Scott's Song by Song #12-- Six by Six: Six by Six

 Originally posted to Facebook on November 18, 2024

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Welcome to issue #12 of Scott’s Song By Song (#scottssongbysong).For more information about this series, click here: https://www.facebook.com/share/Gc2VkwHQWGLdeaDd/?mibextid=oFDknk

Today I’ll be reviewing the first of the two albums released thus far by supergroup trio, SiX by SiX. This is their self titled debut from 2022. Who are they? On guitar, and the instigator of the project, according to the band’s website, is Ian Crichton, from Canadian prog stalwarts Saga. On drums is Nigel Glockler, best known for playing with British metal band Saxon, but who has also worked with prog-legend Steve Howe in the post-GTR period, and appeared on two tracks on Steve Howe’s “Turbulence” album. The third component in the trio is American vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Robert Berry, who also worked with Howe in the post-GTR period with Glockler, but is better known for playing with Keith Emerson and Carl Palmer in the band “3” in the late 80s (and it's more recent sequels, that had Emerson’s blessing and involvement before his tragic passing). This intro only scratches the surface of these fine musicians' resumes. Also according to the band’s website, Crichton and Glockler have been involved in Asia recordings as session players. It seems that these three musicians have been in the same orbit for some time before coming together in this band. So without further ado, let’s jump in

Track 1 - Yearning to Fly.

Interestingly, the other ELP offshoot band of the 80s, Emerson Lake and Powell have a song with a slightly different title of “Learning to Fly,” but I digress…

The track starts with a brief sound effect, and goes through a few short fanfare-type riffs before settling into a steady groove. A different, quieter, groove sets things up for Berry to enter on the first verse. A stronger chorus follows. So far, at only about a minute and a half into it, the band seems to be presenting a nice balance between prog and AOR/hard rock elements. Another verse and chorus follows. There is a bridge at around 2 and a half minutes. The track has an interesting synth bass tone at certain points. The guitar solo starts at around 3:10, and Crichton is impressive with some very fluid licks. After the solo, there is another chorus that closes out the song by slowing the tempo at the end. Solid opening track.

Track 2 - China

This is the only track from the album I have previously heard. Crichton starts this one off with a long sustained guitar note that seems on the verge of feedback. The band then locks into a heavy groove that includes Crichton doing some cool muted-string bit involved, while Berry provides a synth countermelody. Berry starts singing over that groove. The chorus switches to a smoother feel, with excellent vocal harmonies. Another verse follows, then another chorus. Crichton uses the same type of effect that started the song to lead to his guitar solo. A short bridge follows next. Another chorus is up next, but with additional lead guitar parts added. The guitar note returns at the very end to conclude the song. In another era, this song would be ripe for radio play. It is very catchy with great hooks and interesting sounds.

Track 3 - Reason to Feel Calm Again

This is the longest track on the album at just over 8 minutes long. This begins with some swelling synth chords and some tom-toms, creating an air of mystery. Crichton then comes in with a lead guitar part that cuts through. I get a bit of Jeff Beck and Alan Holdswoth vibes from his playing. At around the one minute mark the pulse of the music begins to build just before Berry starts singing. This song is very dramatic so far. Crichton takes back over at around 1:45. By two minutes in he has two guitar parts happening (or Berry could be adding parts as well.).Glockler plays a short fill and the band gets into a groove with a bit of a tribal feel to it. Berry sings again with the groove interrupted by Crichton’s guitar leads. There is a lot happening at once here, and, while it is interesting, it seems to be having a hard time “gelling” together. At around 4:50, the beat switches to a shuffle. This part has a 6-8 feel for an instrumental break. The tempo noticeably increases following the break and Berry sings again. Crichton takes another lead next before they have another vocal section. At times it feels like it's going off the rails. I believe, but can’t confirm, that Berry is the album’s producer. Perhaps an outside set of ears to co-produce might have been helpful. I like it, but a little tightness in places would have made it better. But then again, maybe I just need more listenings to wrap my head around it.

Track 4 - The Upside of Down

Glockler kicks this one off with a drum fill and the band comes in at a moderately fast tempo. After a rockin’ opening, a descending bass line from Berry over a rimshot drumbeat and flourishes from Crichton on the guitar set the stage for the first verse. Some heavy chords turn around to the next verse which is a bit heavier.The sound of this song reminds me of “Feel it Again,” by Honeymoon Suite back in the day. Some odd meters take over tough and then it no longer has that vibe. Glockner’s drumming really stands out on this one to me. There are some rapid fire meter changes here. While it is a relatively short song, this is the proggiest song on the album so far to me. There are some overdubbed harmonized guitar lines that remind me of the orchestral riff in “Live and Let Die.” The rhythm stops at the 3 minute mark and Berry sings with minimal guitar accompaniment from Crichton. He brings his bass in for a few notes and then the band explodes back in. The playing is much tighter in this track. Crichton’s lead work continues to impress. This one also uses a slowing tempo to end the song after a busy final chorus.

