The Time Machine (1999)

‘The Time Machine’ is an ambitious and creative concept art rock album by the legendary Alan Parsons. The record features a unique concept that takes listeners on a journey through time and space, exploring the themes of love, loss, and the human experience. It has been awhile since Alan Parsons took a dynamite concept and produced an album that is unmistakably in your face with it.

The album opens with the title track, "The Time Machine, Pt. 1, which sets the tone for the rest of the album with its cinematic orchestration and epic sound. The instrumental piece is followed by "Temporalia," which features spoken word vocals by Parsons himself, and is a haunting and dreamlike track that discusses the intricacies of our universe and how time works in it.

The record’s thematic concept is woven throughout the album, with tracks like "Out of the Blue" and "Dr. Evil Edit" exploring the idea of time as a force that can both heal and hurt. The latter track is a fun and quirky nod to the villain from the Austin Powers movies, Dr. Evil, and its inclusion on the album adds a touch of humor to an otherwise serious and introspective work. You can stream the original and the remix on music streaming sites and they are both just pure fun to listen to.

The album has a mix of great catchy art rock songs and experimental instrumentals, many of which feature complex arrangements of synthesizers, percussion, and guitars. Many songs have a jazzy feel to it, and is reminiscent of the experimental prog rock of the 1970s.

Overall, ‘The Time Machine’ is a highly recommended album for fans of progressive rock, art rock, and concept albums. Its thematic concept is both cool and unique, and the album's production values and musical performances are top-notch. While it may be hard to find on streaming sites, it is definitely worth seeking out for anyone who appreciates ambitious and unique music.

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Highlight Songs:

• No Future In The Past

• Press Rewind

• Beginnings

• Dr. Evil

• Ignorance is Bliss

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Own it, Stream it, Forget about it?

Definitely worth owning. This record is best played all the way through and it is so, so close to achieving a NSA award from me, but “The Very Last Time” is a bit underwhelming and skippable to in my opinion. This album isn’t complete on any streaming site, so if you wanna listen to everything you gotta go to Youtube or you gotta buy it. So … just go ahead and buy it, you won’t regret it.

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Overall Rating:

4 Stars