There are a select few artists that Spirit of Cecilia will always love and greet with joy any new release. One of them is Big Big Train, who have just released a new album, The Likes Of Us. Big Big Fanboys Brad Birzer and Tad Wert discuss this latest chapter in their long and varied career, and what it means for BBT’s future.

Tad: Brad, my fellow Progling and good friend, it’s always big news when Big Big Train graces us with new music. I have you to thank for making me aware of this wonderful group of musicians. It was when The Underfall Yard had just been released, and we were connecting via social media. You insisted I check them out. I had never heard of BBT, and it was an ear-opening experience to explore all of their music. I fell in love with The Difference Machine along with The Underfall Yard, and the rest is history.

As I became familiar with their career, I soon learned that The Underfall Yard was the first album to feature vocalist David Longden. He, along with founding member Greg Spawton, went on to produce some of the finest albums of the 2010’s: English Electric, Folklore, Grimspound, Grand Tour, Common Ground. And then tragically, David Longden passed away. I was afraid this was the end for BBT as we knew them. 

However, they found a new vocalist, Alberto Bravin, and have recorded a new album! Brad, I’m really interested in hearing your first impressions of this iteration of BBT. Is it a worthy successor to previous ones?

Brad: Dear Tad, thank you so much for this, and my apologies (as usual) for being late in replying.  Things have been chaotic (good and bad chaos, it turns out–one so quickly and readily becomes the other) in the Birzer household.  Let’s just say, I’m not unhappy to see February 2024 in the rear-view mirror, and that all ills (flu and otherwise) have found happy resolutions!

As I type this on my laptop, I sit beneath an original Jim Trainer painting from The Underfall Yard that proudly adorns my college office.  Below it is an award I won over twenty years ago, and above it is an original photo of Geronimo.  Next to it is a signed and framed autograph from Neil Peart.

I first encountered The Underfall Yard fifteen years ago.  Our very own Carl Olson sent me a mix of his favorite tracks of 2009, and a song from the TUY album was included.  To say I was floored would be the understatement of my adult life.  I immediately ordered the full album, and I was completely blown away by its brilliance, its creativity, and its unique voice.  As to the latter, there’s nothing quite like a classic BBT sound–a perfect mixture of exhilaration and melancholy.  I also immediately emailed Greg Spawton, who kindly responded. For years, we had a fairly serious correspondence.  We even sent each other books we each loved.  I cherish those emails and that friendship.

From there, I closely followed the band, and, as I’ve noted elsewhere, we founded Progarchy originally as a BBT fansite.  Years later, you and I collected our various essays on the band and e-published Dream of the West through Amazon.  That little e-book did very well, I’m proud to say, and I’m deeply honored that our names will always be linked together, Tad.  I also had the chance to praise them at National Review, at The Imaginative Conservative, and elsewhere.

This is all a very long way of stating that I’ve followed the band as closely as possible for a decade and a half.  I’ve cheered with and for them, and, with the immense loss of David Longdon, I’ve mourned with and for them.

They’ve been a part of my life as much as anything else (except for family) over the past fifteen years.

This past weekend, BBT played its very first show in the United States.  It was in Fort Wayne, Indiana–just a 1.5 hour drive for me–but I was, crazily, already committed to leading a seminar/conference in Philadelphia, a commitment I made.

Ok, Birzer, shut up and tell us about the new album!!!

To be sure, BBT has had a rough couple of years, and many folks have wondered if the band could recover after the tragic loss of vocalist David Longdon.  Additionally, many of the essential bandmates–such as David Gregory–had left the band for a variety of reasons.

The Likes of Us proves that BBT is more than the sum of its parts, an idea and concept as much as a concrete band.  Whereas the band was once incredibly and quirkily English, it is now quite cosmopolitan and, well, trans-Atlantic.  I write this last bit with only the slightest bit of irony, as the new album has, in part, a Neal Morse/Spock’s Beard feel to it.

Tad: Brad, as always, I appreciate the context you provide for your love of BBT. I think you have hit the nail on the head with your preceding paragraph: Big Big Train is an idea and concept now, much like King Crimson and Yes are. The personnel may change, but there is definitely a constant thread through all of their albums that makes each one a uniquely “BBT” work. 

As I write this, I am listening to “Beneath the Masts”, Greg Spawton’s ode to the radio masts that dominated the landscape of his childhood. As long as Greg is involved, BBT will always be BBT. He truly has been the anchor of the band, regardless of who sings or plays guitar. 

I am intrigued with your reference to Neal Morse/Spock’s Beard. I love their music as well, but it has always been more, hmm… turbulent, than BBT’s in my opinion. BBT’s music has, until this album, always struck me as being pastoral. Kind of like Vaughan Williams’ music is in the classical realm. I could see BBT performing “The Lark Ascending”, but never Spock’s Beard, if that makes sense!

