Samurai Of Prog. The - The Imperial Hotel (2014)

The third album from this multi-national band. 

The band includes a multitude of musicians from the likes of Anglagard, Kenso, Glass Hammer, Resistor and many other bands. The core of the band is from Finland and they are a three piece. The lineup is a multitude of instruments.  

This is their first album with original material after having released two albums with mainly cover versions. And yes, we are somewhere in the symphonic prog land. The title track is half an hour long.

Take a good chunk of Yes, Kaipa, Genesis, Glass Hammer and The Flower Kings. That is when you get this band. A band who are an unashamed pastisj of these bands and other symphonic prog bands.

The music is not copycat music. It is very, very inspired by the music of the greatest symphonic prog bands. That is something they have not denied. The music is though written by the band and stands proudly on it's own feet.

An the music is mainly very good too. The opening track After The Echoes is a great track, the eight minutes of it. Ditto for large parts of the title track. There are some not so good stuff here too. This is therefore a very good album well worth checking out.

3.5 points

Ave Rock - Ave Rock (1974)

The debut album from this Argentinian band who went on to release in total two albums.

The band was a five piece band with a lineup of keyboards, guitars, bass, drums and vocals. Spanish vocals, that is.

The sound is as expected from an album from 194. It is pretty raw, but still pretty good. They had a good studio and the album sounds good to me. 

The music has been labeled as eclectic in ProgArchives. I am not so sure about that as this music is not exactly in the Gentle Giant, King Crimson or Van Der Graaf Generator mould. The keyboards gives it some really good prog rock vibes and ditto for some of the more pastoral moments. The music is pretty hard though and this album falls into the hard prog category in my view. 

The music on this forty minutes long album is pretty lively with some hard rocking guitars, thundering bass and rumbling drums. The vocals is also in that mould. The band is from South America and the album has this red thread and sound running through it as blood veins in a body. 

The end result is a decent to good album which does not really have any great or good songs. There are some flashes of good stuff here and I would not write of this album.

2.5 points   

Seven Day Hunt - File This Dream (2008)

The debut and so far only album from this Dutch band. 

The name/band may be new to you. They are though veterans and used to be called Egdon Heath. A band who released four studio albums before splitting up. Unfortunate, Seven Days Hunt also split up too after releasing this album.

This band was a four piece with a line up of keyboards, guitars, bass, drums and vocals. They are helped out by a female vocals on a couple of tracks too.

And we are deep into neo-prog land here. Pretty standard neo-prog with the usual verse-chorus-verse structures. That goes for this whole seventy minutes long album.

That can be very effective though when done properly. Something the band has done here. The songs are pretty catchy and at times; very good. That for at least forty minutes. The final twenty minutes is not so good. The opening tracks though is very good.

If you like really good neo-prog in the traditional vein, this is an album for you. This is a good album and one I really like. The first half of this album, that is.

3 points

Avalon Legend II - Un Sogno Per Cambiare (2014)

The debut album from this Italian band.

I know next to nothing about this band and album. It was sold to me as an Italian progressive rock album. So I bought it as I am a sucker for Italian progressive rock. 

The lineup is keyboards, guitars, bass, drums and Italian male vocals. I am not sure how many members Avalon Legend II contains. I am not even sure if this is a band or a project.

The only thing I am sure about is the music. It was sold to me as progressive rock. That is not what really comes out of the speakers though. And my speakers are reliable. 

The music here is Italian rock. Pretty much mainstream Italian rock which is dominated by vocals. The sound is great and the musicians does their job to a very good standard. Ditto for the vocalist. There are no really good songs here on this fifty-three minutes long album. 

This is a decent album and only that. A decent album with not much interesting music. It is a standard rock album and that is it.

2 points  

Tangent. The - The World That We Drive Through (2004)

The second album from this international band lead by Andy Tillison. 

The band was a supergroup at their two first albums. In addition to Andy, we also got Roine Stolt, Guy Manning, Jonas Reingold and Theo Travis. All of them super artists in their own right. If I am not much mistaken, this is the final album with this constellation. 

Andy Tillison is still very much in charge here on the keyboards and on vocals. The music is the typical mix of Canterbury prog and symphonic prog. Their sound is very distinctive and easy to detect. 

The music is more introvert than I am used to from The Tangent. There are a couple of dubious songs too. There are also some very good songs. This is an album with highs and lows. 

The end result is a good album and one you should check out.

3 points 

Shakary - Alya (2000)

The first of two albums from this Swiss band.

Shakary was a three piece band who got a lot of help and contributions from guest musicians on this album. The lineup is keyboards, piano, guitars, bass, drums and vocals. English vocals.

