Quaterna Requiem - O Arquiteto (2012)

The fourth album from this Brazil based band.

We are deep into symphonic prog again. Instrumental symphonic prog with violins, bass, keyboards, drums and guitars. There is no vocals here at all.

The violin are the first element of this band I notice. Jean Luc Ponty is the master of violins. He does not play on this record though and the band use the violin in a less technical capacity than he and Mahavishnu Orchestra used it. The music is rather leaning towards classical music and folk rock than fusion and jazz.

The keyboards and guitars are also pretty much present here. But the violin is the dominating instrument on this album. That sets it apart from most albums I have heard lately and most albums released during the last years.

Most things are right here. That is; the band has missed the trick of writing great tracks. There is none here. The album is ticking nicely over at seventy five minutes and is offering good value for money. Great value if this is your kind of music. Check it out if it is. If not; well, still check it out.

3 points

Pandora - Alibi Filosofico (2013)

Their third album.

Pandora is an Italian symphonic prog band. One of the new Italian symphonic prog bands and it is lead by Beppe Colombo, Corrado Grappeggia and Claudio Colombo. On this album, they have got help from Arjen Lucassen, Dino Fiore from Castello Di Atlante and David Jackson from VDGG. That among many others as Pandora has really pushed the boat out on this album and gone for a very big sound. An orchestral opera sound.

We are really talking symphonic here as in big, complex and non-melodic classical opera. That is what this album is. It is almost zeuhl at places. It kind of feels like zeuhl too. This music also has a chamber rock feel and a opera feel too. It is an album who in many ways has left the rock genre behind and sought out the classical music and opera for a new home. This is an opera.

The end result is a very complex album who kicks in all direction. It is an album where complex overrules melodic. Unfortunate, the quality is not as great as I had hoped. That even after almost two months of listening to it as I got this as a promo download.

For me; this is only a good album with some sporadic very good stuff. There are also some less good stuff here. Alibi Filosofico should appeal to those who prefer complex music instead of great melodies and hooks. I want both complex and melody and this album is just giving me one of those two preferences.

3 points

Madrugada - Incastro (1977)

The second and final album from this Italian band.

The debut album was a decent Italian prog album. It had least a concept. Their follow up, Incastro, is all over the place, though.

Take some avant-garde, some krautrock, some Italian pop, some blues, some mindless twiddling of some knobs in the studio and some rock. Make sure the quality is poor and give it a lifeless flat sound. Voila, you get an album like this. I am not impressed at all with this sound collage. Avoid this album and their first album too unless you need everything released by Italian bands.

1 point

Mother Black Cap - The English Way (2009)

The second album from this English prog band.

I was pretty happy about their first album from 2006. An album with a lot of symph prog. The band has gone native English on their follow up, the fifty minutes long The English Way. Most of the symph prog has gone and has been replaced with a lot of Caravan like rock. The music is pretty jazzy at time with a Hammond organ driving the music on. There is also a lot of folk rock here and a lot of Pink Floyd. Wally is still a good comparison too.

Lyrics wise, this album is a journey through the green and pleasant England. A kind of their take on the hymn Jerusalem. And the band is spot on. England is a beautiful part of the world and worthy an album or hundred. I fully agree with the band here although I am living north of the border in Scotland.

The first six songs are decent to good. Unfortunate, the vocals is not particular good throughout. Then we have this eighteen minutes long title track. A song starting with some sterling great guitars before a piano chips in and then the vocalists hits the extents of his talents and over stretch himself. I agree with the lyrics here as I am a middle aged man myself who often despair about the way the world is going. The vocals is at times pretty disharmonic to be honest. And a review has to be honest. The eighteen minutes is also a bit of a mess and is not really that good. Most of these eighteen minutes is a detour into pub rock and football terrace singing. Cringe worthy is the name of the game although I suspect it is a favorite song on their pub gigs in England.

In short; this album has some good stuff and some less good stuff. It is a decent to good album which does not really lives up to it's billing as a great English prog rock album.

2.5 points

The band 

Amenophis - You & I (1988)

The second and final album from this German band.

Their self-titled first album was a rather good symphonic prog album. Very little is left of that album on this, the follow up album. They have got a female vocalist who share the vocalist duties with a male vocalist. The sound is very much in the 1980s spirit of things. A bit plastic, synthetic sound.

The music is rather all over the place with some very light hearted pop which falls flat on it's face. There are some ELP like melody lines here too. Some parts of the music reminds me about Renaissance at their Tuscanny era. The rest of the music is rather radio-jingle like with some rather cheesy melodies and licks. That and some blues stuff.

The end result is a poor album which leaves me rather sad. There is nothing really here to be happy about. This album is a turkey and it does not fly. Avoid.

1 point

Maze Of Time - Tales From The Maze (2006)

The debut album from this Swedish band.

We are in a somewhat symphonic prog landscape here. A bit like Genesis on the Trick Of The Trail album. A bit pop-rock like, straying of the symphonic prog path into a more commercial landscape.

The music is delivered by guitars, keyboards, drums, bass and vocals. All of it competent delivered. The music is a bit light and not that complex. It is complex enough to keep my interest in it. The band has not fallen for the temptation to copy the rather melancholic and dark Scandinavian symphonic prog sound either. They sound slightly like The Flower Kings at times. But not so much that it is noticed that much.

