Full Eclipse - In Place Of Power

Review by Karl Magi

Overall Album Impressions

Full Eclipse’s In Place Of Power features mature, emotionally engaging songwriting supported by Full Eclipse’s unique vocal style and a musical backing that has richness, complexity and depth to it. The end result is an album which delves into the widely varied terrain of human experience and draws listeners into the journey on which it travels. 

I am fascinated and galvanized by the lyrics that Full Eclipse has written for In Place Of Power. The lyrics are pure poetry and dissect the inherent contradictions and complexities of human emotion. Full Eclipse doesn't shy away from discussing difficult feelings and ideas, but his songwriting is never less than fully engaging as he does so.

The way in which Full Eclipse uses his voice is another strong aspect of the album’s success. He has a resonance and expressive quality to his voice that captures some of the uncertain emotion in the lyrics and delivers them in a way that pulls me into them. I like to hear Full Eclipse sing. 

All of the musical elements are well thought out and subtly emphasize the atmosphere of each song. Nothing takes over or fades too much and the musical choices are superb. I’d especially like to mention Michael W. Stuart’s sax work on the album as I feel that his performance drives the music’s emotion home. 

 My Favourite Tracks Analyzed

“This Place Has Power” comes to life as heavy bass flows out underneath raised, effulgent notes that wander through the music with sharp edges. Now strong drums move in and pulsate with guiding energy as synth flows out with soothing motion and the active low end gives the track shape. Now we drift into a calming section in which tranquil notes caress the ears and the track slips into silence.

Gleaming notes move above deep bass with a sharp edge sound in the distance as “Reeling” opens. Metallic chimes ring out and the drums and bass create a steady pulse as Full Eclipse’s unique voice chants the words.

Bereft emotion fills the vocal melody. Flaring notes blossom out as the drums and bass keep smoothly guiding the music. I enjoy the chanting quality of the vocals while piano notes jump out into the track. This song has an undeniable heartbeat. Drums batter and piano chords move as the song grows in power.

Bright notes ripple through and the percussion keeps throbbing. Now the track moves into a peacefully drifting section as the piano has a rather melancholy feeling and the low end pushes forward. Guitar cries out now with keening notes moving above the steady low end pulse before the song ends.

Our storyteller starts off with a powerful image as “frost glasses blur the cold moonlight from here to there then it's passing away.” He talks about a house angled into one's line of sight that gives the impression of something imprisoned within.

The narrator says that it's the last stop and a first look at a new home. He talks about old habits spread and magnified and a fire burned down to embers. In the new house there's a new life to step into.

In a sudden rush the storyteller is reeling out of “this broken house is coming loose and rising high and catching fire" as it all falls apart and collapses.

There's a “slow motion shattering of glass” and the windows flash as they fall. The narrator is outside now and there's no going back. He finds himself staring into mirrors as he crawls.

Now the storyteller is being pelted by rain “driven down through riven skies." the path that he was promised hasn't appeared and he has to push through the night " to realize everything's lost in time." He continues to slip by and find himself "reeling out into the very last. "

“More” starts out as elevated noises drift as big drums and muscle base moves below a sort of choral sounding synth. Extended, medium-low notes play out into the music as the drums and bass keep pulsing. Gritty, shining synth moves with Full Eclipse’s deeply felt voice as chimes shimmer.

The low end has an insistent quality as the wide sounding, glowing synth flows through and the piano adds warmth and a moving quality as it echoes out. Gigantic bass rumbles and the drums are even as glistening, medium-low notes shift. Full Eclipse’s vocal performance skillfully creates depth and emotional engagement.

Piano floats out with a minor key shadow touching It as the low end floats below. Chimes flicker brightly while the vocals exhale with a softly whispering quality. The guitar calls out with fuzzy edges as the drums touch softly. The track ends on bursting drums, Full Eclipse’s melancholy voice and flickering chimes while the guitar twists in the distance.

The narrator talks about waves crashing down on “hearts and minds erased in sound” as we feel change inside of ourselves. All of us hold on as we “brace against the flow.” The narrator asks if change is so wrong because “ we haven't felt the power in a long, long time now.”

Our storyteller says that for our whole lives we couldn't help but bend. We had a perfect view ahead of “rolling waves and what they send." Now we can see “a face in the clouds, a storm in the distance so people will take their time, battle for more, ride the waves and “open up till we drift away.

