My Favorite Albums of 2026
(In some semblance of order)
***Author's note: Below you will find two different rankings for this year's albums. The first list consists of a Top Fifty albums with a following list of "Honorable Mentions." These are my favorite albums of the year, that is, the albums to which I have formed the greatest emotional attachments. The second list consists of The Reviews. These are ordered according to my more 'objective', yet still personal, judgment as to an album's quality, that is, the "best" albums of the year. Here I have ordered the albums reviewed according to a metric determination--my own numerical rating system--which I call the "Fishscales." These help me determine what the "best" albums of the year are from a more critical, qualitative, and quantitative viewpoint, that is, without as much emotional attachment as "My Favorite" albums.
So far I have been able to listen to over 30 new releases from 2026 from which I have posted reviews of 25 (so far). According to my calculations, we are fortunate to have 2026 presenting Prog World with five (5) masterpieces, ten (10) "minor" masterpieces, and six (6) other excellent "near-masterpieces" (as well as two (4) masterful "alternative" albums)!
The Rankings
(My "Favorites")
1. ARNAUD BUKWALD Mars Caravan
2. QUIVIRA Quivira
3. SINGLELITO In Absence of Velocity
4. FISTFIGHTS WITH WOLVES Sea Shanties for Future Sailors
5. ED O'BRIEN Blue Morpho
TOM PENAGUIN Tom Penaguin II
DOMi & JD BECK Who Asked?
CROWN LANDS Apocalypse
OK GOODNIGHT Stop / GoPLANTOID Flare
QUIDAM Deep River
ELDER Through Zero
ASCETA The Fool Leading the Blind
PAT METHENY Side-Eye III+
TELEGRAPH Topography of Mind
THE EMERALD DAWN The Land, The Sea, The Air (Volume II)
ADVENT HORIZON Falling Together
LAZULI Être et ne plus être
VESPERO Tej 6.7
Special Mentions:
HOLY WAVE I'm DADA
ALIO DIE Fragrant Shade
ALIO DIE Vimana Mercury Vortex Engine
The Masterpieces
(Ratings of 100 to 93.34)
Album of the Year!(so far)
ARNAUD BUKWALD Mars Caravan
Line-up / Musicians:
- Arnaud Bukwald / vocals, guitar, weissenborn, sitar, keyboards, arrangements
- Cherry / vocals (2, 3, 6)
- Didier Malherbe / flute
- Cloudy Myster / drums (3, 9), tablas
1. "Overture" (0:37) awesome teaser/opener! I don't know how this master intuits his instrumental sound choices and combinations but he is an absolute genius at it! You got me chummed up! (And so easily and quickly, too!) (5/5)
2. "Mumble Jumble" (18:05) Arnaud gives us a real smorgasborg! For the first 1:45 of this I feel like I'm listening to a funked up Isley Brothers contribution to a 1970s Blaxploitation film soundtrack (except the searing guitar tone used in the lead solo is borrowed from Steve Hillage), but then there is a sudden, almost glitch-like transfer to a completely different motif in which Arnaud's "Canterbury saw" keyboard leads--until the mellifluous flute of Didier Malherbe enters and everything turns into a Mike Oldfield "Incantations"-like marimba/vibraphone background. At the end of the fifth minute there is a slow down and switch to a brass-funk motif with cool rhythm guitar play and loud space synth playing over the top while the rhythm section wallows lugubriously in its molasses-thick funk. Wow! Then, at 7:00 there is another sudden total shift into something more melodic and laid back, using a Canterbury palette of instrument sounds, over which the lovely, Clare Torey-rich voice of Cherry Pob bathes us in some sensuous vocalese. Then Arnaud pulls out another organ sound to solo with--one that was quite common to the Canterbury geniuses of the 1970s playing for a minute or so before speeding up the tempo a bit and changing his keyboard sound and solo style to one more attuned to that made famous by Stevie Winwood on Traffic's "Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys." This brief section makes way for the return of Cherry's seductive vocalese while giving a funky bass clinic below. In the second half of the 12th minute Arnaud slows things down: removing all rhythm section tracks as he solos with a MiniMoog-like synth over a bit of a spacey section. At 12:30 