The end result is a good album which is lacking a killer track or two to make it really great. It is a good start and I hope their two other albums is worthy my purchase of them. Reviews to follow in due time.

3 points

Ficcion - Sobre El Abismo (2002)

The debut album from this band from Venezuela who has so far released three albums. I reviewed their new album Sobre La Ira De Dios some months ago.

Their new album is an instrumental ELP inspired album. Sobre El Abismo on the other hand is a different kettle of fish again. There is still some ELP here. But the main body of this album is Latin-American fusion with Spanish pop vocals. Sophisticated jazz with a laid back sound and a cool ambience. There is tonnes of cool keyboards here. The bass is rampant, the drums follows suit and the vocalist is great. This is a sunny album.

The quality is very good with some really great keyboards and bass runs. It also has some nice details too. It is an album I really enjoys and very much removes the bad taste their new album has left in my mouth.

If I ever go to a beach in South America or even Florida, I will bring this album with me and listen to it. It would be a perfect companion to sand, bikini girls, cool water, beach volleyball and sun. Even in a rather cold home office in freezing cold Scotland, this is a very good album which lacks a killer track or two to be rated any higher. Check it out.

3.5 points

Tangent. The - The Music That Died Alone (2003)

Mirror, mirror on the wall...... who is the best post millennium British prog rock band ?

The Music That Died Alone is the debut album from The Tangent. At that time, a super group which included Roine Stolt, David Jackson, Jonas Reingold, the later prolific musician Guy Manning and this band's primus motor; Andy Tillison.

In short; veteran Swedish eccentrics meets veteran English eccentrics and forms a band. The result is a blend of Swedish prog rock (Read: Kaipa and The Flower Kings) and English prog rock. In particular; the Canterbury scene and the symph prog scene.

To claim that The Music That Died Alone is a debut album is disputable with the decades of experience between the musicians here. The Tangent and this album is what the musicians has got out of their experience.

The result is a forty five minutes long album divided on three long pieces of music. The music is very melodic and epic at the same time. It is not an album that puts the emphasis on twists and turns. It is still a very interesting and captivating album. One with a lot of details and poise. One with superb melodies. It is one stunning album.

Andy's vocals is great. The rest of the band is doing a superb job too. It is an album that heralds a new era and a new band. A band which is one of the best bands in today's prog rock scene. One of the five best bands, that is. I am a fan and one of the reasons is this album. It is highly recommended.

4.5 points

Luley. Johannes - Tales From Sheepfather's Grove (2013)

The debut album from Johannes Luley, the ex leader of the critically acclaimed US symph prog band Moth Vellum.

Johannes Vellum is a multi instrumentalist and guitarist. He has hired in three vocalists, two male and one female + a harp player for this album. An album which comes across as a crossover between folk prog and symph prog. The music is sometimes bordering to new age with some celtic prog connotations too. The sound is light and flowery. It is pretty soothing for frayed nerves.

The music is also a mix of long instrumentals and songs. Creating a mood is one of the main themes here. That more than writing effective, great songs and/or melodies.

Johannes Luley is walking into a very difficult landscape on this album. A landscape only Kompendium has succeeded in the last years. Johannes Luley is only partly successful with this album. A good album without any really great tracks. It is a weak three pointer in my estimations. A good album in other words and one to build on. It is a debut album after all.

3 points   

Fruitcake - One More Slice (1997)

The fourth album from this Norwegian neo prog band.

It is a bit sad that everyone who praise the new wave of Norwegian prog rock seems to forget this band. In many ways, it laid down the groundwork for the bands who has followed them. But they have never been credited for that. There is no justice in this world.

One More Slice marks a shift from neo prog to a more symphonic prog direction. The guitars are heavy and ditto for the keyboards. The sound is bigger than before. Unfortunate; the vocals are very poor. Sorry Pal Sovik, but you sing worse than a black crow. This is an album destroyed by his vocals, to put it bluntly.

The music itself is very good and it sometimes breaks into some great melody lines. Unfortunate punctuated by some vocals which makes me cringe.

Nevertheless; this is a good album well worth checking out. Hells Kitchen is a great song too from this undervalued and ignored band.

3 points

Mona Lisa - Grimaces (1975)

The second album from this French band who is by now turning into the band they were mostly known as. A band in the Ange modus.

We are talking theatrical symphonic prog here. Although with a lot more folk prog than I am used to by this band though. The Jaqcues Brel and Genesis influences is still here. But some more Bretagne like folk rock is also present here.

Mona Lisa is more theatrical than Ange in many respect. Dominique Le Guennec sounds even more theatrical than Christian Descampes. Mona Lisa takes this style to excess on this album and looses the melodies in the process. There is no great songs on this album. Despite of that, the music is good. But it lacks the melodic qualities they later developed on the two following albums.

This is a good album and well worth checking out for those into French symphonic prog.

3 points

Gandalf - Erdenklang & Sternentanz (2011)

The 28th album from the Swiss project Gandalf, Heinz Stobl's chosen artist name.

