Saturday 31 August 2013

Van Der Graaf Generator - Vital (1978)



Their first live album and released on the strength of some excellent studio albums and gigs.

I am not going to write many lines on this album as I have found it pretty much not representative for this band, one of my favorite bands.

That is why it is so difficult to understand why they released such a substandard live album. Peter Hammill's vocals sounds forced and not right up there. The instrumentation and the arrangements on the songs are pretty strange. Some of their best songs has been omitted here. This live album sounds more like an artistic experiment than a greatest hits live album which was meant to sell more studio albums. Frankly, this live album is more a turn off than a turn on.

There is some very good songs here though and this is a good album. It is their weakest live album though. A weak three pointer is awarded.

3 points

Yacobs - Clouds (2012)



The fifth album from this one man band run by Ulf Jacobs. He also plays drums in Argos. A band I have reviewed one or two albums from in this blog.

Ulf Jacobs plays all instruments here with the exception of bass and guitars. There is a lot of keyboards on this album too in addition to the bass, guitars and drums. That and vocals.

We are deep into art rock/neo prog land again. German art rock with English lyrics. A lot darker than Argos and a lot more Pink Floyd focused. A lot more art rock too.

The opening song Dawn is a great art rock song with some great vocals. The rest of the album tails off and it becomes a bit introvert and cinematic in the Pink Floyd vein. The end result is still a good to very good album which has a bit of the X factor which sets it apart from most other albums. Yacobs is a band well worth checking out.

3.5 points

Monday 26 August 2013

Crazy World - The Return of the Clown (2012)



The second album from this Finnish band.

The cartoon art work and the album title, not to mention the band name, does indicate that we are not in for a gravely serious musical experience here. The realization that this is a concept album then come as a bit of a shock.

The music here is very much in the concept album tradition too. The tradition The Who initiated with Tommy. An album which is very much in the vein of this album. The music varies from rockabilly to more heavy rock and some more lighter symphonic prog. From Eddie Cochrane via The Who, The Doors and Deep Purple to Genesis. The music is delivered by traditional electric guitars, Hammond organs, bass, drums, keyboards and vocals. The sound is a mix of contemporary and the 1970s sound. More the latter, though.

The end result is a good album which fails to set me on fire though. The lack of any great songs is the reason for my lack of enthusiasm. But this is still a good album well worth checking out.

3 points


Ardo Dombec - Ardo Dombec (1971)



The only album from this German band who has been compared to Colosseum. In my views, that is not a recommendation.

And we get a lot of saxophone dominated jazzy blues here. Add funk to the mix too and you get this fifty minutes long album. The vocals are OK and so is the rest of the musicians. Saxophones and blues is not that goes down well in my household. The music is pretty funky though and has a lot going for it.

My main gripe is the lack of any great songs here. Or even good songs. This is a decent album though and that is all I can say after I have been listening to it for a while.

2 points

Runaway Totem - Manu Menes (2009)



The seventh album from this Italian zeuhl band.

The development of this band is an interesting one and their discography is mostly free downloads from their homepage. Highly recommended downloads. The quality is not always top notch. But their music is never really dull. Manu Menes is one of their best albums.

This album is divided into three twenty minutes long compositions. The first composition Alle Sorgenti di Kronos is a pretty ambient, featureless composition who nicely sets up the other two compositions. Aevum is a Magma like heavy, dark composition with a lot of brooding female and male vocals on the top of a dark keyboards and bass created landscape. A great composition.

The final composition Phi-Ur continues in the same vein with a lot of distorted guitars and piano added to the mix too. Another great composition who comes across as a mix of Shub Niggurath and Magma.

In short; this is a great album which I very much enjoys. My faith in this band has been rewarded.

4 points

Homepage

Sarastro Blake - New Progmantics (2013)



The prog rock world seems to be in the middle of a wave of upcoming guys projects which includes many of the good, old heroes. In this case; Paolo Pigni from Mogador has invited the likes of Richard Sinclair, David Paton, Billy Sherwood, Nick Magnus, Dave Lawson and Rick Wakeman to play on a couple of tracks on this, his solo debut project.