empty-planet synths (or volume pedal-controlled infinity sustained guitar chords) and cymbal sounds provide the only background for more of Cherry's wordless vocals. Then we move into a brief and somewhat-unstructured foray into World Music drum rhythms, twice started up but then stopped rather suddenly and unexpectedly before giving way to another spacey section of synthesizer panning and volume oscillation manipulation with some cymbal waves and electric piano notes, eventually taking on quite the Klaus Schulze/Tangerine Dream sound and feel. But then at the 17-minute mark the maestro interrupts our space meditation with the introduction to another funky R&B groove which then morphs but plays out to the song's end. What an absolutely awesome, visual/sensual, and enjoyable ride we've just been taken on! I'm already ready to get back in line to do it again! Please don't make it stop! There is literally nothing on this journey that I don't absolutely love--that I would change or remove (though there are a LOT of sections that I could groove into for hours!) (35/35)
96.01 on the Fishscales = A/five stars; a full-on masterpiece of retro-prog from one of the few master chameleons and synthesisers of old-style sounds--a man who has the most extraordinary vision and imagination that he uses to combine and blend sounds and styles in entertaining and enjoyable ways that no one else I know can. My early front-runner for 2026's Album of the Year.
2. "Foot Soldiers of the Syndicate" (4:20) despite the RUSH foundations to this song, the top end of the song feels so much like AC/DC, NAZARETH, a higher-pitched BLACK SABBATH/OZZIE OSBOURNE as well as THIN LIZZY. Powerful, tight, and wholly original despite its obvious influences--though Cody does loose a bit of his vim and vigor toward the end. (9.25/10)
3. "Through the Looking Glass" (3:45) another great tune that conjures up reminders of many of the hair bands from the late 70s and 1980s that served as survivors/alternatives to the dying prog rock scene: Blue Öyster Cult, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, plus there is a definite debt owed to "Stairway to Heaven"-era LED ZEPPELIN here. (9.125/10)
Total Time 42:28
Line-up / Musicians:
- Lisa LaRue / composer, keyboards, computer programming
- John Baker / guitars, bass, vocals (6)
- Jake Livgren / vocals
With:
- Joe Deninzon / violin (5)
- Evan Stanley / guitar (9)
1. "(Intro) The Coming Of The Spaniards" (3:54) Alan Parsons Project-like Western choir mixed into a musical pastiche that sounds like something from a Spanish "spaghetti western" like soundtrack. It's like throwing APP together with Novella-era RENAISSANCE. Powerful and most excellent! (9.667/10)
- Cherry / vocals (2, 3, 6)
- Didier Malherbe / flute
- Cloudy Myster / drums (3, 9), tablas
1. "Overture" (0:37) awesome teaser/opener! I don't know how this master intuits his instrumental sound choices and combinations but he is an absolute genius at it! You got me chummed up! (And so easily and quickly, too!) (5/5)
2. "Mumble Jumble" (18:05) Arnaud gives us a real smorgasborg! For the first 1:45 of this I feel like I'm listening to a funked up Isley Brothers contribution to a 1970s Blaxploitation film soundtrack (except the searing guitar tone used in the lead solo is borrowed from Steve Hillage), but then there is a sudden, almost glitch-like transfer to a completely different motif in which Arnaud's "Canterbury saw" keyboard leads--until the mellifluous flute of Didier Malherbe enters and everything turns into a Mike Oldfield "Incantations"-like marimba/vibraphone background. At the end of the fifth minute there is a slow down and switch to a brass-funk motif with cool rhythm guitar play and loud space synth playing over the top while the rhythm section wallows lugubriously in its molasses-thick funk. Wow! Then, at 7:00 there is another sudden total shift into something more melodic and laid back, using a Canterbury palette of instrument sounds, over which the lovely, Clare Torey-rich voice of Cherry Pob bathes us in some sensuous vocalese. Then Arnaud pulls out another organ sound to solo with--one