The High Dials War Of The Wakening Phantoms. Release Date : July 26, 2005. Label: Rainbow Quartz. Rating: Andy doesn't dig rating stuff. They souldn't have possibly opened any stronger. I think "Holy Ground" is the first song I ever heard from the High Dials, so maybe I'm biased or something but I really really like that tune. It's got a very love-and-be-happy vibe to it, and has an infectious beat that you just can't help but clap along to as you throw your head back and yell along come on come on come on come on live on this! There's basically just a lot of fun here. It feels like running around in the 60's ... especially when the worldly sitar makes an appearance. These fellas incite dancing riots wherever they go, and the album is no bloody different. I can hardly keep still right now. Thank goodness no one else is around to watch this mwahah. In "Winter Ghosts" strings come flourishing on in.... gorgeous stuff. It's a gentle tune, very lonesome-nighttime. "Stick With The Old Fire" is also a marvelous sing-alonger. The opening noise on "Master Of The Clouds" is awwwwesome. There's really a lot of amusing instrumentation on this thing - more strings, horns, keys, all manner of bippy, boopy things the get your groove on to. Including, a crazy vicious intro to "Your Eyes Are A Door." Heck, we even get a little reggae action here. Spectacular disc. Song of choice : Definitely the opener, "The Holy Ground." Top notch song, probably one of my favourite songs of the entire year! -Andy Scheffler Elsewhere The High Dials website Published : November, 2005.