Mirage - Camel
Track List:
Free Fall
Supertwister
The White Rider
a. Nimrodel
b. The Procession
c. The White Rider
Earthrise
Lady Fantasy
a. Encounter
b. Smiles for You
c. Lady Fantasy
This album has been on my radar for a bit. I have not listened to any Camel that I am aware of in any capacity. Yet I’ve read plenty of folks hyping it up. In fact, I read an opinion yesterday that this is better than Pink Floyd. So my expectations are pretty high. I honestly don’t know what to expect, I believe that this is a flute heavy album and there are some instrumental tracks. I am only going to discuss the tracks that are on the original album and not the live tracks included on later re-releases.
Free Fall
The song starts with a cinematic feel and a driving beat led by drums. The lyrics are minimal here, they equate the narrator to a meteor or shooting star which is a trope used quite a bit in my opinion. The instrumental section is what shines. This reminds me of listening to Yes for the first time.
Supertwister
And the flute makes an appearance. This one is instrumental. The song varies between being a relaxed jam and a driven dance when the keys are playing. When they solo the bass the song comes together to play something that reminds me very much of Pigs (Three Different Ones)
The White Rider
a. Nimrodel
b. The Procession
c. The White Rider
Well the first movement is also giving me an Animals vibes.
The second movement is aptly named as it sounds like a march to me.
Wow! That is a big change to the third movement. The song now has a much more bluesy mystical feel. The song threatens then goes into double time. The song is very spacey feeling with a wondering sine wave being played as lead. The lyrics detail a mystical being, the white rider, who rides his horse across the sky vanquishing the darkness. He is defeated in battle and disappears for a period of time and then returns to help banish the darkness. The lyrics could be talking about the sun and cloudy weather, almost the same story as ELO’s Mr. Blue Sky. After the lyrics we get a darker guitar exploration of a solo, playing with reverb and delay. The song ends on a dark electric chord. That was a really entertaining listen.
Earthrise
Another instrumental piece. Starts with barren wind blowing and windchimes. I really like the percussion here, it changes multiple times and really gives the song a base to build off of. Now this song reminds me of Journey of the Sorcerer, which I heavily associate with the BBC TV version of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. So to me this song is like background music for Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect as they explore the Heart of Gold. They Encounter Marvin and are escorted to the cockpit where they meet Trillian and Zaphod for the first time. I know that this is not the actual meaning of the song as this song was released prior to when the Hitchhiker's Guide existed.
Lady Fantasy
a. Encounter
b. Smiles for You
c. Lady Fantasy
The first movement starts with a very distressing sounding arp for nearly a minute. Lots of tension to start. The tension builds even after the arp is silenced. The lyrics disclose a confession of admiration for a woman the narrator knows and would like to court however hasn’t had the courage to. He has an encounter with her in which she doesn’t notice him and he would like to know why
The second movement is a lot different, we get a more upbeat rock feel. Perhaps this helps convey the anxiety and excitement the narrator has when he encounters his crush.
The third movement returns more to the style of the first but is darker. The narrator hasn’t become any more confident, instead of pursuing his crush he is now satisfied with just fantasizing. I really appreciate how the instruments are able to convey a sense of soul searching, loss, and discovery. After the lyrics finish, we get a groove more like the second movement. After the bridge there is a feeling of resolution and acceptance.
Thoughts after listening:
That was a really fun album. I do hear themes that were explored by other artists yet I hear a lot of individuality. I am now curious as to their live recordings and looking further into their discog. I think I may put another of their albums on my list of albums to listen to with this project.