The result is fifty five minutes of melodic prog. Or to be more precise; melodic rock. The album starts promising enough with the song The Lady Of Shalott which is a great song. The first half of the album is great. A bit fragmented and a lot of emphasis on melody instead of complex prog. It soon dawns on me that this is not an album for those of us who are into complex melody structures. The inclusion of the folk hymn My Heart Is In The Highlands more than confirms this impression. A hymn brilliantly sung by Amanda Lehman and a sure winner among those who has not already heard this song hundreds of times as I have. Fair enough and still a great song in my ears.

My gripes is not so much the quality of the songs. My gripe is that this project sounds more like a family gathering where everyone from the two months old toddlers to the grand-grand-grand fathers needs to be catered for and is required to contribute. The result sounds a bit bland in my ears. Melodic rock is not my thing as I am more seeking musical challenges in zeuhl and jazz at the moment. When this is said; this is a great melodic rock album which includes many of our heroes. Richard Sinclair even does vocals on one song here and that is well worth checking out. A weak four points has been awarded with a wish that as many as possible checks out this album.

4 points

 


Wednesday 21 August 2013

Montefeltro - Il Pesce Rosso......... (2001)



The second album from this Italian symph prog band.

I was not particular impressed by their first album. An album far better than this one, though. On Il Pesce Rosso...., they play a form of college indie rock with some Italian symph prog thrown in too. That and some Genesis too. The Italian vocals is not that good. A kind of a jarring light voice who sounds like a mix of female and male vocalist. Not good at all and very one dimensional. The instruments are pretty thin too with some guitars, keyboards, drums and bass. The result is an indie rock sound.

None of the pretty long songs are that good either. There are some good melody lines scattered around. But that is all. This is though a pretty decent album which is not living up to the great band name and album title.

2 points

Thursday 15 August 2013

Gentle Giant - The Missing Piece (1977)



The ninth album from these masters of prog rock. Their music fascinates me. This album though is the first of their final three albums. The beginning of a slippery slope to their end.

The album starts with the very good Two Weeks In Spain before it continues with the hymn like I'm Turning Around which is by far the best song on this album. The opening song, the above mentioned  Two Weeks In Spain is the second best song here. The rest of the album is not that really great though. The only really good other song is the seven minutes long Memories Of Old Days.

Gentle Giant never makes boring and/or dull music. They are always on the money. But their emphasis on more simpler song structures is not what I want to hear from them. There is not that much food for my brain on this album. It is still a good album from this great band.

3 points

Cooperativa Del Latte - Il Risveglio (1998)



A four piece Italian band with their one and only album. An album released before symphonic prog made it's comeback again. Which is a bit of a pity.

A pity because this album and band would had fitted well into the latest renaissance of this scene. We are talking classic, romantic symphonic Italian prog here with plenty of great Italian vocals, flute, guitars, keyboards, bass and drums. The keyboards has this 1970s sound and ditto for the other instruments too.

The result is a lush, very lush album with a lovely sound but no great songs. The lack of any great songs is my only gripe with this album. I still think it is a very good album though as I am a fan of the Italian scene. I love the sound on this album and the album art work. I would not mind at all if this band reformed again and made their second album.

3.5 points

Monday 12 August 2013

Dynamo Bliss - Poplar Music (2013)



The second album from this Swedish band who has chosen to release their albums for free.

Dynamo Bliss have all the major labels signing qualities on this album. They have really gone down the Beatles, west coast, 10cc and ELO route on this album. Funky, happy pop music. Perhaps even rock music too. The music is light and very catchy. So much that it is difficult not to smile at this album.

There is plenty of small interesting details produced with Hammond organs and keyboards, guitars, bass, drums and vocals on this album. The vocals are great and very much fitting in with this surf sound. The sound is excellent too. This is by no means my type of music. But I am charmed enough by this album to consider it a very good album. Download link below.

3.5 points

The album


Sunday 11 August 2013

I.ab - Counting (2012)



The debut album from this cryptic name which is the US composer A Brown with hired hands.

We are deep into contemporary AOR here with college rock and Queensryche like metal thrown into the mix too. There are plenty of piano, keyboards, guitars, bass, drums and vocals in the mix. The sound is pretty dry and somewhat dark. The songs are pretty hard too without being progressive metal.
The songs are in the five minutes long mark and this album clocks in around the seventy minutes mark. Which unfortunate seems to be the norm  these days as a much punchier, shorter approach would had been a much better approach. The LP format has it's advantages.