A low hanging moon glows and the narrator says that the water “ folds us in ”as the moonlight shines through it and glimmers off of one's skin. The rolling waves open up a door and “we’re hand in hand as we stand at the edge saying “no, more, I want more.”

Colossal bass pounds while quickly pulsing synth notes cut in to commence “Highway Nipigon.” Full Eclipse’s vocals have a floating and distant quality while plaintive synth cries out in extended lines. Guitar winds through while Full Eclipse’s voice contains tremulous expression within it.

The drums keep calling while the guitar expresses melancholy and wistful feelings. Full Eclipse captures a world of feeling in his voice with an ominous touch. The guitar calls out with warmth and yearning while the gigantic drums keep guiding the music. I enjoy the way in which the vocals encapsulate the emotion of the lyrics.

Chimes sparkle with solar brightness while the low end throbs on. The vocal melody conveys a feeling of loss within it and there's vulnerability in the music. The guitar in the distance adds to the emotional depth of the music. Full Eclipse’s unique voice carries the song.

Our storyteller talks about adding a “splash of new paint” as he and another person are rolling away. He says they took back themselves, their "no look back" selves because they weren't planning on staying.

The narrator creates an image of “carriage horses under the sky” travelling west with “foaming mouths and rolling eyes” He says that all of the “motion and feel seems so real.” He talks about moving into the light which creates sharpened sight to see "how we look when we're unconcealed.”

We are warned by the storyteller that "there's always blood-soaked wolves out there." He speaks of shaking it apart and saving the best part. He adds that they'll “ stop pretending without ending.” The storyteller goes on to say the pictures have been erased as they're rolling away.

The narrator talks about crossing the highway as the “ night changed to day.” He speaks of wide-ranging emotion on far away vistas as they move “towards a new sun. ”

“Current Sky” opens as fragile chimes shimmer while bass glides out along with intertwining guitar echoing into the distance. There's peace within the Music as the guitar chords flow out. Now drums create shape as chimes twinkle and full eclipses voice has pain and tenderness within it as it carries the caressing melody.

The drums and bass are subtle while the scintillating chimes add delicate light. A reverent quality fills Full Eclipse’s voice along with hurt. Illumination radiates from the music while the vocals enfold the listeners' ears. Now the drums rebound and a saxophone lends gutsy, emotive strength to the music while the bass flares underneath.

I enjoy the emotion in the saxophone as it calls out with passionate feeling as the drums gently guide the music underneath. The saxophone reaches a crescendo, howling out with feeling as flashing chords repeat. Full Eclipse’s voice takes hold of my heart and the song ends with sparkling light and slipping bass.

The narrator creates an image of the song subject’s cloud moving on “in a broken sky.” He says that all of the other person's cares came along with them. He goes on to say that he "almost saw your point of view " but at the last moment he saw the whole of the other person.

Our storyteller says that “you push too much in slow dreams and quote and learn that the more you push “the slower they turn.” He says that the other person is waiting in the sky for current news and “for the high power with the human views.”

When the song’s subject was "coming back from that state of strange” the narrator saw them change as they clawed at the air. He talks about how they “went above the clouds in the current sky” and above the moon until they died.

Our storyteller points out that they say that everything lost gets replaced by something new. He adds that “ for all that we know it could add to the whole of you.” He talks about “every intricate low and one singular high” all being reflected in the other person's eyes, full of desperation.

He concludes “I saw you were above the clouds in the current sky, wave goodbye. "

Swelling notes are joined by echoing piano and guitar with a digital sound that climbs above it as trumpet-like synth floats to start “True Looking Glass.” Piano notes scintillate, interlocking with guitar that winds through with vague darkness pouring from it and bass moves to the slightly hissing background adds depth.

The guitar melody has a wonderfully haunting quality and the piano and some weight. The drums softly pulse to shape the music while synth tendrils wrap around the low end. The drums are strong while the piano feels lost. The entire track exudes feelings of openness mingled with more tragic feelings

“Witness Us” commences as fuzzed out, gritty guitar moves with solid drums and heavy bass. broad chimes ring out with a metallic edge as the drums pulse. Smoking Gore’s vocalist has a full voice with dark shadings that pulls me in while the drums tap in the distance and a gently swirling, somewhat ominous sound.