that was quite common to the Canterbury geniuses of the 1970s playing for a minute or so before speeding up the tempo a bit and changing his keyboard sound and solo style to one more attuned to that made famous by Stevie Winwood on Traffic's "Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys." This brief section makes way for the return of Cherry's seductive vocalese while giving a funky bass clinic below. In the second half of the 12th minute Arnaud slows things down: removing all rhythm section tracks as he solos with a MiniMoog-like synth over a bit of a spacey section. At 12:30 empty-planet synths (or volume pedal-controlled infinity sustained guitar chords) and cymbal sounds provide the only background for more of Cherry's wordless vocals. Then we move into a brief and somewhat-unstructured foray into World Music drum rhythms, twice started up but then stopped rather suddenly and unexpectedly before giving way to another spacey section of synthesizer panning and volume oscillation manipulation with some cymbal waves and electric piano notes, eventually taking on quite the Klaus Schulze/Tangerine Dream sound and feel. But then at the 17-minute mark the maestro interrupts our space meditation with the introduction to another funky R&B groove which then morphs but plays out to the song's end. What an absolutely awesome, visual/sensual, and enjoyable ride we've just been taken on! I'm already ready to get back in line to do it again! Please don't make it stop! There is literally nothing on this journey that I don't absolutely love--that I would change or remove (though there are a LOT of sections that I could groove into for hours!) (35/35)
3. "Oyster Meat (le Solilesse)" (4:05) an awesome Jazz-Pop tune that harkens back to the smokey Jazz lounges of the 1960s as well as the Strasbourgeois studios of both the Moerlin Brothers and the projects of Pierre W-Cheese! (Strasbourg's Pierre Wawrzyniak was leader of the 21st Century projects Camembert and Oiapok). From the stunningly gorgeous and nostalgic opening to the vibraphone pairing with Cherry Pob's vocalese and then the rich electric piano in the second half of the third minute, it all makes sense, it all makes me smile. (9.333/10)
4. "Scotch Bonnet" (3:49) full-on funk coming from a George Duke/George Clinton synthesizer is soon joined by a Fender Rhodes electric piano sound, real slap bass, and clavinet. Man is this guy talented! Horn section, too! And a truly excellent electric piano solo in the second half of the second minute. The song deserves full marks for such perfect imitation and innovative originality. I mean, it's as if Arnaud is trying to fill in all the holes left unfinished by 1970s soul-funk artists! And he brings in the complete goods! (10/10)
5. "The Duke" (4:03) one of Arnaud's forays into the world (and spirit) of Tangerine Dream. I love the slower approach and the deep thrums of the uber-low bass notes. (8.875/10)
6. "Transylvania on Holiday" (3:32) for this song Arnaud is trying to take us on a humorous trip into the home base of the world of classic horror. It feels as if we're along for the ride as Stan and Ollie (Laurel and Hardy) are fumbling around in old Drac's neighborhood! Fun, light, melodic, and entertaining. I think I like the Kansas-like organ the best (though the piano play at the end is surprisingly awesome!) (8.875/10)
7. "John Dory Theme" (3:02) back to some funk--this one kind of edited to be a trip hop experience. (Love it!) Then Arnaud chooses to use gentle Dave Stewart organ and Shaft-like wah-wah rhythm guitar sounds (Arnaud is SO TALENTED!) as well as Phil Miller saw sounds over the top while also mixing in some amazing Parliamentian guitar and buzz saw synths into the second half. (9.5/10)
8. "Ouija Mania" (0:35) as if Black Clouseau performed this television commercial. I was not expecting this but it's hilarious! (4.625/5)
9. "Satellite of Doom" (1:43) This is the type of music that Screamin' Jay Hawkins would be making in the 2020s--or if he lived and vacationed in Hawaii! (4.5/5)