It is a bit difficult for me to write anything about Gandalf as I deeply respect Heinz Stobl and his fans. The problem is that I am listening to this album which is supposed to be great.

OK, let me describe the music here. I will try my best, that is. We are deep into new age land here. Ambient soundscapes which serves as balsam on his fans souls. The music is performed with guitars, keyboards and strings. The music has a soothing feeling, bridge over troubled water sort of music. I am not referring to the Simon & Garfunkel song here, btw.

For me, the music is too ambient and too pedestrian. In particular in the beginning. The final part of this album has a lot more substance, a lot more symphonic prog feel. I like that.

For me, this is only a decent album because I am not into this type of music. I am a curious cat and likes to check out Gandalf too although it is not my cup of tea. Fans of this type of music should check out this album.

2 points 

Landscape - Staring At Utopia (2012)

A Dutch trio, formed in 1997, finally release their debut album.

One of the members of this trio is Sandra Smit, a female vocalist. The other members are Dennis Stant on guitars and Joris Wittenberg on bass, sax and synth. They are helped out by a drum machine and a St Bernhards dog with a keg of brandy. OK, I just made that one up. But you get the picture. Female fronted art rock/neo prog in the same vein as Touchstone and Mostly Autumn. That is; without the celtic influences. There is none in Landscape's music.

Their music is a bit hard, commercial and pretty complex. Complex to be a trio. Then again; Rush is a trio. Landscape's music is also complex and symphonic. Sandra's voice is very good without being the best in the scene. Besides of that, this album has the usual female fronted music. A mix of harder music and a couple of ballads. The usual fare.

The end result is a good album which breaks no new ground, but still upholds the good female fronted prog standard. I think this album is worth a lot more attention than it has got so far as it would please everyone into female fronted prog.

3 points

The band 

Tai Phong - Tai Phong (1975)

The debut album from this French band who altogether released four albums.

The strange name Tai Phong comes from the fact that the band was lead by two Vietnamese brother. Vietnam was as we know a previous French colony.

Neither this album or Tai Phong sounds like a French symphonic prog band. I would compare them to Novalis, Barclay James Harvest and Camel. A mix of art rock and symphonic prog rock.

This album includes a sort of a smash hit song in the form of Sister Jane. This and the other songs are elegant rock with good vocals, great keyboards, good guitars, bass and drums. The album sounds a bit dated and very much like 1975.

The songs are reasonable good, Sister Jane being the best song here. I also like the final song Out of the Night a lot. That is an eleven minutes long symphonic prog epic. A weak good is awarded.

3 points

Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Garofano Rosso (1976)

Their fifth album, although this is not a true Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso album. It is a movie soundtrack to a movie with the same name.

Instrumental music in other words where we get some woodwinds, keyboards, guitars, bass and drums. But not their greatest asset;  Francesco Di Giacomo's vocals.

The music is somewhere between classical music, symph prog and fusion. Typical movie soundtrack in other words. The music is on the pastoral side and pretty lyrical, ballad like. But no vocals.

The music is good throughout without really impressing me. This album is an oddity which works as an instrumental album and nothing more than that. Those who want to get a taste of Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso can bypass this album.

3 points

Ken's Novel - The Guide (1999)

The debut album from this Belgium based band. Ken's Novel released two albums, I believe. I got two albums of them.

We are deep into neo prog again. Take a big slice of Pendragon, add some funk and pop and then add some Arena. The music is catchy with a great Pendragon feel. Their brand of neo prog has this British feel too. The instruments are the standard neo prog fare with keyboards, guitars, bass, drums and some good male vocals.

This album has a great deal of good music. It does not have this wow factor or even any great songs. The neo prog path is wide and well trodden. Ken's Novel never deviates from this path. It is well worth checking out this album if you think Pendragon is a great band. If not; maybe do something else with your life. I still like this album, though.

3 points

Electric Light Orchestra - Discovery (1979)

Their eight album.

The band has discovered disco and the joy of bubblegum pop. Electric Light Orchestra has always been compared to The Beatles by both John Lennon and the likes of myself. To use that analogy, Electric Light Orchestra has moved from Revolver to Please, Please Me. From 1966 to 1963.

Barry Gibb is strangely enough not mentioned in the titles on the album. But Jeff Lynne sings like him on two of the tracks. Tracks which is very much like The Bee Gees. A band who were very popular with Saturday Night Fever back in 1979. Is there a coincidence that Electric Light Orchestra suddenly sounds like them on this album ? Answers on a postcard, please.

Although the band retains some of their charm on this album, the songs are pretty poor. I still have a bit of a soft spot for their music. A far too big soft spot. This album is therefore not too bad in my ears. But still barely decent.

2 points

Nexus - Magna Fabulis (2012)

Their sixth studio album and their second album that year.

Magna Fabulis is a compilation though of the four tracks they did for the Colossus compilation albums Musea did some years ago. Already released tracks and now compiled on Magna Fabulis. A close to seventy minutes long album where the longest track is clocking in at the half an hour mark.

The music is symphonic prog in the vein of ELP. That means keyboards drenched instrumental prog with some vocals and guitars in between. Most of the music is neo-classical too. That is where the muscle heavy heroes is saving the virgins from the dragons and all that. A knight in armor on a white horse rides in to the music of this album. Some may find that great stuff.

