Kevin J. Anderson Part 1: Roswell Six Trilogy Now Complete
The prolific bestselling author's prog rock tie-in to his Terra Incognita trilogy is now finished and is part of a special release.
Thank you for spending part of your day with Michael’s Record Collection. If there’s any activity I’ve enjoyed throughout my life as much as listening to music, it’s reading. Although demands on my free time have greatly reduced the amount of reading I’ve done over the last decade, which was at about a novel-per-week pace (or more) for many years, I’m picking up books more often again and I’m enjoying reading as much as ever.
Music and literature have seemingly always crossed paths. Writers have based stories on songs or records, and musicians often write songs or even full concept albums about a favorite book. For example, many songs and albums have been based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings.
Kevin J. Anderson is an author who has often written stories and books inspired by his favorite albums and has dropped Easter eggs about his favorite bands, albums, and songs into his writing. He’s also co-authored books with Rush drummer Neil Peart and written books released in conjunction with companion progressive rock albums.
I recently spoke with Kevin about music’s role and inspiration in his work. He was exceedingly gracious with his time. Let’s get to that story — the first part, anyway. I’ll bring you Part 2 next week.
In the late 00s and early 10s, when I was producing a weekly progressive rock show over internet “radio,” bestselling author Kevin J. Anderson released an epic fantasy trilogy called Terra Incognita, based in part on the Crusades and the Prester John mythology of the Age of Discovery. It was also inspired partly by the cover of the classic 1977 Kansas album, Point of Know Return. The three books were to be accompanied by companion albums by an all-star group of musicians under the band name Roswell Six featuring various vocalists who would play the roles of characters in the novels.
I eagerly gobbled up those novels, my mind blown by the world building, with the people of Uraba and Tierra at odds over their views of what was essentially two sides of a shared religion. The two sides were tied together by the shared holy city of Ishalem, which burns down early in the tale due to an accidental fire that each side blames on the other. That flashpoint serves as the catalyst for what happens in the trilogy.
Meanwhile, the companion CDs contained wonderful music that augmented the story. Vocalists such as Saga’s Michael Sadler, Dream Theater’s James LaBrie, Asia’s John Payne, and Lana Lane sang over music written and played by keyboardist Erik Norlander (Rocket Scientists) on the first album, with David Ragsdale (Kansas) supplying violin and Martin Orford (IQ) adding flute. Songs like “Ishalem,” “Letters in a Bottle,” and “Merciful Tides” added depth to the reading experience, with the Roswell Six musicians bringing Anderson’s characters to life.
The Terra Incognita/Roswell Six collaboration came from conversations Anderson had with Shawn Gordon, who at the time owned ProgRock.com (the “station” that aired my weekly show) and ProgRock Records. Anderson and Gordon had been corresponding online over a shared love for progressive rock.
“We were corresponding on Facebook and I kept saying I just really would love to do like a music and novel connection somehow,” Anderson said. “And he started dropping the ideas that maybe we could do this for Terra Incognita, because he owned the record label. He had connections to these people. And we started brainstorming, and it came about. I started naming some of my favorite artists, and he got a bunch of them. This is like a rock and roll fanboy dream come true.”
Anderson and his wife, fellow writer Rebecca Moesta, wrote the lyrics to the Roswell Six songs, with each album containing an instrumental track. Each track acts as a snapshot from the story of the corresponding book.
Why the name Roswell Six for a collection of musicians that isn’t a proper band? Anderson was concerned titling the “band” name Terra Incognita may prove to be confusing.
“We realized we needed a name for this. It’s effectively a super group. It’s a whole bunch of people coming together for these albums,” he said. “I was emailing Erik (Norlander), and my wife and I were just taking a family vacation. We went down to Roswell, New Mexico to see the UFO museum and stuff. Erik sends an email and he says, ‘We need a name for this band.’ There were six of us involved (in the project) at the time, so we thought Roswell Six kind of sounded like a cool name.”
The Terra Incognita books were released as paperbacks in 2009, 2010, and 2011. The first two albums — Terra Incognita - Beyond the Horizon and Terra Incognita - A Line in the Sand — were released on CD. But the third album did not materialize when the third book was released. As time went on and ProgRock Records ceased operations, it seemed we would never get that third album to accompany the third book.
Anderson is now set to do two things he’s always wanted to do: give the Terra Incognita trilogy a proper hardcover release and complete the Roswell Six trio of companion albums. His Kickstarter, which launched today, offers all three novels in various packages, including audiobook versions narrated by Scott Brick, and all three CDs. Add-ons to the Kickstarter include a stand-alone novella in a companion book, all new maps, illustrations by Ukrainian artist Oleg Kinal, and other unique items.