10. "Xanadu" (10:34) a gently-paced and soothingly-keyed two-chord guitar and organ vamp that sets up Arnaud for a series of solos using a variety of spacey synthesizer sounds--until 2:35 when everything stops and we're left with an organ chord for Arnaud's tribute to the Wish You Were Here genius of Richard Wright. A minute later and we're now exploring the synthesizer genius of both Larry Fast and Jean-Michel Jarre. Then at 5:25 we're off onto another side street, this one a wide boulevard ripe for cruisin' with the top down on a hazy summer day. Hammond organ and awesome treated-guitar work provides part of the backdrop for Arnaud to express through searing echo/delayed electric guitar followed by Pete Bardens-like EMS Synthi AKS (yes, I remember both Floyd's "Any Colour You Like" and Camel's "Lunar Sea") At 8:40 this wonderful, dreamy section is suddenly cut off from electricity (literally!), only to be replaced by a sitar, synth wind, organ, and tabla weave in which the sitar is played masterfully at two different levels: dynamic and gentle/subtle. Then the tabla on wind just kind of slowly fades away . . . and it's over! NO! I'm not ready! (Okay, Dufus: start the album over.) One of Arnaud's tribute pieces in which he so masterfully captures and emulates the great masters--those who have gone before us who have given us so much! (19.25/20)
Total Time 50:00
Total Time 50:00
In terms of pure enjoyment this will be a very difficult album to beat this year! I am ever so grateful for this music: I don't think I've had an album come into my life during the past 25 years that so filled the many holes of nostalgic longing as this one has! (Maybe Magma's Mëkanïk Dëstruktïw Kömmandöh.)
96.01 on the Fishscales = A/five stars; a full-on masterpiece of retro-prog from one of the few master chameleons and synthesisers of old-style sounds--a man who has the most extraordinary vision and imagination that he uses to combine and blend sounds and styles in entertaining and enjoyable ways that no one else I know can. My early front-runner for 2026's Album of the Year.
CROWN LANDS Apocalypse
Canada's Rush worshippers are back with another gem of hard rockin' prog!
Line-up / Musicians:
- Cody Bowles / vocals, drums, percussion, Ney flute, Pentatonic flute
- Kevin Comeau / 6 & 12 string electric & acoustic guitars, bass, minimoog, Oberheim OB6 synthesizer, Taurus pedals, mellotron
1. "Proclamation I" (1:22) nice symphonic prog intro--perfect to get one revved up for that which follows! (4.875/5)
Line-up / Musicians:
- Cody Bowles / vocals, drums, percussion, Ney flute, Pentatonic flute
- Kevin Comeau / 6 & 12 string electric & acoustic guitars, bass, minimoog, Oberheim OB6 synthesizer, Taurus pedals, mellotron
1. "Proclamation I" (1:22) nice symphonic prog intro--perfect to get one revved up for that which follows! (4.875/5)
2. "Foot Soldiers of the Syndicate" (4:20) despite the RUSH foundations to this song, the top end of the song feels so much like AC/DC, NAZARETH, a higher-pitched BLACK SABBATH/OZZIE OSBOURNE as well as THIN LIZZY. Powerful, tight, and wholly original despite its obvious influences--though Cody does loose a bit of his vim and vigor toward the end. (9.25/10)
3. "Through the Looking Glass" (3:45) another great tune that conjures up reminders of many of the hair bands from the late 70s and 1980s that served as survivors/alternatives to the dying prog rock scene: Blue Öyster Cult, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, plus there is a definite debt owed to "Stairway to Heaven"-era LED ZEPPELIN here. (9.125/10)
4. "Blackstar" (4:00) this hard rocker owes a lot to "classic" artists like OZZIE and AC/DC and even the White Stripes--but it benefits from some modern production tricks (9/10)
5. "The Fall" (4:31) still heavy/hard rock but slowed down to sound more like an Ozzie imitator singing one of TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREKERS' early tunes (which is the era I most enjoyed of theirs). Nice fullness given to the drums, guitar power chords, and lead guitars but I don't like this effect applied to Cody's lead vocals. (8.875/10)