And yes, this is a neo-prog album. A neo-prog album who straddles both the English and the German neo-prog scenes. Despite of that, I was immediate drawn to comparing Shakary and this album to the English band called Threshold. In some quarters, they are regarded as more of a prog metal band. I don't agree but that is another discussion. Shakary reminds me a lot about Threshold.

The music here is very dynamic and a bit on the dark, gloomy side. The vocals may be the reason for the gloomy ambience here. 

There are no really great songs here. Nevertheless, this is a good album which I really find interesting.

3 points

Fonderia - Fonderia (2002)

The debut album from this Italian band who so far has released three albums. 

I really liked their third album and reviewed it some years ago in ProgArchives. Hence my interest in this band. But other albums, 2500 them, has won my attention more than the two remaining Fonderia albums yet to be reviewed. Something about to change now.

Fonderia was a four piece band and they played straight jazz/fusion on this album. They did change towards eclectic prog at their third album. But not here.........

The instruments is woodwinds, guitars, bass, drums, piano and keyboards. 

The music on this one hour long album is jazz/fusion based on these instruments. The music is medium intense. It is not particular hard jazz and it is not lounge jazz either. It is middle of the road.

The quality is good throughout and I am really enjoying this album. It comes recommended.

3 points 

Psychedelic Ensemble. The - The Dream Of The Magic Jongleur (2011)

The third album from this US one man band with a guy who want to be left nameless. Which is fair enough.

This is my first meeting with his music after years of hearing only positive things about this, what I thought was a band. It is not so I am now a lot wiser.

This nameless man does everything here and I detect a lot of synths, guitars, bass, drums and some very pleasant vocals.

The band is labeled as a neo-prog band. Perhaps US neo-prog. Well, it is. The European neo-prog sound is a lot more naked and stripped bare than the US version where everything is bigger and brasher. 

Half of this album though sounds like symphonic prog to me with some church organs and some symph prog song structures. The first half of this album is great, great symphonic prog. 

The final half of this sixty-three minutes long album fizzles out a lot and we get some good US neo-prog. There are still some very good synth runs and melodies. The songs are not that good on this half of the album. 

So this album is an album in two halves. One half is great. The other one is good. Hence my rating.

3.5 points.

Bachdenkel - Lemmings (1970)

The debut album from this British band who released two albums before they were disbanded. A mostly forgotten band, but whose albums is still highly sought after. Both albums can be purchased as a 2 for 1 on CD. Even that CD is now highly sought after.

The band was a four piece with a lineup of guitars, bass, drums, piano, organ and vocals. 

The music....... Well, let us start with The Beatles. Take a lot from them, add a lot of psychedelic rock and some hard rock. Then you get this album and this band. There some space rock here too. 

If pressed, I would label this as psychedelic rock. The vocals are really good and the other musicians is doing a very good job too. The music sounds both a bit naive aka the 1960s and grown up and developed aka the 1970s.

I really like this album and it is indeed a good album. What it is really missing is a great track or two. I guess that is the reason why this is such an obscure band. So obscure I did not even know about them before February this year. I guess there are some more gems out there and it is one of the reasons why I am running this blog.

3 points 

Moody Blues. The - Keys Of The Kingdom (1991)

The fourteenth album from this English band.

Justin Hayward and Patrick Moraz is still present in the and they got help from both Graeme Edge and John Locke. That is The Moody Blues on this album. In addition to this four piece, a lot of other musicians and a full symphony orchestra also helps them out.

Gone is the glorious progressive rock days of this band. In comes house wives and plastic fantastic yuppies friendly music. The music is so slick and so calculated that it goes well with the new Nokia mobile phones from that time. 

The songs are not that terrible. This one hour long album is not a turkey. But it runs that status close. The band has gone the way Genesis went. To the knackers yard and to the land where plastic is king.

1.5 points

Arrow Haze - Music Factory (2012)

The debut album from this Belgium based band.

Promoted to me as a prog rock album, I gladly purchased this album. What I got....... I am by no means a fan of progressive metal. It is in fact one of my pet hates. 

But first thing first. I know next to nothing about this band. I believe it is a five piece based on the sound and the live shots. I may be wrong. The lineup is keyboards, bass, drums, vocals and tonnes of guitars.

Progressive metal........ Well, it is not really traditional progressive metal. The band has taken a lot from the Seattle grunge scene and incorporated it into a mix of neo-prog and progressive metal. The music is pretty melodic. It is also full of guitar solos and I guess a socalled guitar hero is involved in the band. Timo Somers, he is called.

The music is pretty good and not as progressive metal as I feared. It is not an album down my alley though. I rate this one hour long album somewhere between decent and good. 

