The best thing about the debut by Kansas is the cover. This is the greatest cover on any album ever. You don't like John Brown and the story behind Bleeding Kansas? Fuck you, you're a racist. Yeah dude, Kansas was on the right side; Free State. That's how we roll, you're welcome.
Other than that, there's an absurd amount of fiddle on this LP. I've never thought to myself, hey, these keyboards and rambling chord progressions could really use some fiddle. But, the band Kansas did. I guess that was going to be there calling card back in the day. They were going to be that prog-rock outfit with a fuckin' fiddle. Heads will explode.
Aside from that, there's a lot of boogie in the album. It has its moments within the songs. But, it lacks any sort of focus. It's all the bands tricks at once. They would get better, focusing on boogie and harmonies more so than all the prog and fiddle. All lot of the songs show promise at the start before the band just starts lumping everything they have into them. For one, The Pilgrimage, could have been solid had they not destroyed it with an organ break and a guitar vs. fiddle dual. It's just that way throughout the entire thing. The band focuses too much on trying to show you their virtuosic skills rather than their songwriting skills.
The Pilgrimage
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