Raptor Trail

Album Title: Devil On An Indian
Record Label: MBM Entertainment
Review by Sal Serio
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The Raptor Trail - Devil On An Indian

The third release from North Carolina’s melodic prog rock trio The Raptor Trail is a full-on concept album written by multi-instrumentalist Matt Mayes, which details an internal clash between Native American spirituality and 21st century white Christian morality, and inevitably results in an apocalyptic conclusion.

While the theme is intense and demands a certain amount of rapt attention, the music is an overall uplifting and diversely varied experience, featuring instrumentation ranging from the conventional guitar/bass/drums, to the more esoteric guijo, banjo, and various keyboards/effects/percussion. Combining the fascinating storyline with this creative and extremely high level of musicianship results in a special mixture that brings to mind the best works of rockers like Rush or Max Webster, along with the roots music and poetic activism of Bruce Cockburn and John Trudell. The vocals of Matt Mayes, John Meyer, and special guest Edwin McCain keep the proceedings enjoyable and accessible to fans of a multitude of rock music genres.

While the ‘Devil On An Indian’ concept is best taken in as a whole, there are also several tracks that stand on their own strength. My recommendations are “Quaker Pets”, “Froth Squelch”, “The Vanishing Point”, and “Red Giant”.

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