2.5 points   

Segno del Comando. Il - Il Segno del Comando (1997)

The debut album from this Italian band who has so far released three albums. I am pretty sure I have reviewed their third album..... No, I actually reviewed their second album Der Golem from 2002. I quite liked that album.

Il Segno Del Comando was a side project and probably still is a side project of another Italian band; Malbora. Some members here also plays in Ianva. 

And I can clearly hear that in the sound and music of this album and band. We are talking very dark and occult Italian progressive rock. For some reasons, Italy have an occult progressive scene too. No other country have that. Not even Great Britain. I guess this is because of the very strong catholic church. Large parts of the imagery has been transferred from the catholic church to the occult scene.

The band was a six piece band here with Italian vocals (both sexes), bass, drums, guitars and keyboards. The music is very gothic and also a bit hard rocking. The music has a bit of a cathedral, religious feel to it too. 

There is no good songs here and the sound is a bit dubious too. The art cover appeals more to the fans of really primitive black/thrash metal than the prog rock crowd. Frankly, this is not a good album at all. This is a decent album though and that is all I can say about it.

2 points 

Secret Green - To Wake The King (2009)

The debut album from this English band/project. A band/project started up by The Enid founding member Francis Lickerish. 

Which should tell us where we are heading next. This is not progressive rock. Neither is it rock music of any kind. Neither is is folk music.

With tonnes of classical music instruments in addition to keyboards and guitars plus some female vocals on the top of that, we are talking about a hybrid of modern and old music. A crossover between classical music and some sort of pop music. Mostly classical music, though.

This album is seventy-five minutes long and it is a sort of a symphony. It is overblown and totally over the top. But not in a good way. I am finding it difficult to listen to this album in one go because it is very dull. There are a few good bits here. Most of the album is decent enough. 

Those into classical music meets modern pop should get this album. I find it a dull, dull decent album. 

2 points 

Sleepy Sun - Maui Tears (2014)

The fourth album from this US band.

I cannot remember if I have ever reviewed one of their three first albums...... Have I ? No. But I believe I got one of their three EPs too.

The band is a five piece band as far as I gather. Their lineup is guitars, bass, drums, vocals and some keyboards. And the band plays space rock.

Well, they call their music for stoner rock. I thought stoner rock was more towards doom metal that what the band is doing on Maui Tears. There is not much, if any, metal here. What we get here is weird, unhinged songs orientated space rock. 

The vocals floats on the top of the music which is pretty spaced out at times. It is still mostly sticking to the verse-chorus-verse formula. 

I very much like the greasy but still crystal clear sound. The songs are not all up to a good level. But there is enough here to make this a good album. A good three quarters of an hour long album. Check it out.

3 points 

Dodson And Fogg - After the Fall (2014)

The fifth album from this English band/project. It is lead by the multi talented artist Chris Wade who also has his fingers in a lot of other pies in the art world. 

Dodson And Fogg is a folk rock project with a lot of psychedelic vibes. The main instruments is vocals of all sorts and guitars. There are some added sitars, flutes, bass, percussions, keyboards and violins. 

The vocals are in the forefront here throughout this forty-two minutes long album. A bit of a one dimensional album, I am afraid. I like albums with a lot less vocals and more pure music. Hence my reservations here.

As per usual when it comes to an album from this band, there is one really great track. God Above is this album's great track. A track I really like. The rest of the album is not that great.

Nevertheless, this is another good album from one of the best new folk rock bands from the home of folk rock; England.

3 points

Seasons Of Time - Behind The Mirror (1997)

The debut album from this German band. The first of two albums. The last one was released a couple of years ago.

Seasons Of Time was a five piece band on this album. The lineup was bass, drums, keyboards, guitars and English vocals.

We are in the thriving German neo-prog scene here. A scene which has given us a lot of great bands. In this case, the jury is still out. 

The sound is not the best and this fifty minutes album is really a story of two halves. The first thirty minutes is straight rock with a lot of AOR influences. And the music is most horrid. Well, perhaps not horrid. But it is as dull as watching paint dry. Safe rock with not much inspirations. A female vocalist chimes in and the vocals is not good at all. Neither the male or female vocals is up to a good standard.

The final fifteen minutes shows a band turning more towards Marillion the Fish era. The music is much more inspired and the band comes up with some fine ideas.

The end result is a decent album which will never be played again by me. It is simply too dull and uninspired. Not to mention; uninspiring.

2 points

Scherani. Luca - Everybody's Waiting (2012)

The third album from this Italian keyboardist and songwriter. 