The end result is a good album which is lacking a killer track or two. The band knows what they are doing and I have heard far worse albums in this vein than this album, this compilation album. This album is also a nice reminder why I have avoided those Colossus compilation albums. I like some soul with my prog. Not much of that is present here. Despite of that; this is a good album.

3 points 

Caillou - Caillou (2013)

The debut album from this French band.

The band is fronted by the drummer in Offering, which actually is not Christian Vander. His name is Phillipe Gleizes.

The associations with Offering and the release on Soleil Zeuhl Records has given Caillou a zeuhl connection. Which is not justified, although zeuhl fans will also find a lot interesting stuff here. Caillou is offering up one hour of hard jazz fusion with a lot of guitar and keyboards solos. References are Return To Forever, Mahavishnu Orchestra and One Shot. The music is at times dissonant and edgy. It is also sometimes melodic. I would not label this album as a melodic album though. The drummer  Phillipe Gleizes is very busy and is adding a lot of textures throughout this album. The bassist too is busy.

The end result is a jazz fusion album which reminds me a lot about the good old fusion albums from the 1970s. It has that feel. The intensity of the music on this album is a joy to behold. Ditto for the solos and the drums. This is in short a great album and probably the best jazz album of the year. A killer tune is missing, but that is my only gripe here. More of the same, please.

4 points

Magrathea - In Search of the Crystal (2006)

The fourth album from this English symph prog band.

They were sounding a lot like Genesis on the previous album Legends from 2004. On the follow up, this album, please remove "a lot" from "a lot like Genesis". They sounds like Genesis, the Peter Gabriel era. To be precise, their Lamb Lies Down On Broadway era. The difference is that Magrathea did not write as good songs as Genesis did.

The sound is very Genesis and the songs here are also good. Some of them has also stolen a bar or ten from Genesis songs. The vocals is more like The Watch than Genesis. But still with the same type of vocals delivery.

I am an unrepentant Genesis fans (Gabriel era !) and find this a good album which both amuse and entertain me. My gripes is the lack of originality and the lack of any real killer track or more. Besides of that, this is an album well worth checking out.

3 points

Viii Strada - La Leggenda Della Grande Porta (2008)

The first and so far only album from this Italian prog metal band.

La Leggenda Della Grande Porta is a one hour long album which has it's foundations in progressive metal. From those foundations, the music also makes frequent raids into Italian progressive rock. The likes of Le Orme, Banco etc etc. But the basis is always progressive metal.

The instruments here are the usual guitars, bass, keyboards, drums and vocals. Italian vocals, that is. We get frequent guitar solos in the progressive metal vein. Some songs are pretty close to Dream Theater too. Others are more of a mix of metal and symph prog.

The end result is a very good album which is an almost perfect crossover between progressive metal and Italian symphonic prog. So much that both set of fans should be very interested in this album. I hope the band are still around and ready to unleash more of the same.

3.5 points

Rain - Cerulean Blue (2004)

The album from this one man English project who has got a lot of help from others.

We are talking symphonic prog here with a lot of new age and ambient connotations too. Concept album too with a lot of narrations which gives this album a movie score feel. The frequent narrations is a bit annoying and breaks the flow of the music. Music which has got a lot of strings and other orchestral instruments. Not to mention choirs and opera vocals. There are also some normal vocals here too.

The result is a pretty melodic and soft album which is bordering to new age and ambient music at times. It still have a lot of bite and symphonic prog substance. The music is also a crossover towards classic music. The music has three legs in other words.

The result is a good album which is not lacking in ambitions. As mentioned above, the narration is one of my two gripes here. The other gripe I got is the lack of any great songs. The album is a bit wishy-washy in my ears and that even after many listening sessions. It is a good album though.

3 points

Gan Eden - Lavori in Corso (2007)

The second album from this band who is also called Giardino Delle Delizie in ProgArchives and other places.

We are deep into Italian prog here. Italian symphonic prog in the same vein as Banco, Le Orme and the other melodic symphonic bands in this scene. The album is dominated by lush keyboards and vocals. Guitars, bass and drums are also present here. The band consist of two members; Angelo Santo Lombardi and Gabriele Paganoni.

The seven songs are pretty long and the album is clocking in at one hour. The music is great on this album which floats into one song. The only odd song here is the English vocals song I Take All The Way, which sounds a bit bad grammar to me. The rest of the album is complete with lush Italian vocals.

This album is a hidden gem in the Italian symphonic prog scene and a great album. I thoroughly enjoy this album. Check it out.

4 points

Sisare - Nature's Despair (2013)

The first full album from this Finnish band after three EPs between 2008 and 2011.

Sisare started out as a death metal band before they developed into a experimental metal band in the vein of Opeth and Anathema. The music on Nature's Despair is very melodic with some djent inbetween. Hard chugging guitar riffs are in the bottom where some great vocals, bass, drums and some more melodic half-acoustic guitars floats on the surface. The music is also very post rock at times with ebbs and flows.

The sound is great and the band deliver all the goods expect from any good songs. Everything is right her except from the art of song writing. Despite of that, I quite like this pretty gloomy album. I therefore award it a weak good award. In any case; make up your own mind yourself by listen to it or download it from the link below.