The vocals is good. This album sometime explodes and comes to life. Those moments are more flashes in the pan though. As a debut album, A Brown is setting out the stall and I hope he get some returns from his efforts and financial investments. This album falls into the contemporary, slightly commercial market. I wish him all the best. For me, this is a decent album which I find too dull and uninteresting. My main gripe is simply the lack of good songs. The occasional flashes aside, the music is too generic and it does not really grips me. Hence my lack of enthusiasm.

2 points


Saturday 10 August 2013

Ponty. Jean Luc - King Kong: Jean Luc Ponty Plays the Music of Frank Zappa (1969)



My first ever encounter with a Jean Luc Ponty solo album although I know his violin from many of my favourite albums. So it is about time to check out his solo albums.

This is not a Jean Luc Ponty album per see. It is much more a Frank Zappa album as he is the conductor, the composer and the producer. The album is also pretty much in his spirit and very avant-garde at times. It starts promising with a lot of fusion and I am thinking that I am in for something like I have heard on his other albums. It soon takes a sudden left turn and goes into solid Frank Zappa territory.

Avant garde in other words with dense music which reminds me a lot about RIO bands like Aranis. Much of this music is modern classical music too. Not much fusion in other words and not much Jean Luc Ponty either. Instead, we get a lot of musicians (10+), instruments and noises.

The music is not too bad. But it is not exactly good either. Sometimes, avant garde music does not make much sense. This album is one of them. It is a decent album nevertheless which slightly disappoints me. Onwards to a more proper solo album in my quest to find the soul of this man.

2 points

Magma - Ëmëhntëhtt Ré (2009)



The kind of comeback album from Magma after some years in hiatus. It is their eleventh album in total too.

Magma finally went back to the more bombastic, darkened sound they had on their first albums. Although in a more stripped down version. They sounds a bit like Shub Niggurath on this album. That though with some funky and jazzy rhythms in the background. Ëmëhntëhtt-Ré is a pretty dark album with female soprano vocals and male vocals too.

I have to admit I have some reservations against this album. The music is simply not that great and it does not hit me in solar plexus as much as K.A and their earlier stuff. It is still a very good album though and I would recommend it.

3.5 points

Amon Düül II - Vortex (1981)



Their twelfth album if I am not much mistaken.

The band had dispersed with the krautrock many albums ago and went on a more traditional rock path. On Vortex, the band had gone halfway back to krautrock, sounding a lot like Jefferson Airplane. A lot of this due to Renate Knaup's vocals.

The result is a space rock tinged west coast rock album. Still not enough space rock to really interest me. But this album is an improvement on their previous albums. It is a decent album who still falls well short of my expectations from this band.

2 points

Trion - Funfair Fantasy (2013)



The third album from this band which is a cooperation between members from Flamborough Head and Odyssice. A Dutch band in other words.

Trion is an all instrumental band who drenches their music with mellotrons, flutes, keyboards, drums and bass. A lot like Camel, Greenslade and Genesis in other words. This band's reason to be is to honour those bands, according to themselves.

Funfair Fantasy is very much in this tradition. After a pretty strong opening with some good symphonic prog, this fifty-three minutes album tails of at the end with some pretty uninteresting tracks. Tracks in the shopping mall tradition. That is my gripe with this album. There is not much good music here to carry it through the whole album and the border between symphonic prog aka Camel and plain lounge and even shopping mall music is a bit blurred here. In short; I don't find much great music here.

When that is said, this is a good album in the Camel/Greenslade tradition. An album also fans of Anglagard will like a lot. If this is your type of music, this album should be purchased.

3 points

Friday 9 August 2013

Pooh. I - Opera Seconda (2012)



Gosh, I did not know anyone would make music like this any longer !

I Pooh is an Italian pop band who released a couple of prog rock like albums back in the 1970s. That including their first rock opera back in 1971. I guess this album is a follow up to that album, 42 years later. Inbetween, the band has released around 20 other pop albums.

When I mean pop, I mean Italian pop. The likes of pop you get in the Melody Grand Prix. The kind of pop performed with a symphony orchestra and a male vocalist on the top of it. That and some electric guitars, bass, keyboards and drums discrete in the background. I Pooh is the prototype of this kind of music. Go to Youtube and check them out.

