Two years after
Thick as a Brick 2, an explicit 2012 sequel to the 1972 prog classic,
Ian Anderson embarked on another ambitious journey, this time assembling a concept record called
Homo Erraticus. A loose -- very loose -- album based on a "dusty, unpublished manuscript, written by local amateur historian
Ernest T. Parritt (1873-1928),"
Homo Erraticus is an old-fashioned prog record: it has narrative heft and ideas tied to the '70s, where jazz, classical, folk, orchestral pop, and rock all commingled in a thick, murky soup. Divorced from
Tull,
Anderson favors fruitiness -- he likes ripe melodies and baroque arrangements that showcase either his flute or the dexterity of his band -- and if the music by and large isn't as forceful as
Aqualung, partially due to the absence of muscular musicians, it nevertheless demonstrates a clear-eyed conception that is in the same lineage. Yes, the production on
Homo Erraticus is too precise -- there's too much air, there's too much room to roam, decisions that diminish the impact of the music -- but the contours of the compositions deliberately and delicately recall classic
Tull, so
Homo Erraticus winds up satisfying: it's as close to '70s prog as is possible in 2014. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