Track 5 - Casino

This one jumps right in with what sounds like Crichton doing some right-hand tapped double-stops (2 strings at a time) on the guitar in an odd meter. The bass & drums set a groove with a synth bed. A verse and chorus follow, then an interesting instrumental break. I can feel Berry’s writing style all over this one. By 2 minutes in there is a bit of a swing feel with a walking bass line. Very complex ELP style lines follow that. The first synth solo from Berry on the album comes in next. Crichton comes back in the spotlight again with another Holdsworth type of solo. This one is full-on heavy prog in a 4 and a quarter minute package.

Track 6 - Live Forever

This is the shortest track at 1:44. It begins as an acoustic guitar and vocal duet. Crichton’s arpeggiated pattern is unique sounding. Harmony vocals join in as the song progresses. This seems like it could have been developed into something bigger.

Track 7 - The Last Words on Earth

A pipe organ sound commences this one. However, the serene pipe organ's soothing sounds are interrupted by a loud abrupt sound at around 15 seconds. A fast rock riff takes over, followed by dramatic vocals. The guitar riffs on this remind me of Vito Bratta of 80s hair band White Lion. The rhythm section keeps a basic groove going underneath. At just after 2 minutes, we go into odd meters, then chill out afterward. There is a quieter bridge. The guitar solo begins at around 3:15, and the hair metal vibes return with a slightly proggy twist. The song’s ending leaves a bit to be desired for me.

Track 8 - Skyfall

This one begins with big retro rock riffs and some 90125 style keyboard blasts. The verse has an eighth-note groove on the bass with the guitar riffing around it. The intro riffs fill in between the verses. The bridge is quieter at around 2:20. The vibe changes for the solo, and Crichton plays impressive licks. The riffs close the song out at the end. There are lots of good elements here, but for some reason, the song just didn’t do much for me.

Track 9 - The Battle of a Lifetime

A mellow keyboard starts this one off, and Crichton plays some bluesy licks. At around 40 seconds, though, a bright 12-string acoustic guitar part takes over. Berry starts singing and it gets a bit folky. Things kick in hard and heavy at around 1:10 for the chorus. In the second verse, the acoustic is replaced with a crunchy guitar tone, and another chorus follows. He adopts a clean tone and Berry has a fat bass tone at around 2:25. I like the sound here. By 2:55, he has switched to a classical guitar. By 3:10, we’re rocking again for a guitar solo. The sheer amount of guitar solo time on this album is getting to the point of Crichton showing off more than truly serving the songs. The 12-string acoustic returns at just after 4 minutes. We switch back to electric then acoustic again rapidly before the song comes to a close. To me, they are trying to do way too much in too short of a song structure.

Track 10 - Save the Night

The closing track begins with a heavy riff in an odd meter. The opening verse sees Berry singing over sustained chords, then the groove kicks in in the second half of the verse. There is a chorus and the opening riff returns.By 1:25, there is an instrumental break. I only know a little bit of Saga, but this part is giving me the most Saga-like feel on the album. A bridge follows with staccato chords and big drums. There are some cool high-pitched harmonies at around 3:10 with Crichton playing a funky riff. However the guitar part is making the vocals hard to hear; in other words, the guitar is too high in the mix. Crichton has impressive skills, but he has a tendency to overplay on this album. Let the song breathe, dude. There was a lot of good stuff happening there, but every second of it was filled with his playing too high in the mix. I could hear some cool keyboard lines as the song fades out with 43 seconds left on the timer.The song fades back in, then back out again after that.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:

I am highly disappointed. The album had a promising start, and the three musicians are highly talented players, but it turned into a Crichton show-off fest by the time it was over. If they maybe had fewer songs and expanded them more to let the multiple ideas develop more naturally, and Crichton toned it down a bit, I think the album could have been better. The harmony vocal section of the choosing song should have been allowed to shine on its own, but it was choked by the guitar onslaught. I really expected to like this one much more than I did. I am a guitarist

myself, but sometimes you have to know when NOT to hog the spotlight. There was only ONE keyboard solo on the album. I give this a disappointing 3 out of 5 stars. It has its moments, but it could have (and should have) been much better than it is.

Anyone have a different opinion? I’d love to hear about it in the comments.