I should really, really hate Opera Seconda. I should had awarded this one point and told you how much I despise this album. And the symphony orchestra treatment is like watching dinosaurs in full flow. Somehow, I actually like this album. The overall quality of the music is good with a couple of great songs. And Roby Facchinetti's vocals is great. The opera has a good theme running through it. I really find myself liking this album at the same time as I am questioning my own sanity. Am I mad ?

I am perfectly sane and well. This is actually a good one hour long album well worth checking out. I award it three weak points. On a second thought, I am taking it down half a point because of the sugary sweet symphony orchestra sound which is too much for my sensitive tastebuds.

2.5 points

Thursday 8 August 2013

Kotebel - Omphalos (2006)



Oh dear. This band's music is so difficult to review.

To start with the cold facts first: This is the fourth album from this Spanish band. Their music is a mix of symphonic prog, classical music and symphonic Italian prog. The instruments used is cello, violins, guitars, keyboards, drums, bass and soprano vocals. The sound is very organic and a mix of classical music and rock.

Carolina Prieto's stunning soprano vocals gives the band it's focal point and trademark. The flutes is their other focal point. They also uses some prog metal like electric guitars with power chords and all. That as a contrast to the more classical music pieces here. There is also a very strong element of Italian progressive rock here.

The result is an album which flows and ebbs very nicely, thank you. There is no real great pieces of music here. But I really appreciate this highly original piece of music, this album. This is the best album so far from this band and I find it at times very fascinating and a very good album. One you should check out.

3.5 points

Zaum - Plus De Viande Dans Les Saucisses (2013)



The second album from this Italian band whose music I have never really understood.

Zaum has been compared a lot to Area. I agree with that comparison. The difference is that Zaum has a female vocalist with a thin voice which adds a lot to their sound and gives the band it's own identity. Their music is a mix of jazz, space and folk rock.

So far so good...... My problems is that I still don't think the songs are anywhere interesting on this album. Their mix of jazz, folk and space is incoherent and jars with my ears. They sounds like a nerdy college hall band in my ears. The sound is also not that good with the vocals far too much in the background in the mix.
But most of all; there are not any good songs here. I am afraid this is only a decent album in my estimations. Sorry.

2 points

Argos - Circles (2010)



The second album from this German neo prog band.

Neo prog is a slightly misleading label on this album. The keyboards-guitars-bass-drums-vocals setup is the typical neo prog and...... OK, this is neo prog. But with a twist. A dark one.

The vocalist tries to phrase his words and voice like if he was David Bowie. Then he switches over to Peter Hammill too. A mix of those too. The music automatic becomes a bit gloomy and dark because of his great vocals. His name is Robert Gozon btw. Praised be the one who deserve praise. Robert Gozon does that.

The rest of the music is a mix of Van Deer Graaf Generator and standard neo prog. The quality is good throughout. The only gripe I got with this album is the lack of any great songs. But I have to say I have really enjoyed this album on both buses, trains and at home. Get some more moog and melotrons and I would have loved this album even more. Check it out if you are a fan of Areknames and/or VDGG. Or if you like good neo prog.

3.5 points

Tuesday 6 August 2013

Dalton - Riflessioni: Idea D'Infinito (1973)



The debut album from this Italian band. A band I thought was a beat band. But I got the wrong Dalton. The other Dalton was indeed a beat band.

Thankfully, I got the wrong band as Riflessioni: Idea D'Infinito is quite a delightful mix of Jethro Tull and PFM. The heavy flutes has clearly been adapted from Jethro Tull. The Italian symphonic prog comes from their heritage and hearts. A very potent mix of rural England and Italy. A mix that really works well.

The Italian pop stuff here serves as a contrast to the heavy flutes. The vocals is great. The sugar sweet sound not my thing. The sound is very Italian though and comes with the territory.

The end result is an album which is full of light and shades. Of good songs and character. Of life. Of the mixture of harder blues and folk rock songs and light Italian pop. It is a good album without any great songs, but who still works well.

3 points

Wally - Montpellier (2010)



The triumphant return of Wally from Harrogate, Yorkshire in England.

Wally released two highly original albums back in 1974 (Wally) and 1975 (Valley Gardens). They also did the Reading festival on the same bill as Soft Machine and the other greats from that time. Then they disbanded.

Wally very much had their own sound back then and I have yet to hear anyone copy them. Their two country & western influenced symphonic prog albums needs to be heard to be believed. They are two good albums too and I am a happy owner of both of them.

