Spock’s Beard – The Archaeoptimist
Release Date: 21st November 2025
Label: Madfish
Bandcamp
Genre: Progressive Rock
FFO: The Neal Morse Band, Genesis, Yes, Pattern-Seeking Animals.
Review By: Eric Wilt
Perhaps the thing that I like best about Ryo Okumoto’s last solo album, The Myth of Mostrophus, is just how much it sounds like a Spock’s Beard album. At a time when I thought the chances of getting a new Spock’s Beard album were extremely low, Okumoto delivered Mostrophus, which included contributions by the members of Spock’s Beard, and it scratched a lot of the itches that would normally get scratched by the band. I guess Okumoto enjoyed the process of creating the album so much that he decided to do it again, this time as an official Spock’s Beard record with the input of the band, and the results are equally delightful.
Spock’s Beard’s new record is called The Archaeoptimist, and it was written by Okumoto and his song-writing partner from I Am the Manic Whale, Michael Whiteman, as well as Alan Morse and Ted Leonard. The result is a six-song, hour-long album that has something on it for fans of every era of the band.
The album kicks off with the high-energy Invisible, which sees all the musicians, Okumoto on Keys, Morse on guitar, Dave Meros on bass, and newcomer on drums Nick Potters in fine form while Leonard’s voice is beautiful as always. There is an organ part in this song that reminds me of Keith Emerson at his most playful, and you can tell that Okumoto is really having a great time. The next two songs, Electric Monk and Afourthoughts give a nod to the Neal Morse era of the band. Electric Monk features an intro that puts me in mind of Go the Way You Go, and, of course, Afourthoughts is a continuation of the song Thoughts that goes all the way back to Beware of Darkness and that Spock’s Beard and Neal Morse have kept going both together and separately for all these years. And if you’re wondering, the song does feature the obligatory acappella singing in the round that the band has done so well on the Thoughts songs before.
St. Jerome in the Wilderness is next, and it would fit perfectly on any of the albums between and including Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep and Noise Floor. The song has a modern sound that is highlighted by Morse’s rocking solo at around the five-minute mark. In a band filled with virtuoso musicians, the guitar solos are seldom singled out, but this one has all the angst and emotion of a Seattle band in the 90s and shows Morse’s commitment to feeling over superfluous notes and fits the tune perfectly. Next up is the nearly 22-minute title track, because what is a prog album without an epic? The beginning of this one puts me in the mind of MacArthur Park as Okumoto leans heavily on the piano in the opening section. As the song progresses, Spock’s Beard takes it through its proggy paces, but never gets too far from the idea of a catchy pop song. Next Step is another modern sounding Spock’s Beard song that shows exactly where the band is right now. There’s even some flute for good measure, and it is a great way to round out the new collection of songs.
Chances are, if you are a fan of prog rock, you are a fan of Spock’s Beard, and like me, you’re probably thrilled just to know the band is still out there doing their thing. On Archaeoptimist, the band does more than just rehash their former glories. Instead, they find a perfect balance of classic and modern, nostalgia and innovation, and I just hope there’s more where this came from.
(4.5 / 5)