Luca Scherani started out in the band Trama who released one album. He continued in Finisterre and Hostsonaten. Both of them brilliant Italian bands who I rate very highly. 

I have not heard his two first albums. This is my first meeting with his tonal world. A world dominated by his keyboards. This is by no means a man and his keyboards album. The mad professor kind of albums. 

The music is pretty much well balanced and with a lot of violins and female vocals too. The list of contributing musicians is very long indeed. A lot of strings, drums, flutes and vocals can indeed be heard on this forty-five minutes long album. A short album when listening to it. 

There is no really great or even a killer track here. But the music is very good indeed. It is perhaps too smooth. But it is still a very good album in the modern progressive rock vein. 

3.5 points

Van Der Graaf Generator - World Record (1976)

The seventh album from this English band.

This Peter Hammill fronted band released some great albums in the 1970s. I have always liked their eclectic sound and regard them as one of the leading lights in the eclectic prog scene. 

VDGG was a four piece band on this album with the classic Hugh Banton, David Jackson, Guy Evans and Peter Hammill lineup. That means a lot of saxophones, keyboards, mellotrons, guitars, drums, bass and Peter's vocals. 

I have to say I have never really warmed to this album. The great things are very thin on the ground here and the five tracks are not really my thing. I like the sound and all that. It is just that the songs does not really come up to the standard I expect from this band.

It is a good album but nothing more than that.

3 points

Schicke Fuhrs & Frohling - Sunburst (1977)

The second album from this German constellation who released seven albums. Mostly as the duo Fuhrs & Frohling. 

This album is one of the three albums they released as a trio. The band was Edward Schicke on drums, Gerhard Fuhrs on keyboards/synths and Heinz Frohling on guitars. They had help from Edward Ruther on bass. And that was the band on this album. 

The music can loosely be labeled as symphonic prog. Well, it is symphonic prog with a lot of references to classical music. You get a pretty dominating keyboard/piano/synth with some backing of the bass, guitars and drums. That is the theme here throughout the forty-five minutes long album.

The music has some pretty strong Tangerine Dream and electronica references throughout. It is as I said pretty close to classical music too. 

Maybe this was great music in the dark year of 1977. Maybe it was even cutting edge. Today, it is not that interesting. I find this album a bit interesting and I am not dismissing it. It does not have any really great or even good music here so I am rating it as a decent to good album.

2.5 points 

Quinteto Armorial - Aralume (1976)

The second album from this Brazilian band.

I quite liked their debut album. A nice mix of folk music and chamber rock. Folk music from Brazil meets the likes of Aranis and Flairck.

The band uses a lot of acoustic instruments here and the music is still pretty intensive. And there is a lot of Flairck influences here too. I would label this band as the South American version of Flairck. What is missing here is pan flutes, though.

The almost haunting chamber rock influences has gone here though and what is left is not that interesting. I am hard pressed to find much interesting here. A weak decent award is what this album gets from me.

2 points

Schizofrantik - Oddities (2001)

Hmmmm.......... Why am I doing this to myself ?

Schizofrantik is a German band and this is their fourth album. I also got their fifth album and will review it too.

Herein lays my problem. The band title says everything about the music. The music is frantic to say at least. Frantic and hyper active. Most of the music is ultra technical metallic frantic eclectic prog with lots of guitars, bass, drums and vocals. The vocals are in the nu-metal vein. 

That is one part of this album.

The other part is much more melodic and has some accordion too. Very much like Porcupine Tree too. Very strange but still with a lot of nu-metal influences and eclectic prog influences.

The result is eclectic and almost impenetrable. Almost impossible to review. A very strange album indeed. 

I am not a big fan of this decent to good album and I hope the album title means this is saved up oddities from the studio. I am though looking forward to listen to and review their fifth album. 

2.5 points

Sloche - Stadaconé (1976)

The second and final album from this Quebec, Canadian band. 

I quite liked their first album. A very quirky jazz/fusion album. So I was very pleased to find this album in my collection too. 

Sloche was a six piece band on this album with a lineup of celesta, keyboards, bass, guitars and drums. The music is instrumental with some sporadic vocals.

We are again back somewhere in fusion land. But this time in the quaint town of Canterbury, England. This is basically a Canterbury jazz/prog album. National Health springs to mind. 

The keyboards sound reminds me about Alan Gowen a lot. It is quirky and very eccentric. The bass and drums is also special.

No great tracks here. But this is a very good album which clocks in at forty minutes. It is recommended.

3.5 points 

Ark - Wild Untamed Imaginings (2010)

The third and so far final album from this English band.

Ark is/was a band who were one of the pioneers in the neo-prog scene, but never really got any success. They were at best a second-rate band. At best. 