6. "The Revenants I" (5:29) gently picked-and-strummed acoustic guitar playing all by itself until Cody joins in singing in a fragile high-pitched voice giving this a kind of POISON/GUNS 'N' ROSES feel and sound. No other instruments or tracks join Cody and Kevin other than some support keyboard strings wash chords in the background for the choruses and then some First Nations flute in the final minute, making this quite an intimate little song. That's quite a performance from Cody: he sounds genuinely passionate about his subject matter. (9.375/10)
7. "Apocalypse" (19:01) opens with some great prog bombast sounding like a cross between Styx, Rush, and maybe a little Pendragon. Great drumming and full band riffing merges into a guitar-led motif that really gets the adrenaline pumping. Great three minute intro! Cody enters as the singer in the fourth minute with a powerful OZZIE-like sound and style. The brief first verse is ended with an awesome bridge from which comes a modified, slowed down RUSH-like motif that Cody continues his impassioned story-telling. Great Axl Rose-like performance. At the six-minute mark things slow down, the instrumental palette thinning and turning pretty while Cody continues in a more sensitive voice, but this only lasts half a minute before the band takes a left turn, speeding down a hill with new sounds, chords, and Fx. This is more theatric than what we've been hearing--feeling more akin to the music of band's like BLUE ÖYSTER CULT, BABYLON, and even early solo PETER GABRIEL. I like it! The tenth minute gets heavy again though the guitar chord progressions are slower, more protracted, but then the eleventh minute brings a spacious passage based around arpeggiated chords from the electric guitar over which Cody plays some PG/Genesis-like flute. In the 12th minute the Rush and Ozzie-like sounds take on a passage of rising guitar chords that sounds quite Crimsonian. Awesome drumming here! It's hard to keep in mind that The end of the 13th minute sees a transition to a kind of Yes "Gates of Delirium" motif with some URIAH HEEP-like vocals and synth usage. This is awesome prog! It's like early NEKTAR!
A total stop and clearout at 14:18 leads to gentle passage of guitar and Mellotron which Cody eventually joins singing a "Stairway to Heaven"-like melody line with sensitivity and control that I can only compare to the great Robert Plant. At 17:15 we ramp up to a slow four-chord RUSH motif before transitioning into. Cody's voice adaptability to all of the song's changes in mood and tempo is so perfect: so theatric and yet so well suited and controlled! (Which leads me to believe that they must have practiced the hell out of each and every section of this epic before finalizing the polished versions that ended up in this mix.) And then it ends!
One of the strongest impressions I'm left with upon finishing this song is how satisfied I feel with the journey Cody and Kevin have taken me on. I feel as if I've just been through an entire Tolkien adventure/quest--all in the course of just 19 minutes! Astonishing! And I have very little criticism, virtually nothing that I would change (despite the fact that I comprehended exactly nothing of the story Cody might have been trying to tell), though the motifs and palettes through fourth through ninth minutes are not my favorite styles of music (The second, more theatric half is where I really get engaged and excited). The vocal performance was so perfect, so theatric, so fitting with the music, that I could care less about what he was saying: I went on my own epic adventure all by myself. What an adventure! (39/40)
Total Time 42:28
The band is unafraid to show their influences yet at the same time they keep growing, keep evolving, here creating quite original music that is built so reverently out of the of our predecessors.
94.21 on the Fishscales = A/a full five stars; a high achievement of eclectic heavy prog.
QUIVIRA Quivira
An American band that has both an unusual back story as well as quite the unusual motivation. Veterans who are somehow collectively inspired to represent and express a blend of Spanish colonizer and Native American tradition, mythos, and spirit.