3 points

The album

Medina Azahara - Arabe (1995)

Their eight album.

This band comes from an area in Spain called Andalucia which was pretty dominated by the Arabs during the middle ages. They have left behind a rich cultural heritage, including a lot of great buildings. I believe this album is about them. Maybe I am wrong.

Anyway..... You get the normal fare from this band on this album plus some Arabian pop and influences. That means Spanish hard rock and commercial rock with some folk rock in between. Their full sound with guitars and keyboards.

Their albums is a lot of hit and miss. This album is almost a hit and one of their better ones. It is still falling well short of what I would call a good album though. The Arab influences makes the music a lot better than usual. It is a decent to good album.

2.5 points 

Siiilk - Way To Lhasa (2013)

The debut album from this French band. A band consisting of members of the legendary prog combo Pulsar. In short; this band is veterans in the scene.

Siiilk (yes, three i's) has chosen to go down the Pink Floyd and ambient psychedelic indie rock. The music is very ambient at times. It is driven by acoustic guitars, some keyboards, bass, percussion and a lot of vocals. English vocals, that is. The music reminds me a lot about the modern indie scene too. The music is much more indie than progressive rock. And the music also has a lot of Asian mythical feel. A bit Indian - Tibetan feel. The album title alludes to that.

The end result is a good ambient album. My gripe is the lack of a great song, although the title track is very good. I have to admit I find this album too pedestrian for my tastes. It is still well worth checking out as it is now available through all Amazon shops or directly from their record label Musea.

3 points

Doracor - Evanescenze (2005)

The fifth album from this band who started out as one man band in the ELP style symph prog and then expanded into a proper symph prog band.

The band has had a very nice development throughout their first four albums and has now found their form and shape. That means elegant, sophisticated soft, majestic melodic symphonic prog with Italian vocals, keyboards, guitars, bass and drums. The instruments are finely balanced up towards each other and they no longer bombard us with tonnes of soulless keyboards.

The end result is a very good album who will really cheer up anyone into symphonic prog. My only gripe is the lack of a killer tune or two. There is no weaknesses here either and I am starting to really enjoy this Italian band and their music. Check them out. They may be your next favorite band.

3.5 points

Boxing Lesson. The - Big Hits (2013)

A bit of a missed hit, the purchase of this album.

I believe this is the fourth album from this Texas band. A band why operates in the contemporary rock genre. That means a mix of space rock, rockabilly, funk, glam and 1970s hard rock.

I am not a fan of this type of music at all. But this is such a lively album and it has some good songs too. The opening nine minutes long Endless Possibilities is a very good epic song which brings hope about a prog rock album. It is a false dawn, but no worries.

For those of you about to rock, this is a good album. If not, bypass this boxing lesson.

3 points

Amenophis - Amenophis (1983)

The debut album from this German symph prog band.

Their music is not easy to describe. Not easy at all. But I would put them somewhere between krautrock and Yes worship. Add Camel's guitar solos too and some new age flirting. The music is a lot ambient at the end where this album runs out of steam.

Before that, we are treated to some very good melodies and songs. The music is rather complex, based on keyboards, guitars, drums and bass. The English vocals has no German accent. Which is very strange. The vocals is very good.

I have to admit I am having problems with really forming an opinion on this album as it is so fragmented. But most of the album is very good with the final ten-twenty minutes not being so good. This is a good album from a band who in total released two albums.

3 points

Mother Black Cap - In The Comfort Of Your Own Home (2006)

A for me totally unknown English prog rock combo (from Yarmouth, Norfolk) with their debut album. This band is not even listed in ProgArchives (as per today's date) for reasons I don't really understand. Mother Black Cap is a fully fledged progressive rock band.

So we have established this is a prog rock album. A bit of neo prog with plenty of Pink Floyd, folk rock and symph prog in the vein of Genesis. Although Fruupp is a much more obvious comparison than Genesis. Take Wally too as a reference. Their music is arch typical English prog rock with apple orchards, breaded chips and cider. Eccentric English music, but also very melodic.

The long organ runs are excellent and makes me listen up. The band also offers up some good drums, bass, vocals and guitars. The almost seventy minutes long album offers up some good songs and some rather lengthy improvisation, Camel like pieces of music where the band is in a very playful mood.

My only gripe is the lack of some better songs and melodies. But nevertheless, In The Comfort Of Your Own Home is a good prog rock album from a band which is said to have released two more, far better albums than this album. Well, I like this album and I can only look forward to the two other albums. This album has been a fun meeting with this band.

3 points

 

Camel - Nude (1981)

Their eight album.

I have to admit I am probably in a minority when I confess that I am not a big fan of Camel. Their music has not really clicked with me. Their music is too slick for my taste.

Nude is from 1981 and from a period of their career which was not their greatest. Not many bands did have a great time in the 1980s. Nude has a mix of some short, more ambient new age melodies and some more poppy prog rock songs. Slick is the word best describing this album.

Please Come Home is a good song. There are also some good melodies in between the not so good stuff. I am not a fan of this album at all and it falls short of what I regard as good stuff. This album is a decent to good album which I probably will not play again until I am old, putrid and in a retirement home.