Wally has returned again and they got a huge welcome with BBC TV (Yorkshire regional news) interviews and packed out gigs. They still have a pretty considerable following. I guess they would be pleased with this album too. Rather, they probably have got a larger following with Montpellier than they ever had. Their packed out gigs tells it's own story.

It would be too much to ask for the repeat of their first two albums. Wally has indeed largely abandoned that sound and music. Montpellier is a foray into the landscape between Pink Floyd and Dire Strait. Add some blues and Americana to the mix too and you get this album. The vocals is very good. The vocals in the top of some tasty Hammond organs, steel guitars, violins, drums, keyboards, guitars and bass. The sound is great and the album has a great live feeling.

I am by no means a fan of this type of music. But Montpellier is actually an album I really like. Wally really tries very hard to release an album they and their families can be proud of. They have succeeded in this. It is not hitting it's target in my home. My usual gripe is the lack of any killer tracks. The positives is the good songs and the great sound. I am enjoying this album from one of England's hidden gems. Wally deserve a lot more respect than they have been given so far. Respect and love hereby given.

3.5 points 


Monday 5 August 2013

King Crimson - Live in Central Park, NYC, 1974 (2000)



One of the 50+ fanclub live album released during the last thirteen years. All of them with a rather dubious sound quality. They are still very interesting.

What can I say about this band I have not said before ? I regard King Crimson as one of the best and most interesting bands of all time. I rate them just below Led Zeppelin and The Beatles.
The lineup on this gig is John Wetton, Robert Fripp, Bill Bruford and David Cross. The songs are some of my all time favourite KC songs. Larks Tongue and Starless is great on this album. The rest of the songs are good too.

There is no denying that the sound, the bad sound that is, quite severely limits my enjoyment of this album. I still like this album a lot and finds it a good album. The qualities of this band shines through despite of the sound. Check out this album.

3 points

Zenit - The Chandrasekhar Limit (2013)



The third album from this Swiss neo prog band.

Zenit is one of those bands who operate somewhere between straight pop/rock and the likes of Pink Floyd. Throw in some early Marillion and you get the picture. The songs are pretty long with a twenty-five minutes long suite closing this seventy minutes long album. The setup is the normal neo prog setup with tonnes of keyboards, guitars, bass and drums. That and some good vocals.

The problem with this album is the blandness. Nothing offensive and nothing that really makes me sit up and listen. The album meanders nicely to the end. A long and pretty dull instrumental part in the middle of this album makes it hard to keep awake too. This album is like being put on a spice and salt free diet by a doctor. No bite and not much taste either.

When that is said, this is not a bad album. It just does not cut the mustard in a market overflowing with new neo prog albums at the moment. This is an album for those who likes their neo prog more ambient than full of actions. It is a decent to good album.

2.5 points

Sunday 4 August 2013

Ontofield - Sleeping With Fractals (2013)



Ontofield is the artist name for the English musician John Graham. He also plays all instruments and does the vocals on this album, his debut album.

We are deep into the English prog rock landscape here. The green, green fields of neo prog to be more precise. This album sounds very much like 10cc, RPWL (yes, they are Germans), Frost, Fish, Marillion and Supertramp. The sound and music is not particular symphonic. It is much more verse-chorus-verse orientated. The music is performed by samples, keyboards, guitars, bass and drums. The vocals sounds forced and a bit of a job for both his doctor and the vocals coach. They are very good though on an album, but pretty useless on a long tour. The voice will run out on a long tour.

The end result is a pleasing neo prog album with some heavy guitars and Hammond organs adding textures to some pretty long songs. The album is over one hour long and offers good value for money. My usual gripe is the lack of any great songs. Pleasing as it is, I doubt I will remember much of this album in some weeks time. It is though a more than acceptable album and a bridgehead for further discoveries in the sonic landscape by John Graham. I wish him a good journey.

3 points

Adventure - Adventure (2000)



The debut album from this Norwegian symphonic prog band.

The band has been around since 1990 and is still very much alive. They have so far released two albums and is regarded as one of the first members of the new wave of Norwegian prog. A scene mainly consisting of symphonic prog bands.

Adventure is an album which bridges symphonic prog and the more progressive metal scene. The production is pretty weak and ditto for the sound. This album sounds a bit homemade. The music has it's roots in Yes and Genesis. Standard symphonic prog with lots of Hammond organs and guitars, in other words.

