RATINGS: A = must own B = buy it C= average D = yawn F = puke

Mystery – The World is a Game
Unicorn Digital

www.unicornrecords.com

Rating: B+

Benoît David has brought new popularity to the Canadian Prog Rock outfit he played with from 1999-2007. David, most famous for replacing Jon Anderson in Yes, is now out of Yes and back with Mystery in 2012, and appears on the new album The World is a Game on Unicorn Records.

The band, formed in Montreal in 1986 by Michel St-Père, has returned with what is undoubtedly their finest album. Part Yes, part early Rush and part classic Prog Rock, complete with intensity, indulgence and musical prowess, the album is well crafted, to the point that one can’t stop listening to it.

David proves he is not a Jon Anderson clone, he can also be a Geddy Lee clone – all kidding aside, David has a very unique voice when not parroting others.

“A Morning Rise” is very Yes-like yet Mystery puts their original sound in as well. “Time Goes By” is a great Mystery meets Rush tune, perhaps the best song on the album.

Perhaps, to use a bad pun, it is a mystery why Mystery remains a mystery (two puns!). If true Progressive Rock is your cup of tea, then you need to check this one out as Mystery is a return to the classic era of Prog Rock and a welcome one at that.

By Jeb Wright