Welcome back, Spirit of Cecilia readers! In this post, Brad Birzer and Tad Wert discuss the new album from the Flower Kings, Look At You Now.

Tad: Brad, I know the Flower Kings are one of your favorite artists in music. They certainly are prolific – when they release an album, it’s usually a double-length one. Look At You Now clocks in at a relatively modest (for them) 67 minutes.

I’m not as big a fan of them as you are, but I certainly respect their talent. That said, I have to say that this album is really attractive to me. It seems more focused and energetic than previous releases. Right off the bat, “Beginner’s Eyes” is a song I bet Yes wishes they could produce these days. It’s majestic and inviting at the same time.

Brad: Dear Tad, you wrote this over a week ago, and I’m just now getting to it.  I’m so sorry, my friend.  It’s been crazily busy here, but not busy enough to warrant such neglect.  

Anyway, I’m so glad you’ve introduced us to the new Flower Kings album, Look at You Now.  I first came to the Flower Kings back in the year 2000.  A student (now a beloved colleague in the philosophy department)  leant me his copy of Flower Power, and I was utterly gobsmacked.  I couldn’t believe how nuanced the album was on disk one (the Flower Kings rarely do anything short), and I loved the “b-sides” of disk two.  From there, I worked backward and found my way through the band’s entire catalog.  

For twenty-three years now, I’ve been fully immersed in everything Roine Stolt (the founder of the band) has done–from the Flower Kings to Kaipa to Transatlantic to The Sea Within to Agents of Mercy.  The guy is astoundingly relentless and talented.  I’ve even tracked down and purchased–for my personal collection–Flower Kings rarities, all of them beautiful.

The latest album, Look at You Now, is much more laid back than I would’ve expected from the band.  If you look at something like Space Revolver (my favorite album from the band), the band is nearly unrestrainable.  But for this new album, the band is confident in its mellow state.  Even its mellowness, though, has a nice intensity to it.

Tad: Brad, I find it interesting that you characterize Look At You Now as laid back – my first impression was that it had more fire than usual! However, I haven’t heard Space Revolver, so I don’t have the same history to compare Look At You Now to that you do. As I mentioned in the intro to this post, I think “Beginner’s Eyes” is a great song that outdoes anything Yes has recorded in years. Stolt’s guitar really stings in his solo. Another song I found immediately appealing is “Scars”, with its gritty, bluesy intro and infectious groove it lays down. Once again, Stolt’s guitar work is outstanding (assuming he’s the lead guitarist here); the entire song reminds me of something Eric Clapton might have produced at his peak. 

I also appreciate the fact that almost all the tracks on this album are relatively short – more than half are under five minutes. Maybe it’s my age, but I’ve lost patience with songs that meander without resolution for more than six or seven minutes. I have a friend who went to a Phish show a couple of nights ago, and he said he had to leave after the first three songs took 45 minutes! Neal Morse is one of the few artists who can hold my interest over a long period of time; most others, not so much. Okay, rant over – as I said, I think the Flower Kings have done a great job paring every song on this album down to its essentials, and I think that makes for a really strong album overall.

Brad: Tad, thanks so much for a great response.  I love the rant.  I must admit, though, I’m a guy who likes meandering in my music.  Phish playing only three songs over forty-five minutes sounds wonderful to me.  I’m guessing I would’ve been immersed in the experience.

As to The Flower Kings, this new album is definitely a surprise, especially given the shortness of the songs.  But, I very much appreciate and like what the band is doing.  I think you’re absolutely right, any band–Yes or The Flower Kings–should be proud of a song like the album opener, “Beginner’s Eyes.”  What a delight it is.

As much as I love the dual vocals with the Flower Kings, I also especially like the instrumental passages, and one of my favorite tracks is “Dr. Ribedeaux.”  Despite the absence of lyrics, I think this song has the most classical Flower Kings feel to it.

I also love that The Flower Kings are willing to wear their influences so openly.  Obviously, “Mother Earth”’s introduction sounds like something Brian May of Queen might have done, and much of the album has a Yes fan–as you were implying above.

And, Tad, before we close this review, I must encourage you to listen to Space Revolver.  It’s most certainly a top 15 prog album for me.  It’s wacky and gorgeous, all at the same time.

Regardless, I’m so glad to have The Flower Kings in the world.  Roine Stolt is my favorite viking hippie!

Tad: Brad, I love “Sr. Ribedeaux” as well! A great instrumental workout. In sum, I think Look At You Now is a worthy addition to the extensive Flower Kings catalog. In my opinion, one of their best, and well worth checking out if someone isn’t familiar with their work. And I promise to give Space Revolver a listen – you have yet to steer me wrong with your music recommendations!