#Radio silence styx full#

Fleshing out the lyrics to вЂLocomotiveвЂ™ was that revelation and made me remember that this is something Styx is good at. But itвЂ™s the human story thatвЂ™s always been at the core of Styx music. So, initially, it seemed like songs about a manned mission to Mars might seem cold and technical. вЂњItвЂ™s been a long time since we wrote the music for those earlier albums,вЂќ Shaw said of вЂњThe Grand IllusionвЂќ and вЂњPieces of Eight,вЂќ вЂњbut certain things are timeless, like people in their everyday pursuits, wherever they are. You know how when a band has a first real breakthrough album, and their next record semi-duplicates the recipe for the initial success with a similar style and range of songs? Well, I find no such frame of reference in вЂњThe Mission.вЂќ Musically, this record stands alone in the Styx canon. It certainly hearkens back to the time period of вЂњThe Grand IllusionвЂќ (which turns 40 next month) and вЂњPieces of Eight,вЂќ with their stellar harmonies, grand concepts and rocking vibe, but вЂњThe MissionвЂќ literally launches the band into previously uncharted territory. While it may seem like a contradiction, my personal takeaway after listening to the album on a near daily basis for the past month is that it is both classic Styx and at the same time, nothing like the band has done before. вЂњBut IвЂ™d say they were pleasantly surprised as the demos made their way among the rest of the band.вЂќ We had no way of telling how theyвЂ™d react,вЂќ Shaw said. вЂњThe demos were really good presentations of the ideas, but weвЂ™d been working in isolation. Shaw said that it was with great deliberation that they finally decided the time was right to вЂњgive our bandmates an opportunity to join in the fun.вЂќ вЂњThatвЂ™s another reason we kept it under wraps - so that it did not become a вЂproject,вЂ™ under the pressure and scrutiny that naturally happens.вЂќ вЂњThe music was flowing, telling us where to go next. The songs were all new - except for a few progressive instrumental bits in вЂњThe Red StormвЂќ that dated back to things Shaw and Evankovich were working on five years ago. вЂњWe played it for no one,вЂќ Shaw said, вЂњbecause, well, think about it - вЂHey, everyone, wanna make an album about a mission to Mars?вЂ™ We were determined to make it make sense, sound good and draw you in - not make everyone question your sanity.вЂќ

#Radio silence styx full#

вЂњVerses were rewritten a couple of times before it passed muster, but now we were getting somewhere! Remember, Styx was performing 120 shows that year, and Will was performing a full schedule with The Guess Who, so this was in between road trips.вЂќДespite the progress on their exploratory вЂњMissionвЂќ efforts, Shaw said he and Evankovich still kept things to themselves. вЂњIt had verses that were not right, but the chorus and middle eight were what you hear now,вЂќ Shaw said.

вЂњNot only did he not laugh, he sent me his demo of вЂLocomotive.вЂ™ I was blown away, and I think we both recognized that these seemed like bookends to something very interesting.вЂќДЄround the same time, Shaw said, he wrote an early version of вЂњHundred Million Miles From Home,вЂќ a song that fittingly also would become the third cut on вЂњThe Mission.вЂќ вЂњI knew he wouldnвЂ™t laugh,вЂќ Shaw said in an email interview. Nobody was more surprised than Shaw when the lyrical phrase, вЂњNow I can say in less than a day weвЂ™ll be underway on our mission to MarsвЂќ was the first line that popped into his mind.ДЄfter turning it more into what would become the last song on the album, Shaw sent it to longtime collaborator Will Evankovich. The record received its genesis about two and a half years ago when guitarist/vocalist Tommy Shaw was fleshing out musical ideas surrounding a little guitar riff and chords he had come up with in his dressing room one night that he had recorded on his iPhone. With its release of вЂњThe Mission,вЂќ the bandвЂ™s first studio album in 14 years, Styx embraces the conceptual themes of its past while boldly exploring the final frontier.ДЄs it turns out, the album - which sonically chronicles the as-still-yet-fictional first manned mission to Mars in the year 2033 - is quite a trip.