The band returned again for this album. They returned as a five piece band with the usual lineup of keyboards, bass, drums, guitars and vocals. There are even some flutes here. But not much of these flutes.

Neither is there much neo-prog here either. The music is a mix of pub rock, stadium rock and art rock. Forty-eight minutes divided on ten songs. None of them are longer than five and a half minutes.

The music here is as exciting as watching paint dry. I am not a fan of either pub or stadium rock. The music is decent enough and that is the best I can say about this album. It is an album bereft of any really good ideas. I am left cold here.

2 points 

Albero Motore - Il Grande Gioco (1974)

The only sign of life from this Italian band before they were disbanded and nothing was ever heard from them again.

Albero Motore was a five piece band with a lineup of guitars, keyboards, bass, drums and Italian vocals. The sound is pretty good throughout these forty-five minutes. 

The music can best be described as 1970s Italian rock. Or rock'n'roll as most would call it. There are a lot of southern rock references here. Both Allman Brothers and Lynyrd Skynyrd springs to mind. Add some Italian madness and pop music to the mix and you get this album. Madness like some insane vocals and some cheesy melody lines too. 

I have to say this is not a good album. Let alone; an interesting album. Some albums are obscure because they are not good. This album is a prime example. The music is decent enough and fans of southern rock should perhaps check it out. I am not one of them.

2 points  

Se Delan - The Fall (2014)

The debut album from this duo. A duo with Justin Greaves from Black Crippled Phoenix and Belinda Kordic. Belinda is from Sweden and Justin is from England.

Justin does all the instruments here and Belinda is the vocalist. The instruments is the likes of guitars, keyboards, drums and bass. In short; don't expect this constellation to tour anytime soon.

The music is a bit of a mystery to me as I am not really into this neo goth scene. The music is at least based around some rather gloomy, cinematic melodies. I have heard it is pretty similar to Black Crippled Phoenix. For me, it reminds me about the goth/gloom The Third And The Mortal did on Sorrow and Tears Laid In Rest. 

Belinda's vocals is off course shining through here and it is pretty good. The songs sounds like a bit of post rock too. A lot of scattered ideas thrown around.

This is really not my cup of tea. It is not a decent album and it is not a good album either. It falls in somewhere inbetween those two awards. Hence my rating here.

2.5 points 

No More Pain - The Post Human Condition (2015)

The second album from this US band.

I was quite happy with their debut album Debate And Rhyme from 2012. Good catchy prog rock. Pretty hard rocking prog too.

This four piece still have a lineup of keyboards, bass, drums, guitars and vocals. Some very good vocals too. 

They have shed most of the hard rock and gone for a much more Pink Floyd'ish sound with big sound paintings and a lot of melody. They comes across as a mix of Marillion, Porcupine Tree and Gazpacho. The sound is still very American. 

The album is one hour and a quarter long. There are in total eleven songs here. Three of the songs are over ten minutes long. The closing song The Network is almost eighteen minutes long. 

Some of the music is very good. Some of it is decent and most of it is good. This is a good album with some highlights and some lowlights. I like their sound and I like most of the stuff here. Check out this album.

3 points

Cosmic Jokers - Planeten Sit In (1974)

The third album from this German band. Both in their career and from 1974. 

Five albums in one year does not leave much for quality control. When it comes to electronic krautrock as we are dealing with here, anything goes. 

Both Klaus Schulze and Dieter Dierks (the Scorpions producer) was involved here on this largely bass, drums and synthesizers albums. Well, it was only those three instruments. 

There are some melody lines scattered around. Most of this music is so outer space cosmic that I don't believe even aliens from the planet Pluto would understand it. Let alone; find much joy in this album. 

There are a couple of good melody lines here. But most of this thirty-five minutes is just aimless pling-plong and not much of a joy. 

2 points   

Nuova Era - Il Passo Del Soldato (1995)

The fourth and so far final album from this Italian band. There are some talks of a new band being recorded. But that is just rumours at the moment.

We are deep into Italian symphonic prog rock again. Nuova Era is regarded as one of the best post 1970s bands in the Italian prog rock genre. And with good reasons. Their previous three albums was great albums.

This is a concept album, lasting fifty-three minutes. The music is very much in the classic Le Orme tradition. A tradition again based on ELP. The music is very heavily based on keyboards, helped by some bass, drums and guitars. That and some great vocals from Claudio Guerrini. Where does these Italian bands find these great vocalists ? The opera scene in Milan and Rome has a lot to answer for. And that is, as you will understand, a great compliment. 

