Taken by surprise today with this happy news from Spock’s Beard:

The Oblivion Particle

Spock’s Beard’s 12th studio album set for release August 21, 2015 on InsideOut Music.

01. Tides of Time (7:45)
02. Minion (6:53)
03. Hell’s Not Enough (6:23)
04. Bennett Built a Time Machine (6:52)
05. Get Out While You Can (4:55)
06. A Better Way To Fly (8:57)
07. The Center Line (7:05)
08. To Be Free Again (10:24)
09. Disappear (6:36)

10. Iron Man (special edition bonus track)

From the InsideOut Music press release:

2015 finds Spock’s Beard returning with The Oblivion Particle, scheduled for release August 21st on InsideOut Music. The band’s twelfth studio album sees them drawing from their core essence while stretching out into some exciting new territory.

According to bassist Dave Meros, it’s not a matter of how much the album recalls past Spock’s material, but how much it differs. “I think the opening track ‘Tides of Time’ is classic Spock’s in terms of arrangement and style, but everything else is fairly different. That said, the whole album is still within the parameters of what people expect to hear from us.”

Among the nine new songs are “To Be Free Again,” a dramatic, cinematic epic; “Bennett Built a Time Machine,” a quirky adventure tale about time travel; “Hell’s Not Enough” with its fiery emotive plateaus and “Get Out While You Can,” a more straight ahead yet no less impactful powerhouse.

The Oblivion Particle finds the band answering the needs of their creations by utilizing the considerable versatility of each member. In addition to Ted Leonard’s soaring vocals and Dave Meros’ distinctive bass, Alan Morse adds autoharp, banjolele, electric sitar and mandolin to his array of instruments, drummer Jimmy Keegan takes over lead vocals on “Bennett Built a Time Machine” and Ryo expands his arsenal of keyboard sounds throughout the album. In addition, virtuoso Kansas violinist David Ragsdale lends his touch to the album’s majestic closer, “Disappear.”

As with the previous album Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep, The Oblivion Particle was recorded at The Mouse House and produced by Rich Mouser, Alan Morse and John Boegehold, a band collaborator of many years.

Ultimately, The Oblivion Particle has all the trademarks of a classic “grower,” with a considerable depth that continues to unfold after many listens. This proves Spock’s Beard to be an amazingly compelling band some 20+ years after their formation, and one that continues to be a leader in the prog rock field, just as they have always been…

Their previous album, Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep, was one of the best of 2013, and also one of Spock’s Beard’s best albums ever.

So, I am really looking forward to The Oblivion Particle!