David Doig-Beacon

About David Doig-Beacon

Beacon was formed after the breakup of the progressive rock group Cathedral. Cathedral had several recording including “Stained Glass Stories” and “The Bridge”. Both recordings are available through (expired link). The group played several live shows including one at The Boulton Theater in Bayshore NY.





Some of the reviews of “The Bridge” include the following:

June 06, 2008 Artur Chachlowski - Metal Hammer Magazine
Artur Chachlowski - Metal Hammer Magazine
CATHEDRAL „The Bridge” (Independent) “The Bridge” is surely not an “easy listening” recording. From the listener it requires focus, patience and devotion of time: it needs to be played a few times before it starts revealing its underlying beauty. You must listen to it once, twice, three times… and don’t get discouraged if at times it annoys or seems to lead nowhere. In such a case, a little step backwards or a moment’s relax is necessary, only to come back to the album in a while. Our patience will doubtless be repaid by Cathedral’s music. What is the record for the length of time between the release of the first and the second album of one performer? This question encourages potential musicological research and arduous work of a browser and could probably be a good starting point for broader sociological deliberations. I am in the dark as to who is currently wielding the world record in this area, but I am sure that Cathedral is among the leaders. The debut album of this American group, entitled Stained Glass Stories was released in 1978, which was at the peak of punk revolution and on the threshold of new wave fashion. No wonder that this album, partly a swansong of American progressive rock, passed practically unnoticed and the musicians of Cathedral got down to their other business, putting their musical ambitions aside. In 1991, when Syn-Phonic record company re-released Stained Glass Stories for a CD, Cathedral was in the spotlight for a moment again, but several years had to pass before the band reactivated – in an almost original line-up: Paul Seal (v), Mercury Caronia IV (dr), Thomas Doncourt (k) and Fred Callan (bg). The only substitution is the guitarist: David Doig stood in for Rudy Perrone. To dispel any doubts, he did it in a very spectacular manner, including on The Bridge an instrumental 6-minute composition “Kithara Interludium”, which he composed and performed all by himself. It is a masterpiece as far as playing the acoustic guitar is concerned. “Kithara Interludium” divides the album into two parts, both of which contain 3 tracks, including one 10+ minute suite each. It is those two long compositions, which on The Bridge shine the most brightly and fully. I suggest remembering their titles: “The Monsterhead Suite: Parts 1, 2 & 3” and “The Secret”. They are both full of passion, profound beauty and unbelievable feats in the style of King Crimson and Yes. “Angular World” is another track that earns distinction. There, the crimson echoes reverberate very distantly: there is a wonderful sound of mellotrones, conjuring up the images of the bygone époque, the vocalist sings as if inspired, and the complicated sounds fly from the speakers, giving a listener a lot of listening pleasure. However, I repeat what I said at the beginning: the beauty of the music will not reveal itself immediately, at least not during the first attempt at listening. It is rather like a cat and mouse game, at times slowly exposing some magical musical solutions, at times drawing the curtain of mystery, but at the next listening it attacks and surprises the listener with something new and as yet undiscovered. I think that a reliable reference for The Bridge would be the King Crimson’s album Thrak. If somebody has taken a liking to that memorable work of Robert Fripp and company, he/she is bound to like the new album of Cathedral. (expired link) Artur Chachlowski
After the group broke up, guitarist Dr. David Doig and vocalist Paul Seal began to work on some new material. In 2012 another recording Beacon “First Light” was released. The sound had more diversified influences and included elements of Rock, Jazz, Reggae, Folk Blues and Ballads. The opening track “Angels” draws inspiration from the Beatles-Paul McCartney. “Pick Up the Pieces” is a quirky bluesy progressive tune which attempts to capture the anguish felt by many members of the middle class over the past few decades. “Autumn” depicts the awful realization that life is not forever. “The Wall” is a solo acoustic guitar composition which portraits the isolation most instrumental artist’s face in today’s vocally dominant environment. “The Rain” may be the closest thing to a country tune we ever write! “Who Am I” was the song that went through the most transformation. It was originally written as a ballad but ended up with strong Reggae influences. “Cognitive Dissonance” represents the struggle all of us face regarding the difficult choices we encounter in life. “Saturn” started with a guitar riff which evolved in a more jazzy-funky direction.



The recording is available: (expired link)








The most recent recording “Against The Current, “ feature eleven tracks which all “art songs” with only a single classical guitar and vocals. Enjoy!