Shades of jazz and classical with a sense of irony, storytelling and humor...
"The BLISSFUL BEHEMOTH tracks are wonderful... playful, humorous, and great melodies...
"...sweetly ironic and finely melodic, nice arrangements and pleasant vocals - everything was just right. In fact, I can't help but listen to the tracks again and again. It's a sincere joy to hear a true talent like that...
"I was completely enchanted with WHILE SUNLIGHT SLIPPED AWAY. A colourful and moving melody, dreamy harmonies straight from the heart of prog rock and a naturally pleasant voice are the elements that make this piece of music simply delightful. There's some sweet sincerity about it that just makes you want to listen to it again...which I keep doing... very Tony Banks-ish and its key changes are delightful...
"AS YOUNG AS I'M OLD is a fine tune...thoroughly enjoyable...awesome and honorable...and the lyrics are hilarious!... nail[s] that Minnear feel about as much as anyone can who's not named Minnear...
"FANFARE is beautiful and GIANT FOR ANOTHER HOUR keeps sounding better and better. What a scream!...
"Really good music and performances...great melodies (an increasingly rare phenomenon). I'm definitely adding [it] to my 'wish list'... If I don't get to see you in concert, I am really missing out!"
- Members of On-Reflection
"FANFARE [is] an excellent piece that twists and turns, refusing to be tied down for more than a few seconds, and not letting the listener's attention wander for a single moment. This deft musical collage builds a number of short, often relatively simple musical figures into an intriguing whole...
"GIANT FOR ANOTHER HOUR marries Kerry Minnear's keyboard style to a funky, fractured bass-line reminiscent of Ray Shulman's work around the time of In'terview, cleverly encapsulating several key elements of Gentle Giant's unique sonic tapestry in a delightfully playful piece.
"HOUSE ON A HILL [is] dramatic and atmospheric by turns, with some neat changes of pace and mood, this enormously expressive performance has all the necessary impact to make it a successful film theme. There are some pieces of music that are just perfect for the piano -- this is one of them."
-- Alan Kinsman
"Adam Levin is a musical treasure. In a world rife with tastelessness, his recordings feature style, class, passion, and extraordinary melodies." - Terence J. Miles
"AS YOUNG AS I'M OLD really encouraged me to get BLISSFUL BEHEMOTH...and it is magnificent. As a Gentle Giant and Genesis fan, I appreciate [it] very much... really capture[s] whatever it is that made Gentle Giant so utterly appealing." - PG
"elegant...rich and beautiful." - Nikki Squire of Esquire
"How incredible the CD is. I love every bit of it. I hear the couple of Gentle Giant references in there, but other than that, I hear all you and all the prodigious talent that I've been lucky enough to hear since the first time I heard you play. It just blew me away. Just what I needed was to hear some incredible music, and that's what it is." - Bob Cusack, Guitarist/Singer/Songwriter
"...a sophisticated and contemporary writer - hear him!" - Kirk Nurock, Composer/Pianist, Jazz/Classical Recording Artist
"...truly amazing progressive music!" - Hot Scandinavian Dirt
"Superb, entertaining, sensitive, funny, modern and classical all at the same time." - Karena Butterfly Harris
"...tight... thick with rhythm, woven with truly intricate melodies, cool man... enjoyed the entire approach... We'll be listening." - Stan/Faith2Fist
"Excellent treatment of Gentle Giant themes and styles... brought a smile to my face!" - Progpositivity
"Really love this CD! The Gentle Giant sound is dead on, but it also has a great original sound... [and] a little Genesis influence as well." - Daniel Nall, Guitarist/Composer
"Really fantastic - like having a new Gentle Giant CD." - Kissing Wendy
"VERBALOSIS is a terrific piece... I'm astounded at how tuneful it strikes my ear, even though it seems to be jumping modally all over the place - much like human speech does... The melody intervals are always unexpected, but they work and 'resolve' in ear-stretching ways. Obviously this is a well-trained sensibility at work." - KP
"I love this music - great keyboard playing. It really has the Gentle Giant sound mastered." - Dan Williams, Guitarist/Composer
"...really like FANFARE; very Zappa-esque with great melody and interesting rhythms." - Godsticks
"FANFARE is still my favorite." - Steve Mohacey
"For those who liked the instrumental menu music on the latest Gentle Giant DVDs, it might be interesting to have a listen to Adam Levin's BLISSFUL BEHEMOTH." - Labrynth (The Real Allan Holdsworth Forum)
"We like the tunes, especially AS YOUNG AS I'M OLD. The medieval scents bring a special thing to the song." - Impakte Magazine
"Really great songs! Apparently the Giant isn't dead." - Horpe, Producer
"His piano playing has a great touch." - Wallace Roney, Trumpeter/Producer, Grammy Award-winning Jazz Recording Artist
"His music has the rare ability to appeal to not only musicians seeking cerebral stimulation, but also innocent ears in search of a beautiful, memorable melody." - Tricia Tahara, Singer/Songwriter, Jazz Recording Artist
CREDITS:
All songs written, arranged, produced & performed by Adam Levin except I CAN'T TALK TO YOU, written & arranged by Adam Levin & Peter Stoller
Vocals on WHILE SUNLIGHT SLIPPED AWAY: Peter Stoller
Additional musicians on I CAN'T TALK TO YOU and VERBALOSIS
CD engineered & mastered by Jay Mark
Track 5 vocals co-produced by Peter Stoller
AS YOUNG AS I'M OLD and GIANT FOR ANOTHER HOUR are tongue-in-cheek parodies of Gentle Giant's style, sound, arrangements, and other idiosyncrasies (including even keyboardist Kerry Minnear's singing.)
AS YOUNG AS I'M OLD incorporates some of Gentle Giant's song titles and two musical quotes from their song 'Memories of Old Days'. (It was also featured on the Global On-Reflection Giant Gathering's 2006 compilation CD 'Giant for Another Hour'.)
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