The music is pretty heavy baroque throughout. There are also some great songs and melody lines here. The album is a bit of a slow burner and a grower. But it really get into a full fire after some listening sessions. Most great albums is like that and this album is no exception.

This is a great album from a great band.

4 points  

Assolo di Bongo - Spinning Like A Top (2006)

The second and so far final album from this Italian band.

Assolo Di Bongo was/is a fusion band from Italy and they were an eight piece band on this album. Besides of guitars, keyboards, bass and drums..... they also had a four man big woodwinds section. Plenty of brass in this band.

Although not so much in their sound. OK, they are pretty visible here in addition to the guitars and keyboards.

The music here is pretty good fusion. Very melodic at times with some good guitar licks and some good woodwinds. Ditto for the keyboards and pianos too. Despite of that, the music is not that good. It just feels uninspired and uninspiring to me. It is too slick and does not really have much life. There is some cool detachment in their music. 

This is decent to good album and nothing more than that, I am afraid.

2.5 points

Sezione Frenante - Metafora di un Viaggio (2014)

The debut album from this Italian band.

This five piece Italian symphonic prog rock band was formed in the early 1970s and went their own separate ways after some fruitless years, trying to break through. No record deals and not much gigs either. They were forever forgotten....

... Until they reformed in 2006 and then the record label Ma.Ra.Cash got interested. The end result is this album. An album with mostly old material and some new material. 

The lineup is guitars, bass, drums, keyboards and Italian vocals. Some great vocals too from Francesco Nardo. The keyboards sound is also very retro and very 1970s. 

There is a lot of lights and shadows in their music. The music is very much Italian symphonic prog rock. The album is also an old album length. That means less than forty-five minutes long. In this case; forty-three minutes long.

There is no real great songs here. Only sporadic greatness. I still very much like this album and awards it a very good rating. I have heard they are playing live these days together with the likes of Le Orme and other Italian bands in this genre. Go and watch them. 

3.5 points

Scarlet Hollow - What if Never Was (2012)

The debut from this California, USA band.

Scarlet Hollow is a new name to me. They have previously released two EPs before this album. An one hour long album.

The band is female vocals fronted. It is a four piece band too with guitars, bass, drums and keyboards in addition to these good female vocals.

Genre wise, we are somewhere between straight neo-prog and prog metal. I have seen ProgArchives labeling them as a heavy prog band. That's probably right. For me, heavy prog is more like music from the 1970s when there was a lot of heavy prog bands around. The likes of Rush etc etc. 

Nevertheless; this is a modern heavy prog album. There is a lot of vocals and guitar harmonies here. That in addition to some more harder chugging guitars. 

There is no real great songs here. I quite like this album and would give it a weak good rating. The band has a lot of potential and I hope they soon return with another album..... if they are still around.

3 points 

Follakzoid - III (2015)

The third album from this Chile based band.

Follakzoid is a four piece band in the space rock genre. Their lineup is bass, drums, guitar and synths. 

I have been very pleased with their previous two albums. Both of them were solid space rock and zeuhl albums. Just down my alley, both of them.

III takes the band in a different direction again. To the heartlands of Germany. To the krautrock genre. Well, the space rock end of the krautrock spectrum. The music on this forty-five minutes long album, four compositions is bass and drums driven with some guitars and synths on the top of that. Mostly, the bass is doing the melody lines. There are some sporadic outbreaks of guitars and synths wall of sound. Darkness and lights. These contrasts works very well here. 

The word is "minimalism" and this actually works on this album. All four compositions is good and I am quite enjoying this album. Fans of krautrock should really get this album. Even I rates this album.

3 points  

Shades Of Dawn - Graffity's Rainbow (2011)

The fourth and so far final album from this German band.

I was not too impressed by their 2005 album From Dusk Till Dawn. Too heavy and sludgy kraut/symphonic prog. 

The band has a lot of members on this album. A lot of members, but not a lot of instruments. The lineup is keyboards, guitars, bass, drums and vocals. The band is again operating somewhere between krautrock, neo prog and symphonic prog.

There are four songs here and they clocks in between 11 minutes and 26 minutes (the title track). There is a lot going in those four songs. Not much of it is that interesting. The vocals are pretty poor and the other instruments is not particular interesting either.

There are a few good stuff here. But most of this album is pretty poor and I am not particular won over by this album. This is a decent album and not a good advert for German prog rock.

2 points

Scapeland Wish - The Ghost Of Autumn (2003)

The second and so far latest album from this US band.

I quite liked their first album. It had some Kings's X vibes and a positive sound and feeling. The songs was happy songs and sunny as a day in Florida. So I was looking forward to sinking my teeth into this, their second album.