2.5 points

Lugnoro - Annorstädes (2012)

The second and so far latest album from these Swedish retro hard rockers.

Retro is the right word here. Lugnoro is a Swedish language vocals album with plenty of Hammond organs, guitars, bass and drums. The male vocals is very good. The sound is very good too. Very retro. The music is plain hard rock.

The music is also good with a lot of good licks and riffs. The songs are also pretty long, the longest clocking in on around eleven minutes. The album is well over an hour long and it offers good value for money for all retro hard rock fans. I am not one of them, but this is nevertheless a good album.

3 points

Onevoice - A Sound & Space, Agreed (2013)

The debut album from what I believe is a one man project from New York, USA.

Onevoice gives us a mix of pop rock and neo prog. The eight songs are reasonable long, on average six minutes long with some songs clocking in on the eight minutes mark. The music is based on male vocals, which get a welcome visit by a female vocalist on one of the songs, keyboards, piano, bass and drums.

The music is pretty light with a lot of vocal harmonies and poppy moods. Bohemian is what I would call this brand of pop neo prog. New York is the origin of this music and you can almost feel the pulse of this city in the music. Music which is not particular technical and taxing on the brain. Light air music is what I would label the music on this album.

The quality of this album is good. The problem is that the market is being flooded by albums and music like this now. The saving grace is that this is a free Bandcamp album and it is well worth the download. Don't expect a revolution, though. A weak good is awarded.

3 points

The album 

Sensitiva Immagine - E Tutto Comincio Cosi '76 (1998)

Another obscure Italian band from the 1970s who only released one album. The album was originally released as a tape sometimes between 1977 and 1980. Nobody knows for sure. I got the 1998 version, a CD album with bonus tracks.

We are again in Rock Progressivo Italiano territory. This CD was sold to me on the promise on Genesis adulation. I am both a fan of early Genesis and Rock Progressivo Italiano so I snapped the CD out of the fingers of the seller. I am not sure if he still got five fingers.

The seller was right on both account. This is Rock Progressivo Italiano with the Genesis sound and good Italian vocals. It also have the Rock Progressivo Italiano sound too. The sound is reasonable good, the original being a cassette and I doubt the record label got hold of the probably long erased master tapes. In short; the sound is reasonable good, but not great. It does not sound good in a big Hi-Fi system.

We get long keyboards runs and good vocal harmonies with guitars, bass and drums. The quality of the songs are not good, though. Even with the punk and disco revolution taken into account, there is a reason why this album was only released on tape. It is simply not good enough compared to the other Rock Progressivo Italiano albums from that time. This is still a decent to good album which will appeal to the Rock Progressivo Italiano fans.

2.5 points

Yes - Relayer (1974)

Their seventh album.

This album does not really need any introduction. Hence this short review.

Relayere is one of the best known prog rock albums. In quality, it is just below their best albums too. The opening twenty-two minutes long Gates Of Delirium is a masterpiece. It also incorporate the surprise radio-edit single Soon. I prefer the full Gates Of Delirium though. The final  two songs Sound Chaser and To Be Over is not brilliant though. They are still great songs and well worth inclusion on this album.

Relayer is not as dense symphonic as Tales From Topographic Oceans. It is still Yes at full symphonic prog flow.

Relayer is not as good as Close To The Edge. It is still a great album everyone should check out. Enough said.

4.5 points

Yonin Bayashi - Isshoku Sokuhatsu (1974)

The debut album from this Japanese band who released five albums between 1974 and 1979.

This is accidentally the only album I got with this band. A band which I have been assured is a hidden gem in the prog rock world. Well, Isshoku Sokuhatsu is more a hard rocking psychedelic album than a straight prog rock album.

The vocals are in Japanese and they are male vocals. Their setup is the usual keyboards, guitars, bass and drums too. The music is at times very hard rocking. Other times, it goes into Moody Blues and Barclay James Harvest territory. The sound is a psychedelic one who also borders to krautrock too. To complicate matters further, there are also some Bad Company and Led Zeppelin influences here. Not to mention Le Orme and Area influences. Confused ?

To say that this album is a colorful sound collage is an understatement. Colorful and at times pretty entertaining. It also retains a great deal of Japanese identity and style. Which makes a pretty interesting album. Interesting and at times very good. That is what this album is. A very good album and I will try to get more albums from this band. Maybe they are gem after all. Check out this very good album if you can.

3.5 points

Skeem - Skeem (2001)

The debut album from this French neo prog band. A band who has just released their second album. But first thing first.

Their debut album follows the British neo prog tradition. You get a lot of vocals, keyboards, guitars, bass and drums. The music is melodramatic with a verse-chorus-verse setup. The music also borders to pop and rock music.

The vocals is good and the musicians does a competent job. The music is not particular interesting though and does not move out of the generic neo prog territory. This is frankly a competent dull album. This is a decent album which does not give me much hope for the new album. Then again; twelve years has passed.

2 points

Flamborough Head - Looking For John Maddock (2009)

The sixth album from these Dutch neo proggers.

I really fell for them and their 2000 album Defining The Legacy. Very melodic, folk rock dominated neo prog with an English apple orchards feel. Nine years later, the band has moved onto new pastures.

