased in the past several months. In fact, and I'm sure very few will agree with me, I believe Eclipse to be their best album.

That's a bold statement!

It scored roughly an 82% or so in my books; most of Journey's stuff is in the mid to late 70 percentile. Frontiers, Arrival, Escape, and Revelation follow suit. Trial By Fire lags behind because of the filler. Odd, when I used to consider it my favorite album!

Gideon wrote:

Rick wrote:

Gideon wrote:

Andrew wrote:Still awesome.

Rick wrote:Still digging the hell out of it. I'm going to ruin my car's speakers.

Pretty much my consensus, too. If anything, my affection and appreciation for the album has increased in the past several months. In fact, and I'm sure very few will agree with me, I believe Eclipse to be their best album.

That's a bold statement!

It scored roughly an 82% or so in my books; most of Journey's stuff is in the mid to late 70 percentile. Frontiers, Arrival, Escape, and Revelation follow suit. Trial By Fire lags behind because of the filler. Odd, when I used to consider it my favorite album!

It's way up there on my list also. I hope they do another one just like it. Meaning, harder edged. I think they do that very well.

I think Eclipse is one of the band's best efforts in a few years. It's the heaviest since Frontiers.

The song that has been my favourite has been Chain of Love, since the Vegas videos were put up in the beginning of the year. I like alot of metal along with the shitload of melodic rock I listen to, and I think it's along the line of Separate Ways, La Do Da, Edge of the Blade, Chain Reaction and Ask the Lonely in their harder edged tunes. I didn't think of the other songs that they previewed until I bought the album and after that, I can also put Edge of the Moment and Resonate in that category.

My other most favourite is Human Feel, it's just thumping with prog rock glory. I noticed Neal took a few Alex Lifeson-isms on this one. It really sounds like something Rush would do.

And of course, it's got something for the classic Journeymen, Anything is Possible, City of Hope, Ritual and Someone all took a while to grow on me (the last two especially) but I now replay them like the others

Tantra still loses me about halfway through, but I love To Whom it May Concern because the overdose of spirituality in it is just something that attracts me as I too consider myself spiritual (I'm a LaVeyan Satanist, but something about spirituality keeps attracting me).

Venus.... meh. I like the reprisal of To Whom it May Concern's theatrical riff, but the song itself is better than the gratuitous instrumental featuring classic Schon masturbation.

Despite my few gripes, I still think Eclipse is a damn good album and a solid piece of work, that I recommend to all my friends.... over and over. Much to the chagrin of some of them.

Gideon wrote:In fact, and I'm sure very few will agree with me, I believe Eclipse to be their best album.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXbk54MtzHg

RedWingFan wrote:

Gideon wrote:In fact, and I'm sure very few will agree with me, I believe Eclipse to be their best album.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXbk54MtzHg

Well. Some songs just didn't grow on me. City of Hope, Anything Is Possible, She's A Mystery (Just too long), Tantra, To Whom It May Concern are really often fast forwarded. I still crank Edge, Chain, Resonate, Human Feel, and even Ritual, and Someone, which if you'd asked me on 1st listen, when i first got this CD, i think i might have thought I would have gravitated towards AIP and COH for their more familiar classic journey sound.

Although I wouldn't match the previous bold statement of Gideon's, of this being Journey's best album ever... I do have to admit that although I don't think it's their best record, by far (With all the songs listed I skip), it IS by FAR their best SOUNDING record.

In fact, it's one of the best sounding records I own period. I'm really glad Neal and Jon took on the mixing themselves, and really broke the formula all the way around. This record to me, sounds like Journey in 2011, and that itself, is new and exciting for this band.

It's Journey, with their classic playing and sensibilities, but it not only competes with all the other current, modern records out there for sound, and quality... I really think their old school musicianship thats missing in A LOT of lesser experienced bands, with this modern production / sounding record, in my opinion, gives it the extra something, that other new music i buy, doesn't have. And again, I don't have another CD that makes my stereo, or Car Stereo sound like it's the most expensive system out there.

This record still SOUNDS incredible, I'm so disappointed to hear all the bad sound comments about their live shows this year, they REALLY raised the bar with the sound of this CD, and it sounded like they were doing that, with the 1st sound guy they hired this year, but no one really knows what happened with that.

there are other threads for that, I'll keep this OnTopic and say to the Subject: Present thoughts? = Eclipse still SOUNDS AMAZING!