There are no real good songs here and the end result is a decent album which will perhaps please the die hard symphonic prog fans. This album is an enjoyable listen, but nothing more.

2 points

Flaud Logic - Flaud Logic (2013)



The debut album from this US band.

Flaud logic may mean flawed logic. Which may describe the music on this album. Music which is all over the place. From Dream Theater like riffs to female fronted prog to Caravan, Pink Floyd, AOR to Yes and Genesis. This album visits most bands and most genres.

Playful prog rock is probably the right label on this album which surely will give more reviewers than myself a lot of scratched heads......... and joy. The band has clearly set out to have fun and to explore their favourite music genres. That does not make great albums though. Or for that matter; good reviews. This album is a genre smashing album where all genres becomes one genre. Where Chick Corea like piano solos sits side by side with Dream Theater guitar riffs.

And yes, this album is also very cheesy in the typical American way. Self-restraints is not a trait the Americans is most known for. Flaud Logic has pushed the boat out and released a typical American prog album. It is as big as USA itself. It has as many diverse communities as USA itself. It is as impossible to describe as USA. It is still a good album which may require some years to fully digest.

3 points

Di Meola. Al - Elegant Gypsy (1977)



His second album and perhaps the album where he really established his sound and niche in the music world.

Enter the Spanish guitars. A considerable chunk of this album is Al Di Meola and his Spanish guitar. The rest is he playing his electric guitar. All of it with a Spanish twang and sound. Yes, and Django Reinhardt of course. The gypsy king who laid down the rules for guitar playing as we know it today.
In addition to Al Di Meola's guitars, we also get some excellent bass, drums and keyboards.

The result is a very good fusion album. A very Spanish album, yes. That adds class and style to this album. I am missing some killer tracks here as I find the material slightly underwhelming. It is still a recommended album.

3.5 points

Saturday 3 August 2013

Klaatu - Hope (1977)



The second album from this rather strange Canadian trio. A band who many people thought were The Beatles in disguise. They were wrong.

On Hope, Klaatu goes concept album and a kind of a rock opera. It is probably a rock opera too. There is a lot of classical music here. There is also a lot of The Beatles anno Sgt Peppers Heart Club too. Not to mention The Moody Blues, Van Der Graaf Generator, Supertramp and ELO.

Hope is a very complex album and a very big piece of meat to bite over. Too complex and fragmented, many will say. I am missing some great songs here and a bit more unity in the material here. The classical music orchestration effect is also wearing a bit thin here. A bit more tidying up on the album and getting rid of the things that does not work would had done this album a lot of good.

My displeasures aside; Hope is one of the more undervalued albums out there. Ditto for Klaatu as a band. A band I rate pretty highly. Hope is a very good album which deserves a lot more listeners. Check it out.

3.5 points


Jethro Tull - Stormwatch (1979)



Their twelfth album.

Jethro Tull is back again with a more rock orientated folk rock. More pop/rock than folk rock, it has to be said. I very much prefer their concept laden symph prog albums than their pure folk rock albums.

The sound is good and Ian Anderson sings as good as he has always done. A classical orchestra has been added to their sound and there are several instrumentals here. Most of them watered out. Watered out is the theme here. The real Jethro Tull has been watered out by more commercial accessible tunes.

The opening track is very good and there are some other very good songs here too. The lack of any great songs is my main gripe together with my grumbles listed above. This is by no means a bad album. But it is not among my favourite Jethro Tull albums.

3 points 

Friday 2 August 2013

Agents Of Mercy - The Fading Ghosts of Twilight (2009)



The debut album from this The Flower Kings related band.

Roine Stolt and Ned Sylvan is the duo who hides behind this name. They get help from numerous other musicians too. Most of them associated with The Flower Kings. This explains why Agents Of Mercy sound so much like The Flower Kings on this album. I would put them somewhere between The Flower Kings and Genesis anno Duke. Those and Kaipa on their last three albums.

The music on The Fading Ghosts of Twilight is pretty familiar and I ask myself if we really need this band. When that is said, the music on this album is actually good. Familiar and good. There is nothing revolutionary here, music and sound wise. I still like this album despite of the music being a tad too sugary sweet for my musical tastebuds. Nevertheless......

3 points