Okay, let’s talk about The Likes Of Us! I love the opening chords of the first song, “Light Left In The Day” – the acoustic guitars are reminiscent of Steve Hackett-era Genesis. It soon develops into quite a majestic production, and, now that you’ve mentioned it, I really hear that Morse influence in it. Another favorite moment is the seamless segue into “Oblivion”, which is a terrific rocker. According to my Spotify app, I’m not alone in really liking this track – it far and away has the most listens. I think it’s a great choice for the single, because the melody is so appealing. Bravin’s vocals are superb here, and despite my initial impulse to compare him unfavorably to Longdon, I think he does a fantastic job leading the band. He’s a wonderful choice to replace an irreplaceable artist, and I am excited for BBT’s future.

“Beneath the Masts” is the big epic, clocking in at 17:26. I have to admit that after several listens, this one hasn’t resonated as deeply with me as previous long-form BBT songs have. It’s very pretty, and there is nothing to not love, but for some reason it’s just not sticking in my memory. However, I do especially like the bit at around the 15:00 minute mark where, after a relatively quiet section, the whole band comes in again and Bravin lets loose with some very good vocals. 

“Skates On” reminds me the most of “classic Big Big Train”. It’s just a delightful little tune with wonderful vocal harmonies. The lyrics celebrate going out and having some fun: “Enjoy the Ride/It’s time to get your skates on/We’re here then gone”. I think the more I listen to the album, the more I enjoy this track.

Alright, I’ve written enough – what are your thoughts on the new songs?

Brad: What a wonderful and thoughtful response, Tad.  Thank you.  Whenever I get a new album–especially if you and I decide to review it–I immerse myself into it fully, allowing it to wash over me multiple times before writing about it.  For whatever reason, I had a really hard time getting into The Likes of Us the first few times I listened to it.  I definitely heard a Spock’s Beard influence (the new singer sounds VERY much like Nick D’Virgilio), but my initial thoughts were that the band–now labeled as an “international progressive rock collective” had lost its distinctive English voice and that the band was producing someone one might call “generic prog.”

As I’ve continued to listen to the album, though, I think I was very wrong in my initial assessment.  The band has definitely lost its distinctive English voice, but it has also adopted a new one and one that is truly international.  And, frankly, it’s quite beautiful in its own, new way.  The band really has become something more than it was.

And, you’re right, of course, Tad.  The center of the band–from its beginning–has always been Greg Spawton.  He’s the touchstone and fountainhead of all things BBT.  With his bass, his songwriting, and his voice, he will always define BBT whatever other members are there.  I’m so glad you reminded all of us of that.

This said, I’m now utterly taken with the first three tracks of The Likes of Us: “Light Left in the Day” (a pastoral gem for the first few minutes), “Oblivion” (a NVD rocker), and the magisterial “Beneath the Masts” (what BBT does best–long-form prog).  Like you, Tad, I love the segue between tracks one and two, and I also agree that “Beneath the Masts,”  while excellent, does not quite live up to “Broken English,” “The Wide Open Sea,” or “The Underfall Yard.”  Still, it’s close, and, frankly, it’s a privilege to hear such prog beauty, especially when it comes from Spawton’s pen.

As you note, “Skates On” is simply a delight, something that might have appeared on Grimspound or The Second Brightest Star.

Tad:  Brad, I’m glad you have had a slight reassessment of the album, and it looks like you and I are in agreement that the first “side” (if albums can have “sides” these days) is really nice. As far as the final four tracks go, “Miramare” is the standout song for me. The vocal harmonies are wonderful, and the guitar solo is very tasteful.

In the press release that came with the album, the band remarks that this is the first time in a long time that the members recorded the songs together in the same room: In May 2023, six members of Big Big Train left their homes in England (Spawton and Lindley), the United States (D’Virgilio), Sweden (Sjöblom) and Norway (Holldorff) to gather for a week in Bravin’s home town of Trieste in north eastern Italy, at Urban Recording, a studio recommended by Alberto, to lay down the basic tracks. Being face to face in a room, as opposed to emailing sound files, the intimacy of the process generated moments of inspiration that would otherwise have gone unheard.

 The process would prove emotional. “There were some tears; I cried a few of my own,” recalls Nick D’Virgillio, the band’s drummer since 2009. “There are many reasons to explain why we hadn’t worked that way in quite a while, but the process brought out the best in everybody.”

I’m glad that they took the time and trouble to work in person – that bodes well for future music. I always think songs are improved when musicians can bounce ideas off each other in real time.

Well, I think that is a good place to wrap this one up, Brad. I’m going to say that The Likes of Us will probably be thought of as a transitional album when put in the context of their long career; they have successfully incorporated a new vocalist/songwriter into the fold, while maintaining ties to their past. It will be interesting to see what they produce in the years to come!