Infinity Vocalist 2010 wrote:I think Eclipse is one of the band's best efforts in a few years. It's the heaviest since Frontiers.

The song that has been my favourite has been Chain of Love, since the Vegas videos were put up in the beginning of the year. I like alot of metal along with the shitload of melodic rock I listen to, and I think it's along the line of Separate Ways, La Do Da, Edge of the Blade, Chain Reaction and Ask the Lonely in their harder edged tunes. I didn't think of the other songs that they previewed until I bought the album and after that, I can also put Edge of the Moment and Resonate in that category.

My other most favourite is Human Feel, it's just thumping with prog rock glory. I noticed Neal took a few Alex Lifeson-isms on this one. It really sounds like something Rush would do.

And of course, it's got something for the classic Journeymen, Anything is Possible, City of Hope, Ritual and Someone all took a while to grow on me (the last two especially) but I now replay them like the others

Tantra still loses me about halfway through, but I love To Whom it May Concern because the overdose of spirituality in it is just something that attracts me as I too consider myself spiritual (I'm a LaVeyan Satanist, but something about spirituality keeps attracting me).

Venus.... meh. I like the reprisal of To Whom it May Concern's theatrical riff, but the song itself is better than the gratuitous instrumental featuring classic Schon masturbation.

Despite my few gripes, I still think Eclipse is a damn good album and a solid piece of work, that I recommend to all my friends.... over and over. Much to the chagrin of some of them.

Had to look up "LaVeyan Satanist". Had me worried, as I've never heard of that. Nice review. I'm bigger on Tantra than you are. I think it's absolutely gorgeous, if I can say that and retain my man card. I got another boost from your review when you gave Human Feel props. I love that one as well.. Venus, I agree. The reprise is cool, but they could of left that off the album and it wouldn't have made a difference.

Rick wrote:I think it's absolutely gorgeous, if I can say that and retain my man card.

You can't.

Gideon wrote:

Rick wrote:I think it's absolutely gorgeous, if I can say that and retain my man card.

You can't.

Gideon wrote:

Rick wrote:I think it's absolutely gorgeous, if I can say that and retain my man card.

You can't.

Can I regain it by saying the ending of She's a Mystery just absolutely blows your fucking head off?

Rick wrote:

Gideon wrote:

Rick wrote:I think it's absolutely gorgeous, if I can say that and retain my man card.

You can't.

Can I regain it by saying the ending of She's a Mystery just absolutely makes you want to blow your fucking head off?

Didn't St. John already express that sentiment?

Don wrote:

Rick wrote:

Gideon wrote:

Rick wrote:I think it's absolutely gorgeous, if I can say that and retain my man card.

You can't.

Can I regain it by saying the ending of She's a Mystery just absolutely makes you want to blow your fucking head off?

Didn't St. John already express that sentiment?

I did at one time previously, not sure about SJ.

Like most albums, it's on the shelf and I'm back to NPR full time. (Well, I've got Adele, Duffy#1, & Civil Wars in rotation...when I listen to records. Other than that, I've got a few gigs of 60s/70s soul that are always on the ready.)


later~

Gideon wrote:In fact, and I'm sure very few will agree with me, I believe Eclipse to be their best album.

Well, while it's been awhile since I've posted here, I can safely say I still agree to this sentence (I do believe I said it myself several times in the weeks before I left)~

A terrific album indeed~

Eclipse is a classic! It's just too young to be labeled as such yet. I hope I'm still around in 30 years. Some of you young uns will be.
I'm gonna have a phone installed in my casket and some of you guys will have my direct number so you can call and say I was right.

steveo777 wrote:Eclipse is a classic! It's just too young to be labeled as such yet. I hope I'm still around in 30 years. Some of you young uns will be.
I'm gonna have a phone installed in my casket and some of you guys will have my direct number so you can call and say I was right.

It may end up as a cult classic but that's it. The numbers have to be there for anything to be called a classic and that's not happening.
Neal is going to go in and edit these songs when? In between tours? If you can't get the radio to play a single from a newly released album, what logic is there in thinking they'll start playing the songs a year after release?

Still love it!!!

steveo777 wrote:Eclipse is a classic! It's just too young to be labeled as such yet. I hope I'm still around in 30 years. Some of you young uns will be.
I'm gonna have a phone installed in my casket and some of you guys will have my direct number so you can call and say I was right.

Watch one of the haters set you up for cremation~

That said, I completely agree with you: this album IS a classic.