The Thistle & The Samovar from "Ghosts, Masks & Fractures" [Bonus Track - Instrumental]

My prog rock concept albums usually contain several instrumentals, but Ghosts, Masks & Fractures defied that pattern from the start. I wrote the opening track without knowing where the album would go—so much for a "concept album," right? The album's characters are composites drawn from people I've known, and much is autobiographical, including the darker material. Friends and family shouldn't try to identify "who is who"—that misses the point. What matters is the Dostoevskian philosophy woven throughout. This project has been invaluable to my soul. One bonus track deserves mention: an instrumental written before this project began, during my deeper exploration of Dostoevskian thought. It's a fusion of Scottish and Russian folk prog—a musical space where the Scottish thistle meets the Russian samovar, where Presbyterian tradition sits at table with Russian Orthodoxy and Fyodor Dostoevsky himself....as we share a bowl of borscht. p.s. Borscht is now my favorite dish...though I still like some cornbread and butter on the side.