The Clockwork Fable

The Clockwork Fable
Studio album from Gandalf's Fist
Publication (s)	May 1, 2016
Label (s)	Independent
Genre (s)	Progressive rock
running time	194: 02
occupation	Dean Marsh - 6 and 12-string guitar, mandolin, octave mandola, keyboard, vocals Luke Severn - vocals Stefan Hepe - drums, percussion Christopher Ewen - bass
production	Dean Marsh
chronology A Forest Of Fey (2014) The Clockwork Fable The Clockwork Prologue (2019)

The Clockwork Fable is the sixth regular studio album by the English progressive rock band Gandalf's Fist , which was released on May 1, 2016. Consisting of three CDs, the concept album tells the story in the style of a rock opera with the help of spoken dialogues between the individual songs, which were recorded by professional actors. Each CD on the album functions as an act of a traditional drama .

criticism

source	rating
Baby blue pages
Classic Rock Magazine
DPRP

Geoff Barton writes in Classic Rock Magazine : "a conceptual tour de force, it reduces Rick Wakeman 's The Myths and Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table to the level of a Chas & Dave Cockney knees-up." (German: "A conceptual tour de force. It reduces Rick Wakeman's 'The Myths ...' to a Chas & Dave pub concert.") In this album review in issue 224, he gives the album 9/10 points.

Steve Pilkington writes in Prog Magazine : "[...] Imagine The War Of The Worlds if it had been tackled by Ayreon rather than Jeff Wayne and you're halfway there. Indeed, Arjen Lucassen 's just one of the guests here, along with Blaze Bayley ( Iron Maiden ), and prog-savvy actors Mark Benton and Zach ' Gremlins ' Galligan . [...] this is a career-defining, magical epic. " (German: "[...] Just imagine," The War Of The World "was tackled by Ayreon instead of Jeff Wayne, then it comes about. In fact, Arjen Lucassen is one of the guest musicians, along with Blaze Bayley (Iron Maiden) and the prog-savvy actors Mark Benton and Zach 'Gremlins' Galligan. [...] This is a career-defining, magical, epic work. ")

The Fireworks Magazine writes "[...] lengthy progressive epics [...] nothing short of stunning. [...] If you love 70s prog with an eye for Jethro Tull , Genesis and the pop leanings of Greg Lake , the 80s update the likes of IQ , Galahad or Twelfth Night provided, or even the more pointed stabs of Porcupine Tree , you'll find them all here. As you will a slice of Prog Metal technicality and hefty helping of intrinsically British NWOBHM fret fury - and obviously the storytelling of War Of The Worlds. [...] an album that genuinely deserves to be given the accolade of current and future classic. Conceptual, progressive rock, genuinely doesn't get better than this. " (German: "[...] long progressive epics [...] nothing less than breathtaking [...] Anyone who loves 70s prog in the style of Jethro Tull and Genesis with the pop borrowings of Greg Lake and also those 80s re-editions of bands like IQ, Galahad or Twelfth Night, you will find it all here. And also a disc of Prog Metal with the help of a real British NWOBHM guitar neck frenzy - and of course the storytelling from "War Of The Worlds". [ ...] an album that really deserves to be recognized as a contemporary and future classic. Conceptual, progressive rock that really can't be made better. ")

Track list

All songs written and composed by Dean Marsh unless otherwise noted. All lead vocals from Dean Marsh unless otherwise noted.

Act I: The Day the Great Cog Failed
No.	title	Songwriter	Lead vocals	length
1.	The Traveler and the Lighter			4:13
2.	Shadowborn		Hollick	6:51
3.	The unminable zone			2:32
4th	The Lamplighter (Parts I-VIII)		Marsh, Hollick	15:58
5.	In the Cavern of the Great Cog			3:52
6th	The Great Cog	Marsh, Hepe		5:15
7th	The shadow rises ...			5:52
8th.	The Capture (Including the Song for a Fallen Nightkeeper)		Severn, Marsh	6:51
9.	Waiting for Exile			7:05
10.	Eve's song		Hollick	8:27
Overall length:				67:00

Act II: Of Men and Worms
No.	title	Songwriter	Lead vocals	length
1.	A Sermon for Shadowmas			7:18
2.	Victims of the Light		Oberlé, Marsh	7:31
3.	Old friends, new enemies			7:18
4th	Ditchwater Daisies		Marsh, Hollick	5:32
5.	De-ranged			3:54
6th	The Lamplighter (Parts IX-XIII)	Marsh, Hepe, Severn	Lucassen, Hollick, Severn	6:59
7th	In the Name of the Spy			8:16
8th.	The Bewildering Conscience of a Clockwork Child			15:45
9.	Escape!			8:45
10.	A Solemn Toast for the Steam Ranger Reborn		Marsh, Oberle	8:45
Overall length:				71:14

Act III: From Burrows We Came
No.	title	Lead vocals	length
1.	The oldest Flame		7:18
2.	The Lamplighter (Parts XIV-XV)		7:31
3.	Flight for the Surface		7:18
4th	The Climb	Marsh, Hollick	5:32
5.	At the summit		3:54
6th	Fight for the Light	Marsh, Dying Seed	6:59
7th	Quest for Power		8:16
8th.	At the sign of the aperture	Bayley	15:45
9.	A machine serves its purpose		8:45
10.	The Clockwork Fable		8:45
11.	Escape from Cogtopolis		8:45
12.	Through the lens	Hollick	8:45
13.	Epilogue - Oh Bugger!		8:45
Overall length:			71:14

occupation

• Dean Marsh - 6- and 12-string electric guitar, mandolin, octave mandola, keyboard, lead and backing vocals
• Luke Severn - lead and backing vocals
• Stefan Hepe - drums, percussion
• Christopher Ewen - bass

Guest musician

• Melissa Hollick - lead and backing vocals
• Dave Oberlé - lead and backing vocals, bodhran and tan-tan
• Arjen Lucassen - lead vocals
• Blaze Bayley - lead vocals
• Matt Stevens - 6- and 12-string electric guitar

speaker

• Mark Benton
• Zach Galligan
• Paul Kavanagh
• Bill Fellows
• Tim Munro
• Paul Barnhill

Individual evidence

1. ^ Musicbrainz , accessed October 23, 2016
2. ↑ Martin Kielty: Teamrock News: Gandalf's Fist reveal The Clockwork Fable guest list . teamrock.com. March 21, 2016. Retrieved March 30, 2016.
3. ↑ Thomas Kohl Russ: The Clockwork Fable . In: Baby Blue Pages . Retrieved May 31, 2016.
4. ↑ ^{a b} Geoff Barton: Prog Round-Up July 2016 . In: Issue 224 - July 2016 . Retrieved May 31, 2016.
5. ↑ Stefan Hennig: Issue 2020-005: Gandalf's Fist Inter-Review . In: Issue 2020-005 . Retrieved March 2, 2020.
6. ↑ Steve Pilkington: Gandalf's Fist: The Clockwork Fable album review . Retrieved June 18, 2016.