BoD is the "worst" of the Neal albums for me, with the exception of Day for Night. Both albums are good, but they're also uneven. Of the Nick albums, I'd take Octane (maybe) and X (definitely) after Beware of Darkness.
I do like the album's sound--it's very similar to The Light sonically, which gives it a sort of nostalgic tone.
The title track is nothing special, and it doesn't help that it's a cover. Why did they do that? It just seems an awkward way to start off your sophomore effort.
Thoughts is fantastic, but not as good as Thoughts pt. 2 would end up being.
The Doorway is a classic, easily one of the best albums ever penned by the band. It's actually the song that got me into them, and the reason that Beware of Darkness (along with V) was my first SB album.
Chataqua is wonderful.
Walking on the Wind is a great song, and this is what I mean when I say that Beware of Darkness carries a similar tone to "The Light." This song sounds like it could have fit just as well on that album. I enjoy it, but it's still only a mid-level song for the Neal era.
Waste Away has a decent melody, but it also has some of the most painfully awkward lyrics I've ever heard from Spock's Beard (that's saying something). Awful lyrics ruin what could have been a good shorter song.
I can't point out anything wrong with Time Has Come, but I've always felt it lacks the immediacy of some of Neal's epics. It almost feels like they were dialing it in after, once again, similar-sounding songs on The Light. That said, it has some beautiful moments and does a good job capturing the quirkiness of the band, so it is a very good song. It has genuinely made me laugh on more than one occasion, at all the right parts. After about 10 listens, I was able to fully enjoy it.
Beware of Darkness is good, but two tracks are throwaways and the others, while good, simply aren't as exceptional as a lot of the other stuff in the band's catalog. V is my favorite Spock's Beard album because it is the most consistent; BoD's inconsistency makes the listening experience just a little less pleasant than it could be. That said, it's still very, very good.
I actually think it's The Kindness of Strangers which ends up a bit underrated. The albums you hear the most about (understandably) are The Light, V, and Snow, but The Kindness of Strangers seems to be the one where their sound really became comfortable. I also think it captures the full range of Neal-era SB's sound. Also, June is one of my favorite ballads. Ever.
Topic: Spock's Beard (Read 148460 times)
