This round was pretty tight, until it wasn't.
Here was my vote:
You could probably see which direction I was moving in on this one. After the first listen, I had mixed feelings on both albums. However, after the second one, my feelings started to take shape.
For the Syzygy, I liked a lot of their synth work. However, overall, I liked them best in their "smaller" moments, on tracks like "Circadian Rhythm" and "Beggar's Tale". On many of the longer tracks, they built up compositions which, while fairly complex, weren't necessarily pleasant for me to listen to. Of their longer tracks, I liked "Dreams" the best. As for the vocals, while I was glad they had some, and their singer was certainly competent, I again found him more effective on the shorter, quieter tracks.
As for the Pendragon album, the fist time through, while I liked their overall sound, I wasn't convinced they offered much in the way of songwriting. By the second listen, though, many (though not all) of their songs, began to resonate with me, and this held through during the third listen as well. I also liked a lot of their grand guitar work.
In the end, I had a small but distinct preference for the Pendragon LP, and my vote goes to that one.
Surprisingly (and somewhat frighteningly), for the third round in a row, the majority was with me, only this time by a slimmer margin.
Final Result: Syzygy 8 votes, Pendragon 11 votes.
