Timeless rock music of epic, progressive and symphonic proportions - A review of Greta van Fleet's The Battle at Garden's Gate

American hard rock quartet Greta van Fleet from the little city of Frankenmouth in Michigan has been all the rage since the release of its first extended play Black Smoke Rising that has soon been followed by another extended play entitled From the Fires and later on the group's debut record Anthem of the Peaceful Army. Despite the band's large number of followers and the numerous awards it has already received for its works, some people claim that the band only rips of classic hard rock bands like Led Zeppelin and fails to have its own identity. While it's true that this band should appeal to fans of hard rock, progressive rock and psychedelic rock of the seventies, the band's music sounds inspired rather than rehashed and the new output is a gigantic step forward for the band in terms of shaping its very own brand.

The Battle at Garden's Gate is inspired by calm, dreamy and introspective progressive rock music of the seventies as it recalls groups such as The Eagles, Procul Harum and Rush. A great example is strong opener ''Heat Above'' that kicks off with an extended organ solo before the drums smoothly fade in and transport this imaginative track into inspired progressive rock territory. ''Tears of Rain'' could be described as folk ballad of epic proportions with passionate vocals and almost jam-like instrumental passages. ''Trip the Light Fantastic'' has a strong vintage touch with its warm guitar sounds, vibrant bass lines, smooth drumming and dreamy keyboard sections that meet extremely variable lead vocals supported by mantra-like backing vocals that take the listener on a nearly religious voyage to the past that invites to dream yourself far away. The closing epic ''The Weight of Dreams'' goes even further in the band's progressive experimentation as it clocks in at nearly nine minutes that are filled with extended instrumental sections offering airy keyboard layers, bluesy guitar sounds and dynamic bass lines that transport the listener from the American wasteland to space and back again.

The band has consistently moved away from its catchier, shorter and simpler hard rock tunes of yore and taken quite some risks with this airy, dreamy and progressive sophomore output. Few songs remind of the band's recent past such as energetic, joyful and playful single ''My Way, Soon'' and swaggering, rhythmic and gripping ''Built by Nations''.

Some people might be surprised by the band's development and it could even lose a few fans over this progression but the young quartet has simply managed to define its own identity and offer one of the very best progressive rock albums in recent memory. The instrumental work is creative, the songwriting is inspired, the vocals sound unique and the warm vintage production transports listeners back in time and into space in times when this world has momentarily become a somewhat desolate place. Rock fans old and new around the world should be grateful for Greta van Fleet's sixty-four magical minutes of escapism. The Battle at Garden's Gate will not only be included on many lists for album of the year but stand the test of time and go down in history as one of the best rock albums of this decade. After listening to this record on multiple occasions on its first day of release, I certainly feel like spinning it again instead of revisiting the classics that inspired the band in the first place. Ignore the negative remarks and you will realize that Greta van Fleet's music isn't old-fashioned but timeless.

Final rating: 95%