“I’ve got a companion volume that has all the lyrics to all three albums, plus an original short story, plus some articles in it that we’re writing,” Anderson said. “We’ve got all the unabridged audiobooks. These are big novels, so that’s like 60 hours of audiobooks that you’re getting on it. But we also did this big, fancy, leatherette, gold-embossed (version of the books) with sprayed edges and a little ribbon bookmark inside a nice designed slipcase, so if you want your fancy schmancy edition, that’s on there. That’ll be signed and numbered. And all three of the rock albums. The only place that you can get the new album is on the Kickstarter, and the other two, well, the only place you get any of it right now is on the Kickstarter.
“And the thing with Kickstarter is it's like you're joining the backstage club. You're getting the pre-release album months before anybody else can buy it. Now, these albums are being distributed by Sony Music, and they'll be up in all your normal spots, but not until like September or October. But if you do the Kickstarter, you're going to get it May or June or as soon as we get everything finished. It's a sneak preview, and you get it a lot faster.”
Anderson said the out-of-print first two albums will be remastered.
This is not a book review newsletter, but I greatly enjoyed the Terra Incognita trilogy. It’s more swords and sandals than swords and sorcery, but there are fantastic beasts in this world, along with natural dangers and, of course, the various horrors of war. The characters are well developed, their motivations are logical, and the plot is easy and enjoyable to follow.
Why was now the time to finally complete the Roswell Six trilogy and release hard covers of Terra Incognita? Time and effort was a big part of it. In the wake of the original release, Anderson was busy writing Dune novels and other books. To do this release, he also had to get the rights back to the Terra Incognita books. Additionally, he needed a new label for the third Roswell Six album. After unexpectedly getting the rights back to the book trilogy from his publisher — more than two years after his initial request — and getting the rights to the albums from Gordon, Anderson knew the guy who could make the third record happen.
Bob Madsen is someone Anderson discovered through a video his band, The Grafenberg Disciples, had made honoring the late Neil Peart — legendary drummer from Rush and a good friend of Anderson’s. The Grafenberg Disciples posted a video of a song called “No Words,” with all proceeds donated to the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center - Neil Peart Brain Tumor Research Fund. The video and lyrics of the song pay tribute to Peart, his books, and his song lyrics.
The California-based Madsen took a motorcycle trip to visit Anderson in Colorado to discuss the third Terra Incognita album. It’s something Anderson couldn’t do at the time because he didn’t have the rights, but once he got them, it was time.
“I contacted Bob Madsen and said, ‘Hey, we're on. We can maybe do the third CD,” Anderson said. “So, he started calling people, and I had written drafts of the lyrics for the entire album 12 years ago, and I put them in a folder, and I had to go to like old archival zip drives to find them, because I never thought I was going to do anything with them again. And we got them back and I started rewriting them. I write the songs and then Rebecca cleans them up so that they’re good songs. I sent those to Bob, and he started bringing in his team, and we started contacting some of the musicians we wanted, and we got Michael Sadler back. I just love his voice. He’s the only person on all three albums.”
The music is progressive rock, but it skews toward the melodic side rather than experimental. The vibe of the songs, despite being rock music tracks, provides the perfect audio flavor for his fictional world. The first record, Beyond the Horizon, was more my speed than the second, A Line in the Sand. This may be because I prefer Norlander’s work and writing style over that of Henning Pauly, who wrote the music for the second album. The composer behind Frameshift and Chain, Pauly is talented, but I’m not quite as fond of his writing style. As usual, the listener’s mileage may vary.
Pauly played all instruments on A Line in the Sand as well, and I think it could have benefited from the involvement of other musicians, although there is no arguing with the vocalists — Steve Walsh (Kansas), Sass Jordan, Sadler, and Charlie Dominici (ex-Dream Theater), just to name a few. Ayreon’s Arjen Anthony Lucassen also contributes backing vocals, although that is not the Dutch composer and musician’s strongest suit.
I was curious how the third album would sound. I find the new album, Terra Incognita - Uncharted Shores, closer to Beyond the Horizon than A Line in the Sand, but it splits the difference between the two to some degree.
The third album once again features lyrics by Anderson and Moesta, with “massaging” by Madsen, who also wrote the lyrics for the final track, “Not in My Name.” Sadler is back as one of the vocalists, once again as part of an all-star cast. Other lead vocalists include Ted Leonard (Spock’s Beard, Enchant, Pattern-Seeking Animals), Anneke van Giersbergen (The Gathering), Dan Reed (Dan Reed Network), and Hans Eberbach (Sweet Vine).