The drums clash and the chorus comes in with a sense of threat hovering in the background. Guitar adds a nervous feeling while the drums keep tapping. An elevated, hollow synth flows through with a disconnected sensation while the drums hit hard. The vocals fade out as gruff noise moves in the distance and bells with a harsh quality ring. A haunting feeling permeates the music.

Wide sounding bells call out as if hit with a hammer and the massive drums guide the chorus. Now the guitar winds out in a ghostly melody and the drums tower over the music. The drifting melody has a terrified quality in it while the low end batters. The piano rings out now with a melody conveying a sense of bereft pain as bass floats of the distance.

Minor key shadings permeate the piano as we flow through a section where reverent sound continues in a long line and electric bass moves below as the drums hit hard again. The guitar cries out with strength and confusion as the drums press onto a conclusion.

Our narrator warns us to be careful "what you whisper around your little spy” and speaks about how people are prone to taking the suggestions made by certain online companies' algorithms. He talks about how when one feeds these devices information, along with supplying reactions, we shape the way in which they respond.

The storyteller talks about this digital information like firing a gun. He goes on to ask " don't you feel connected, ain't all your nervousness gone?" He continues by saying that if people “think like we do, they will take the sky. "

Our narrator ends by saying that we’ll “supply destruction, there's nowhere to hide” and as the song fades one can hear him add that he wishes he never turned the device on.

Piano chords with deep power move along with a steadily flowing, smooth synth flow float “Path of the Knife.” The guitar climbs up above, full of emotive power as the piano cuts in and calls out. The drums brush and then Full Eclipse’s resonant voice carries the shadowed melody.

The piano continues to flash with clean, clear notes. The drum beat guides the music as the piano carries a melody with a hint of warmth and yearning. It also has light flowering from it as bells slip past and the drums throb. Panpipes contribute a breathy component and the low end pulsates.

Full Eclipse's voice fills the music with deep feeling as a huge drums trip past. The guitar adds more weight to the music and the piano intertwines with it, almost triumphant. The song comes to an end with soaring guitar.

The storyteller begins by saying that in the twilight “we saw ice crystal things suddenly appear." He talks about saying that they looked up into the early night sky at the moon and “felt the slow hush in the frozenair. "

Our narrator asks why we should ever look down because "we can watch the sky revolve while we stand still." He adds that we become “frozen in the path of the knife that has time to kill. "

Now the storyteller stands like a still life “in the path of a knife.” He says that in their town, in the darkness, the knife will tear them apart. Again they're frozen in time, looking up at the sky. Meanwhile the knife is moving “travels its arc and finds its mark "

“Welcome Home” begins with solid drums and worshipful synth flowing out as piano entangles and Full Eclipse’s voice shivers with desolate emotion. Soothing piano notes float while tremulous synth moves. Full Eclipse imbues his voice with complex emotion as piano notes flutter through.

Now the drums pulse alone into open space. The vocals capture the full range of the lyrics and their deep feeling. There's something meditative in the music as the piano slides through with warmth and heartache. Deep yearning suffuses the piano melody and the low end shapes the music. I am touched by the performance that Full Eclipse gives here.

The saxophone climbs in with a heartbreaking feeling pouring out from it. The music’s emotional tenor is reflected in this solo with its jazzy wanderings. Piano rings out the background and Full Eclipse tugs at the heartstrings with his singing. The saxophone carries the song out above the gliding background with intense feeling filling it.

The storyteller says that he's never seen a night look like this ever before and “the lightning that strikes leaves a lasting brushstroke on the front door.” He goes on to say that they'll step inside the familiar glow of a place with which they're well acquainted. They’ll greet each other there while the memories flow.

Our narrator contrasts the warmth of the previous lines by talking about how it's a house of “quiet unrest” that feels tense and expectant. It's quiet and lonely but still feels “ right at home” in spite of the inevitable presence of death. As he stares off into the darkness, he says he hopes to hear the front door open wide.

The storyteller goes on to say that “with a shiver and a sigh, I'll look deep in your eye and I'll say welcome home, step inside.” He talks about how downstairs there is both a lie and a light before concluding “don't say a thing, I don't care, tonight I'll let you in.”

Conclusion

In Place Of Power unfolds in a long tide of deep feeling, skillful songwriting and one of a kind vocal performances from full eclipse. When one adds in the well thought out musical backing, one ends up with one of the most emotionally engaging synth-based albums out there right now.