The Magnificent Duke

'The Magnificent Duke' takes the idea of concept albums and stretches it into strange and wonderful new dimensions without ever being hippy-druggy-mystical indulgence; in fact its pared-down approach and galvanised punk energy is the very antithesis of the indulgence, out-of-touch Arthurian-obsessed progressive rockers of the 70's. Already described by Kerrang! as a riddle dunked in glitter, a teaser absorbed in trauma, the ambition behind this on-going project is truly staggering, a journey through the twisted minds of a few individuals who have been able to translate ideas written down in an another country some years earlier with only the aid of a few guitars. Of course as with all concept albums - from The Beatles' Sgt Pepper's to Pink Floyd's The Wall to The Mars Volta's Deloused In The Comatorium - the true explanation lies within the music, the concept perhaps only truly understood by its creators. Hyperbole or just hyper? But that's OK. Because on repeated listening one thing becomes clear. The Magnificent Duke is a staggering work from a loose collection of musicians, a genuine boundary-breaker. Stylistically, it takes in hardcore, punk, prog rock, doom, electro free-from jazz, classic singer-songwriter introspection, and so much more besides. For once the sum is greater than the parts; the cocktail far tastier than it looks on paper. This isn't hype or hyperbole; its hyper music - and that's a bare fact, yo. We won't be so crass as to use the words 'genius' or 'classic' - they're long since redundant terms in the modern pop lexicon, over-used and worthless. Nor shall we use such regimented ideas of 'band' and 'album'. This, quite simply, is music. Only in twenty years time its true power become apparent. It has been rumoured that Marmaduke Duke feature members of some other popular rock bands.