For the musicians, they include violinist Jonathan Dinklage, who toured with Rush as part of the Clockwork Angels String Ensemble; drummers Gregg Bissonette (David Lee Roth, Joe Satriani, Ringo Starr & his All-Starr Band), Ed Toth (The Doobie Brothers), and Jeff Tuttle; and vocalist Emily Lynn. Madsen, Billy Connally, and Jerry Merrill — the “Wrecked Crew” from The Highlander Company Records — wrote the music for the 10 tracks and contributed bass, guitar, and piano/keyboards, respectively. Frank Rosato mastered the album and mixed eight songs, with Madsen mixing the other two.
The album kicks off with the title track, sung by Sadler. Bissonnette’s drumming, Madsen’s bass work, and Connally’s guitars shine on the opener, which starts out with gentle, dreamy, watery sounds. Sadler’s voice is still in fine form, and the tranquil opening gives way to a rocking and rhythmic song. Sadler’s refrain vocals, wonderfully augmented by backing vocals, are infectious.
Show me more
Show me more
Show me more
There are wonderful, magical worlds to explore
“The Promised Land” starts out with a heavy rhythm section from drummer Toth and Madsen, along with terrific lead guitar by Connally. Leonard’s voice, supported by Lynn and others on chorus vocal “ah-ahhs,” is well suited for this rocking track. It’s an instantly accessible song and was one of the first I gravitated toward on the album. Connally’s guitar solo as the song approaches the three-minute mark is one of the best on the album. Leonard shifts from power to delicacy in the bridge vocals, showing his versatility. It’s a great headphones song.
Dutch siren van Giersbergen takes center stage on lead vocals in “A Sense of Wonder.” Ranging from ethereal to rich, her voice is striking and lends emotional heft to some of the album’s best lyrics in the chorus. Exquisite string work from Dinklage adds texture and compounds van Giersbergen’s gentle tugs on the heart strings. Tuttle plays drums on the track, and it’s a testament to both the songwriting and the performances that there is little noticeable change from one drummer to the next throughout the album. Dinklage’s violin solo gives the song an otherworldly instrumental break. It’s a standout rock ballad.
Speaking of tugging on heart strings, Sadler returns on the delicately beautiful “Haunted and Hunted.” Jay Tausig’s nylon guitar work, Merrill’s piano, and Dinklage’s violin provide the perfect accompaniment for Sadler’s brilliant vocal performance. Upon my first few passive listens to the album while driving, the true magic of this song escaped me, but an active, headphones-on listen revealed its beauty and emotional power. Sadler inhabits the Criston character completely in each track he sings, but he takes it to a new level on “Haunted and Hunted.”
“Mortal Enemies” could hardly be more of a left turn from the preceding song. Dan Reed owns his villain role in his vocal performance and the backing vocal arrangement adds delightful detail (whispering the word “whisper” in echoed response to Reed is a brilliant choice). There’s a Middle Eastern flavor to the music, including more otherworldly string work from Dinklage. This is a song I’ll cop to not liking at all the first several listens, but it’s grown on me in leaps and bounds. I think fans of the Terra Incognita books may get more out of this song than listeners who don’t read the trilogy and approach the album from a strictly musical perspective.
Sadler returns again to the microphone on “Lighthouse,” an interesting rhythmic song with angular playing from Dinklage. Connally’s guitar work is perhaps overshadowed a bit by the rhythm section, but concentrating on it pays off. Bissonnette’s drumming is on point, as usual.
“The Ballet of the Storm,” the album’s lone instrumental follows, offering more ballet than storm. Wave sounds and a lonely violin from Dinklage, along with Merrill’s piano, open the track gently. Rain, thunder, cymbals and bass join in as the storm builds the track’s atmosphere. An understated guitar solo near the end of the song is a highlight.
Each of the three Roswell Six albums includes an instrumental. Anderson said the idea to include one was inspired by Jim Steinman’s “The Storm,” a bombastic instrumental that originally appeared on a 7-inch single the composer included with his 1981 solo album Bad for Good. Anderson said he liked the way Steinman told a story without lyrics.