The band is still a trio with keyboards, guitars, bass, drums and vocals. Despite of being a trio, the sound is very rich and warm. There is a lot of sound & noise here. 

This album is also a lot more rounded and well balanced than their debut album. There is a lot more proper prog rock here. The music almost got a psychedelic feel to it. 

The songs are really good here too. Some are not so good though. But most of this album really both rocks and has some good melodies. It is an album the band can be happy with and it really deserves a follow up. 

3 points

Kaipa - Vittjar (2012)

The eleventh album from this Swedish band.

Kaipa is rightly regarded as a pioneer in the Swedish symphonic prog scene. Roine Stolt was one of the founding members and he took a large chunk of their sound and music with him over to The Flower Kings too. 

But not all of it......

Roine Stolt has left Kaipa some albums again and the band is now six piece band. The lineup is bass, drums, guitars, keyboards, whistles and vocals. Both male and female vocals. I have to say I am not that keen on either of the two vocalists here. The other musicians is good enough.

Kaipa has gone a bit native this time. Back to the Swedish folk music scene and they have adapted their symphonic prog to the folk music elements they started with on Angling Feelings.

The result is a melodic album with all the usual Kaipa ingredients. It is a good album where everyone get satisfied and perhaps the band win some new fans. I am a bit disappointed though. Nevertheless.....

3 points 

Tangent. The - A Place In The Queue (2006)

The third album from this English band.

The Tangent is one of the best post millennium bands in the prog rock world. Their mix of symphonic prog and Canterbury prog is a heady mix. 

The Tangent has had some changing lineups over the years. On this album, it included the likes of Theo Travis, Sam Baine, Guy Manning, Jonas Reingold, Jaime Salazar and Krister Jonsson. That in addition to the band owner Andy Tillison. He is also the vocalist here and he does a great job behind the microphone. The rest of the instruments are drums, saxophone, bass, keyboards, Moog, flutes and guitars.

The band has not changed style much since the debut album. Some very melodic and complex songs which gives each musician plenty of room to shine and express themselves. 

The title track is a twenty-two minutes long suite and it is a very good piece of music. The music is sometimes a bit too whimsical for my liking. The main part is very classy and sometimes a bit too calculated. Nevertheless, this is a very good album which all lovers of British prog should own.

3.5 points

Junipher Greene - Communication (1973)

The second album from this Norwegian band and the follow up to their legendary album Friendship. An album everyone, with the exception of myself, really loved. 

The band was a five piece band on this album and with a lineup of flutes, keyboards, guitars, bass, drums and vocals. The vocals duties was shared among the band members. 

Communication really follows in the same footsteps of Friendship. One long progressive song, the title track, which has a lot of decent to good ideas and then some not so progressive songs. The sound is surprisingly good. Well, it is good. 

The music on this album is somewhere between folk, prog, hard rock, psychedelic and normal rock anno 1973. It is still a bit of a weird album though and not exactly a mainstream rock/pop album.   

The problem with this album is the lack of really good songs. There is none and the album falls a bit flat on it's face in today's standards. It is a decent album and that is that.

2 points

Opposite Of Hate. The - Beginnings (2015)

The debut album from this Brazilian band.

I know nothing about this band besides of what they have written on their Bandcamp page where you can also purchase this album. 

The band describe their music as a mix of electronica, progressive rock and jazz. Well, even the bands are entitled to their opinions. I am not so sure they are right. 

Take some guitars, synths, vocals, drums and bass. That is the lineup. The vocals comes in all shapes here. From death metal grunts to football terraces chants and reasonable good clean vocals too. And yes, there are some progressive rock music here too. But this album reminds me a lot about Linkin Park's debut album. An album I have not been listening to for a very long time. Well, since it was released. But you get my drift. 

Take a mix of Linkin Park and some modern progressive rock bands. Then you get this album. I am not a fan of these chugging guitars and I am not fan of this nu-emo-metal scene. I am dropping out of this album already here. There is no real great songs here although I like the more prog rock aspects here. 

This is an album where the target audience is at least half of my age and a decent album in my view. Hence my verdict.

2 points

Ark - The Dreams of Mr Jones (1988)

The debut album from this English band who went onto releasing three albums. The last one in 2010.

Ark was one of the first bands in the British neo-prog scene. That is their reputation, at least. They did not get much commercial success with their albums and tours. They are still to be respected, though.

Ark was a five piece on this album with a lineup of synths, guitars, bass, drums and vocals. The vocals are not overwhelming great. But they are OK and they are working in this musical setting.