Well, not entirely. The folk rock is more mixed in with instrumental symphonic prog and there are only sparse vocals on this album. Most of this album is instrumental. The melodies are performed with flutes, tin whistle, guitars, keyboards, bass and drums. Margriet Boomsma's vocals are very good and very sporadic.

Herein lays my gripe with this album. The instrumental parts are simply not that interesting. They are pretty generic and wishy washy. The few proper songs here are not particular good either. This is simply an album which is lacking in quality songs. It is a bland album and hopefully only an accident. Hence my verdict.

2.5 points

Wyatt. Robert - Rock Bottom (1974)

The second album from Robert Wyatt, a national treasure here in UK. Rightfully so.

The history behind this album is tragic. Having left Soft Machine and then establishing the rather successful Matching Mole, Robert Wyatt then falls out of a window during a party and becomes paraplegic, unable to play his drums.

Robert's voice is still alive though and ditto for his ability to write great music. He now carved out a successful career as a song writer and recording artist with these abilities. Rock Bottom is the first of these albums. An album which opens with the brilliant six and a half minutes long Sea Song. This haunting song alone is worth the whole purchase of this album. It also sets the tone for the rest of the album which is haunting personal, coming with grips with his new life as paraplegic.

The result is one of the great album where Robert were helped by the likes of Mike Oldfield and Richard Sinclair. But most of all; this is Robert Wyatt's album. A very personal album which is also a good jazz album too where Robert paints some sound collages which sounds very personal. Not to mention; great.

Rock Bottom is an iconic album and one that leaves impressions. It is maybe not a fully fledged masterpiece. It is still one well worth checking out. An album which is bound to impress you.

4.5 points

Torre Dell'Alchimista. La - Neo (2007)

Their second album and so far last sign of life.

Hopefully, this band will re-emerge again with a new album. That would be great because their two albums are really up my street.

Neo continues from their self titled debut album. That means a mix of ELP and the likes of Le Orme. In the case of this album, it starts with a Keith Emerson like bombastic keyboard run and continues down that road for a while. There are more subtle Le Orme like songs here too. But this album is not as finely balanced as their debut album. An album I love.

Neo is in my view a bit of a step back. Too much bombastic keyboards and not enough great songs. Not enough great songs in the good old Italian prog rock tradition. Not to mention; not good enough songs in the vein of their debut album. The band has also lost a lot of their Italian warmth and love on this album too. The music sounds more cold and clinical. It is still a very good album which fans of Italian prog should check out.

3.5 points

Madrugada - Madrugada (1974)

The debut album from this Italian band who only released two albums before they disappeared again.

The year is 1974 and there are still bands who release albums with this mix of pop, beat and some Italian prog. Add some jazz to the mix too. Most of all; they sounds like Caravan on their first four albums. OK, with a lot more vocals, make that Italian vocals, though. But their bass, Hammond and Rhodes keyboards and drums sounds like Caravan.

The sound quality is good and the music is based on a lot of Hammond and Rhodes keyboards, Moog, drums, percussion, bass and no guitars whatsoever. The latter one is a bit strange. The Italian vocals are good.

The same cannot be said about the songs, though. This is a decent album which may interest the Italian prog rock fans. But I think there is a good reason why this band never really got a breakthrough. Check out their youtube videos and make up your own mind.

2 points

Maschere Di Clara. Le - Anamorfosi (2011)

The debut album from this Italian avant-garde band.

Not to be confused with their countrymen La Maschere Di Cera, this band is an altogether different kettle of fish. Le Maschere Di Clara is a very noisy band which attacks the listener straight into their faces. They have taken a lot of the punk rock mentality and added that to their mix of avant-garde folk and Italian progressive rock and theater music.

The bass is harsh. Ditto for the vocals. The violins is at times disharmonic. Ditto for the piano. The music is mostly aggressive with sporadic outbreaks of nice melodies in between. Actually, this mix is 50/50 between dissonance and harmonies. The band also takes the best from the likes of Area and absorb this into their own music.

Anamorfosi is a distinct avant-garde album which should also appeal to the Italian prog rock fans. I like what I hear. My only gripe is the lack of some great melodies and ideas. This is still a good debut album which deserves a lot more attention than it has got. Check it out on the link below.

3 points

Bandcamp

Ophiucus - Ophiucus (1971)

Ophiucus was a French band who released two albums in the beginning of the 1970s. This is their debut album.

It is also an album which more sounds like a compilation of some madmen's ideas. Ideas which spans from ambient to blues. From avant-garde rock to pop. The variety of styles on this album is bewildering. The quality is not particular good either. I am not sure what this band was or what was their modus operandi.

The vocalist has a great voice. The rest of the album is very poor despite of the pretty good sound quality and art work. This is an album to both avoid and forget, though.

1 point

Metus - Source Of Life (2012)

The sixth album from the Polish composer and multi-instrumentalist Marek Juza.

I have never heard about him before. Unfortunate, I have to say. Unfortunate, not many others knows about Metus either.

Source Of Life is quite a melodic progressive tinged rock album. Marek's vocals is somewhere between David Bowie and Pete Steele (Type O Negative). But mostly David Bowie. Fans of him should really check out Metus. The lyrics are Christian too and Metus has often been described as a neo-classical Christian project. That is not the label I would use on Source Of Life, though.