“We have a storm and a shipwreck in this third book. And so, I wanted that to be the instrumental,” he said. “I kind of described to Bob Madsen what I wanted, and he did something really interesting, because it’s not a loud, bombastic, thunder-crashing, big, dramatic thing. He said what he was picturing…if you think about like in a movie, if you see a movie and it's like this big dramatic car crash, what they will often do is they'll slow it way down, so that all you see is everything moving kind of gracefully. And they might even put like some quiet classical music over the top of it as this huge dramatic stuff is happening. And so, he approached it almost like a quiet, cerebral thunderstorm and shipwreck, which is a very interesting way of doing it. I love that song.”
Van Giersbergen returns on “The Key to Creation,” named for the title of the third book. It’s vastly different than the previous van Giersbergen track, presenting a drums/bass/guitar-driven funk rhythm that breaks only for the more straight-ahead rock chorus. The Dutch singer’s voice softens the edges on an otherwise driving song with another standout guitar solo by Connally.
“Unexpected” reprises Reed’s villain role with a far less creepy vibe than “Mortal Enemies.” The story’s villain comes to a surprising realization, requiring a different vibe (and I don’t want to spoil the story). It’s almost a ballad of sorts, but Reed’s vocal delivery gives it a unique quality that defies labels. Connally’s guitar solos, keyboards by Merrill, and Toth’s drumming are the song’s highlights.
The album closes with the only song with lyrics solely from Madsen. “Not in My Name” serves as a final message from God to the people in the story who have gotten things wrong. Madsen’s funky bass playing is his finest on the album here, with Hans Eberbach giving Roswell Six a new voice on the main lead vocal, admonishing those who have twisted His message and have gone to war over it.
You missed the moral of the story
You missed the whole point
Jethro Tull drummer Doane Perry, a good friend of Anderson’s who is normally known for his stick work, also plays the role of God in the song, providing a spoken-word section in the final moments.
“He was really trying to take this seriously. He sent us like 38 takes,” Anderson said. “Everything else was recorded and mixed. The last piece was Doane’s soliloquy voiceover. And that’s when the fires in L.A. hit. Doane’s house was 100 yards from the evacuation line as the fire was coming in, and his power was going out, and his internet was going out.
“And I called him. I said, ‘Doane, get out of there. You don't need to record this.’ And he said, no, he wanted to record this if it's the last thing that ever gets recorded in his studio. And so, he recorded this piece and sent it off to us as he was packing up to evacuate his house, and fortunately the fires did not come there. They were diverted and his house was saved.”
Madsen suggested a rap for the spoken-word part, but Anderson did not want that on his prog rock soundtrack, and it’s hard to argue with the decision after hearing Perry’s voiceover work, with a lyrical nod to the Rush song “Roll the Bones.”
Action, reaction,
It’s not random interaction
This was never the plan!
If I have a minor quibble with the record, it’s that the fadeout to close “Not in My Name” makes it feel like something else is coming next, but it’s the end of the album. While it makes the listener want to start the album again, a more conventional ending to the final song might have felt more like an end to the trilogy. As I said…a minor quibble.
The more I listen to Uncharted Shores, the more I’m convinced it’s the best of the three Roswell Six offerings. It’s an album that should appeal to fans of classic and melodic progressive rock. Hopefully, it will shine a spotlight on the talents of Madsen, Connally, and Merrill, who are deserving of more recognition. Terra Incognita - Uncharted Shores is a winner and an excellent companion piece for the third part of Anderson’s fantasy epic.
You can learn more about Anderson’s work at wordfire.com. The Terra Incognita collection and Roswell Six companion albums can be ordered via the Kickstarter, with the future release of Terra Incognita - Uncharted Shores to the public coming later this year.
Uncharted Shores Tracklist:
1. Uncharted Shores (5:33)
2. The Promised Land (5:18)
3. A Sense of Wonder (7:02)
4. Haunted and Hunted (4:24)
5. Mortal Enemies (5:00)
6. Lighthouse (4:59)
7. The Ballet of the Storm (4:23)
8. The Key to Creation (4:53)
9. Unexpected (4:48)
10. Not in My Name (5:29)
Next week: Part 2 will explore Kevin’s love of Rush, how he discovered the band’s music, developing a 30-year friendship with Neil Peart, writing the Clockwork Angels steampunk trilogy with the legendary drummer and lyricist, and his love of that final Rush album.
For the entire first part of my interview with Kevin J. Anderson, check out the video below or download/stream Episode 144 of the Michael’s Record Collection podcast. Kevin discusses how he fell in love with classic and progressive rock, the concept behind Terra Incognita, putting the music project together with Shawn Gordon of ProgRock Records, the story, writing lyrics for the albums, and much more.
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