The album is rather short, clocking in at just four seconds short of half an hour. The songs are pretty short and in the verse-chorus-verse formula. There are one fairly good song here and that is Through The Night, a pretty good ballad. The rest of the songs are not anywhere that standard.

The result is a decent album and one you can manage without. Anyway, check it out if neo-prog is your thing.

2 points

Schnauser - Protein for Everyone (2014)

The fifth album from this band from Great Britain.

I am totally new to this band and their music. I did not even know about them before this album dumped down into my mail box. They are supposed to be popular in the more alternative rock scene. 

I am not sure what alternative means these days. Mainstream and alternative tends to swap places due to the shifting sands in the music fashions. But I take their word for it.

Schnauser is a four piece band and the lineup is a wide variety of acoustic and electric instruments. Most of these instruments has strings. Mandolin, guitars and the likes of that. Add drums, vocals and keyboards to the proceedings too.

The music is a bit psychedelic too. Not as in spaced out. I guess a mix of psychedelic rock, rock, pop and some folk is fitting here. There are also a cool lounge jazz feel here. The use of Hammond organs makes me happy. Make that, very happy.

The result is a weird, but still a very cool and melodic album. The music is not hard at all. Neither is it ambient or particular dull and soft. It just has this jazzy feel which I like.

Have this album converted me to becoming a Schnauser fan ? Nope. I like this music and this is a good forty-five minutes long album. There is no killer tracks here too. This though is a good album from a band who has my full respect. Bands like this one is much needed.

3 points

Stackridge - Friendliness (1972)

The second album from this English band.

Although listed as a folk rock band in ProgArchives and other places, this band was once described as the west counties answer to The Beatles. The west counties means the seven (?) counties west of Bristol in England. 

The same counties is also very much known for it's folk rock scene. To my knowledge, most English folk rock bands comes from these counties. The scene has off course been heavy influenced by the cider these counties are so known for. Cider is a sweet alcoholic drink made by apples. 

And this album is also pretty sweet. Take a five piece with violins, guitars, cello, bass, drums, keyboards, flute and male vocals. Then you get this band and this album.

The music is indeed not dissimilar to The Beatles. Take a lot of folk music and add to the sound and music of The Beatles. Then you get this one hour long album. The Moody Blues and ELO also springs to mind.

The music is very poppy and based on short songs. Too short songs in my opinion. But the music is pretty enjoyable and very much in the 1960s vein. The end result is a good album with some very good songs and some not so good songs. I quite like this album.

3 points   

Circus 2000 - An Escape From a Box (1972)

The second and final album from this Italian band.

Circus 2000 was a four piece band with a female vocalist and English vocals. They operated in the psychedelic rock genre on both this and their debut album. Velvet Underground and Jefferson Airplane is good references.

Their lineup was guitars, bass, drums and vocals. 

The vocals is decent enough and so is the music. Music which is in the west-coast psychedelic rock vein. Very fluent and pretty cool. 

The problem with this album is the lack of any good songs. There is none of those. I find this album pretty dull, all of this half an hour long album. This is a decent album and nothing more than that.

2 points 

Assolo di Bongo - Primetime (2001)

The debut album from this Italian band. The first of two albums. 

Besides of a great prog rock scene, Italy has always had a great jazz and fusion scene too. In most cases, the prog and fusion/jazz scene has crossed over into each other. Area is a good example. 

This four piece is not particular a crossover band between the fusion and the prog rock scene. Nevertheless, you will find some symphonic prog in their music too. The lineup on this album is keyboards, guitar, bass and drums. That gives a not so organic sound throughout this instrumental album.

The music here is a bit harder than I am used to from fusion bands. The guitars is very much in the prog metal vein and the drums also kicks like metal drums. Most of the music here is somewhere between fusion and metal. 

The music is good throughout and I really like most of this album. There are some good melodies too although the emphasis is on technical prowess. 

This is a good album.

3 points

Different Strings - The Sounds of Silence Part II (2015)

The third album from this Malta based project.

Different Strings is Chris Mallia with friends. That is six friends to be precise. The lineup is keyboards, vocals, bass, guitars and drums. 

Chris Mallia has so far given us three neo-prog albums. Neo-prog with some twists and turns. More eclectic prog turns on the first The Sound Of Silence album from 2011. 

On this album, the # 2 in the series, the emphasis is more on heaviness and prog metal than eclectic prog. There is still some quirkiness here. But not much. 

The emphasis is on heavy guitars with some pastoral parts inbetween. And there is some symphonic prog parts here too. Chris Mallia has his own take on neo-prog, yes. 

The end result is a good album. Good, but not that exciting. I prefer the # 1 version in this series. It is still an album everyone should check out. Go so forth and do so.

3 points