Act IV: Rebirth in Reprise

Okay, I have no idea how to rate this one, so I'm giving it a tentative 3, but I'm fully expecting it to flop in one direction or another. First thing first, as you can tell from the title, this is the fourth album in a series. Am I supposed to listen to the other stuff first? I don't know, but I'm going to assume not. Second thing, this is a prog rock opera, I generally love this style of music but it doesn't lend itself well to first time listens unless it has plenty of catchy singles (e.g. The Wall), usually there's a lot to unpack and on a first listen you miss too much. I've listened to David Comes To Life about 5 times in full after I generated it a month ago, and I'm still trying to "get" it.

Anyway, this style of prog comes from a more indie rock/alt rock direction compared to prog of old, think Decemberists, Muse, Coheed and Cambria, maybe even Marillion a bit. I think the Muse comparison is especially apt because The Dear Hunter have a very theatrical and melodramatic sound to them, which I think can be beneficial for rock operas but really just struck me as annoying on this listen. Now that I'm giving some of the songs a relisten half a day later I can see the appeal in it though.

They do shift through a lot of varieties of prog, sometimes they shift genres to also set a certain tone such as a cabaret song and even a random disco song. I like the idea but I'm not sure how well it fits in the context of the album. Maybe when I get the concept more I'll dig it a bit more.

Should it be in the main list: TBD

Top 3 songs: The Old Haunt, A Night on the Town, King of Swords

Hard to imagine an album combining more of the elements I dislike.

It was fine

Favourite songs: The Bitter Suite IV and V: The Congregation and the Sermon in the Silt, A Night on the Town, Waves, The Old Haunt, King of Swords, If All Goes Well, Is There Anybody Here?, Wait

Least favourite songs:Ouroboros

4/5

I was expecting a heavy metal album but this was a pleasant surprise. Really cool sound and concept.

Indie prog! Story-style concept album, it does a great job evoking the grandiosity of 1970s Genesis, without fully copycatting an outdated era like how Marillion tried to do it. I enjoyed this a lot, though I'm not sure yet if I plan to check out the other Acts of this thing.

Stuff from 10ish years ago is the most dated stuff ever. This is hipster cringe.

Theatrical? Absolutely. At times, it veers into full Broadway territory. But there’s also undeniably strong songwriting here, the kind that demands attention even when the style might not be your thing.

“Is There Anybody Here?” channels Pink Floyd and Steven Wilson with eerie accuracy. “King of Swords (Reversed)” is almost a direct Talking Heads track: tight, danceable, strange in just the right way. And “Bitter Suite IV & V” could easily be mistaken for a Decemberists song, right down to the dramatic vocal phrasing and lyrical storytelling.

At points, it’s hard to tell whether these moments are homage or borderline mimicry. But it’s all so recognisable that it becomes oddly fascinating. Like musical cosplay done with reverence and skill.

This is not a casual listen. It's a sprawling, intricate rock opera filled with genre nods and theatrical bombast. But if you enjoy connecting the dots between influences, and don't mind a bit of drama, there’s a lot to appreciate here.

Big Coheed vibes on this record. about halfway between a Broadway musical and a progressive rock record. The full experience is getting into the story and understanding the characters involved and i just cant do that working.

This is a really great album and tells a good story, but just isn’t my cup of tea. Agree it deserves to make any list, but I’m personally not going to rush back to it.

Prog metal, with gorgeous meoldies and occasional poppy numbers. Being part four (of six) means I didn't pick up all the nuance of the storyline, but I am a sucker for a concept album - even if I don't fully grasp the concept.
Brilliant, and would be a worthy inclusion on the main list (in place of any one of a bunch of filler!)