The music here is pleasant and melodic rock. There are plenty of guitars and keyboards here. Ditto for piano too. Bass and drums are present too. All of it played by Marek. The music is not particular technical though. There is plenty of light and shade in the music. Not to mention gothic blackness. Type O Negative is a good reference, yes. This is indeed a mellow, melodic album.

The overall quality is good throughout. I really like the vocals and the way Marek paints the dark soundwall on this album. I wish more artists could do the same. Keep an eye on this project.

3 points

Flaming Bess - Verlorene Welt (1980)

The second album from this German symphonic prog band.

On their first two albums, those two I have heard, Flaming Bess comes across as a German's answer to Camel. Quite funky guitar lead symphonic prog.

Instrumental symphonic prog, that is. There are some German narration on this album and some female voices which is used as an instrument. Besides of guitars, plenty of electric guitars and solos, the music is also full of keyboards, bass and drums.

The end result is a pleasing good album which is easy on the ear and not too taxing on the brain. Not particular technical, in other words. I quite like this album and give it a good award.

3 points

Tempio delle Clessidre. Il - alieNatura (2013)

The second album from this band whose self titled debut album was 2010's best album and still one of my alltime favourite albums.

We are deep into Rock Progressivo Italiano again. Since the debut album, the excellent vocalist Stefano Lupo Galifi from Museo Rosenbach has left the band and returned to a revitalised Museo Rosenbach. The place behind the microphone has been taken over by Francesco Ciapica. Nobody can replace Stefano, one of Italy's alltime best vocalists. But Francesco Ciapica is a very inspired choice and he does a superb job on this album.

The music on alieNatura is in the same area as their debut album and bands like Museo Rosenbach. That means theatrical symphonic, complex epic Italian progressive rock with great songs, make that compositions. They sounds a lot more gothic on this album than on their debut album.

alieNatura is not as good as the debut album. But this is still a great album which cement their position as one of the best new Italian bands. If not the best new Italian band.

4 points

Mona Lisa - L'Escapade (1974)

The debut album from this French band whose albums Le Petit Violon de Monsieur Grégoire and Avant Qu'il Ne Soit Trop Tard made them a household name in the French symph prog scene.

Mona Lisa's symphonic prog is very much in the same vein as Ange and Genesis. Very theatrical and symphonic. On this, their debut album, they sets out their stall with this music. The sound is pretty poor and the music is not particular great. Or not even good.

The French vocals is very good here. The Hammond organ is very good too. The sound is not good at all and kind of drowns out this album. A remaster would had improved this album a lot and presented it in all it's well hidden glory.

This is a decent to good album which only fans of French symphonic prog should check out.

2.5 points

Magrathea - Legends (2004)

The third album from these English symph prog rockers and my first meeting with their music.

This and their last album has been kicking around in my collection for some years without catching my interest. Magrathea is one of the more unknown bands in the scene as they are not exactly shouting from the rooftops. They should !

Their music is good old Genesis from the Peter Gabriel era. The sound, that is. Their sound is more neo prog than moog and melotrons symphonic prog. Their keyboards sound is more contemporary than retro. Ditto for their guitars, bass and drums sound. The vocals are good.

I like the sound a lot and the melodies sometimes kicks in with some great melody lines. Unfortunate, most of the music is good to very good though. Which is a bit frustrating as I would have loved to rate this album higher. The songs are simply not good enough. But fans of Genesis should check out this band and this very good album.

3.5 points

Dr No - El Bufo De La Cort (2003)

A one of album Spanish project with members from Harnakis.

We are in neo prog land again. Just like Harnakis was a neo prog band. No coincidence, btw. The music is heavy laden with keyboards and guitars. The neo prog sound is the English one. The vocals are Spanish. The music sounds as a mix of a lighter version of Marillion, the Fish era, and Genesis, the two first Collins albums.

The album starts out as Marillion light and it is pretty poppy and light on substance. Some Spanish pop music shines through. The final songs are more symphonic and heavy. There are also some long instrumentals in the middle of this album. Another trademark on this album is the long guitar solos. The vocals is not particular good though. They are the weakest point on this album. A more prolific vocal would had done some wonders for this album.

The songs are good though and it is quite an enjoyable album which really never raises it's head over the good status. It is well worth checking out if Harnakis is your thing.

3 points

Mostly Autumn - Music Inspired By The Lord Of The Rings (2001)

Is this a Mostly Autumn album or not ? Anyway, this is their fourth album.

It is also a pretty big diversion from their previous albums. What we get on Music Inspired By The Lord Of The Rings is a lot of instrumentals. All of them classical music inspired. There is not much Heather Findlay here or celtic folk music. The music is mostly orchestral instrumentals with a full orchestral sound. Sometimes with some male and female vocals. A couple of compositions here sounds like Pink Floyd and there is even a couple of hard rocking songs here.

This album sounds like a stop gap album which should not be taken as a serious Mostly Autumn album. I am by no means impressed by this album. It is in my view neither interesting or good. Nevertheless, it is a decent album and barely that. Avoid it if you want a proper Mostly Autumn album.

2 points