Tull embarks on a new journey on “Curious Ruminant” out via InsideOutMusic on March 7th, 2025. Helmed by Ian Anderson who’s consistently maintained high standards. The days of hard rock are long gone, but Tull’s signature sound evolved throughout the years. The lyrical themes of the new album are based on Anderson’s life experiences, which involve his observations. The twenty-fourth album proves that creativity is measured by originality, and the musicianship displays impressive songwriting.

Kicking off with the tuneful bluesy guitar and solid folk rock beats in the opening song “Puppet and the Puppet Master”. With the full band behind Ian Anderson, the lineup features former keyboardist Andrew Giddings and drummer James Duncan, including the current members David Goodier, John O’Hara, Scott Hammond, and, guitarist Jack Clark.

The songwriting fuses familiar elements of the band, “Curious Ruminant” is a good comeback album that offers a complex blend of beautiful flute solos that spans a retrospective work. From Ian Anderson’s signature flute solos, mandolin, acoustic, and tenor guitars, and the well-placed guitar riffs of Jack Clark kicking in the album’s title track “Curious Ruminant” is contagious and shifting between acoustic folk guitars.

The exquisite touches of the instruments are somehow melded into a cohesive-sounding song structure; Tull manages to provide catchy prog riffs and traditional Celtic music. The straightforward hard rock build-ups featured plenty of acoustic guitars. Ian Anderson splendidly underscores its enduring heritage of 70s rock music and many aspects of their hallmark remind me of classic albums like “Heavy Horses”, “Thick as a Brick” and “Songs from the Woods” which plunge the ears with appealing compositional melodies and flawless guitar solos.

The song “Dunsinane Hill” shows the sentiment for Celtic music. The Tolkien-esque flute vibe evokes the epic fantasy of The Lord of the Rings movies. Ian Anderson’s vocals sound different and toned down, however, the flute playing is eloquent and profound. The musical pigmentations are beautifully textured with keyboards, and mandolin crafted to add tasteful touches.

“The Tipu House” hits with a solid rock beat; the electric guitar accompanied by the flute has a unique rhythm. Tull is known for its folk sound approach therefore the intricate songwriting is put into effort to deliver memorable melodies.

The music stems from Ian Anderson‘s flute and the aura of the song flows through dynamics and the juxtaposition between the rocking guitar riffs with folky themes that seem to expand in songs like “Savannah Of Paddington Green” and “Stygian Hand”.

The mood soothes in the song “Over Jerusalem” which wafts through nice guitar licks and heavy rock riffs followed by flute but as a whole, this song is the most emotional cut in the album. The slower sections give it a ballad feel, Tull illustrates a remarkable example of Ian Anderson as a maestro. The instrumental melodies provide a dramatic sensibility that includes nuances of jazz music, traditional folk, and rock music where several songs appear to peak in immersive soundscapes in the album’s longest cut “Drink From The Same Well”.

This epic sixteen-minute song provides a lush and graceful musical atmosphere from the gentle guitar strings, piano, and Mid-Eastern drum beats, including the Indian flute, which serenely drifts through the subdued moments to accompany the gentle vocals.

“Curious Ruminant” isn’t a glorious comeback, but it sounds consistent, the album captures the essence of Tull, thus achieving a brilliant level of performance instrumental dexterity. Ian Anderson’s musical inspirations freshen the ears by giving the songs a modernized rock flavor and melding blues with archaic, uncanny folk and Celtic music, leading to vast musical atmospheres.

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