- Lisa LaRue / composer, keyboards, computer programming
- John Baker / guitars, bass, vocals (6)
- Jake Livgren / vocals
With:
- Joe Deninzon / violin (5)
- Evan Stanley / guitar (9)
1. "(Intro) The Coming Of The Spaniards" (3:54) Alan Parsons Project-like Western choir mixed into a musical pastiche that sounds like something from a Spanish "spaghetti western" like soundtrack. It's like throwing APP together with Novella-era RENAISSANCE. Powerful and most excellent! (9.667/10)
2. "The Benefits Of Breathing Quietly" (5:56) excellent piano-based APP prog over which singers John Baker and Jake Livgren provide some excellent, appropriately bombastic vocals--entwined and mutually supportive. The music is excellent, the story in the lyrics powerful, the overall effect quite emotional. This is the kind of music and song that reaffirms the reason prog exists! And this Lisa LaRue: She is a FORCE! (9.333/10)
3. "The Plains? Truth" (6:49) an instrumental symphonic rock soundscape that reminds me of the best of bands like Kansas, The Dregs, and modern day Prog Folk band SOLSTICE. Excellent programming and computer-generated violin--and sound engineering! Lisa: Maestra: you are nothing short of a genius! This is great prog! (14/15)
4. "Quivira Bound" (5:33) this one feels more like old prog, old classic rock. Bombastic opening with piano-based lull for John and Jake's vocal presentation to begin in, we quickly find ourselves back in classic STYX/SOLSTICE/IONA/DAVE BAINBRIDGE/ALAN PARSONS PROJECT territory though, of course, you have to substitute male vocal tracks for most of the female ones--and EXCELLENT are the performances of both John and Jake. Though John Baker's choice of electric guitar tone is a little odd, it works well enough to take nothing away from Lisa's excellent music. (9/10)
5. "Moving Forward" (6:51) an instrumental of exemplar weave of prog solos, violin, real and otherwise, keyboard play of the very highest caliber, interesting and very effective guitar sound and styling choices, and some rather stupendous programming of the drums and rhythm section. This could've been early FROST* or BIG BIG TRAIN or THE FLOWER KINGS or THE TANGENT or even Open Sky-era IONA. I call this song a prog lover's wet dream! (15/15)
6. "The Turk/Follow The Wind" (5:58) despite the relatively "weak" realistic tone and talent of singer Jake Livgren's voice, the music behind this song is, again, of the highest quality and caliber. Wow! Great chord and melodic pathways drive the music of this band deep into the pleasure zones of my brain. (9.5/10)
6. "The Turk/Follow The Wind" (5:58) despite the relatively "weak" realistic tone and talent of singer Jake Livgren's voice, the music behind this song is, again, of the highest quality and caliber. Wow! Great chord and melodic pathways drive the music of this band deep into the pleasure zones of my brain. (9.5/10)
7. "Nothing Is Everything" (7:34) more sophisticated and virtuosic symphonic prog music that features, this time, a real, "live" violin (though the previous one--on "The Plains? Truth" sounded just as authentic). The song moves through several motifs, shifting in keys and tempos while maintaining the piano-based full-spectrum prog with violin palette until the fourth minute in which Lisa's gorgeous piano play is isolated with guest Joe Deninzen's violin for a spell before the rest of the prog instruments rejoin. The melody choices are so awesome: piano and violin going back and forth each with totally-engaging lines and dynamics. At the five minute mark we move into a heavier, more dynamic section with pounding piano chords, guitar power chords, and soloing electric guitar before we bridge into a Spanish guitar-led section beneath which Lisa has the drums programmed with some excellent tom-and-bass drum flourishes. And soon enough it is over! Nice! I never expected that one to be an instrumental the whole way through. (13.75/15)
8. "Carved From The Sun" (8:03) another stupendous prog rock instrumental that takes the listener on an exciting journey of dynamic multi-stimuli, all encapsulated into an action-packed whirlwind of enjoyable romantic slightly-pastoral NeoProg. Great bass, drum pacing, and, of course, keyboard work. I'm coming to fully comprehend what total melodic genius Lisa is: Amazing! So easy and comforting while never sacrificing sophistication and active lines from all of her instruments in the weaves. John's wah-wah-ed distorted guitar in the third minute is quite fitting but Lisa's continuous display of melodic and harmonic genius never quits! So many endorphin/goosebump moments generated by melodies, chord progression surprises, as well as palette and textural shifts. I am simply in awe. This is not only great prog it is music that I can (and will be) listen(ing) to for a long time into the future. This is music that not only rivals but I think surpasses that of my other favorite 21st Century NeoProg/Prog Folk band/artist, Solstice. (15/15)
9. "Kicking Rocks" (4:20) though another great instrumental rendering (with a Marc COHN "Walking in Memphis"-like piano approach). Active bass, steady drums, organ and synths, and intermittent electric guitar shredding all add their sounds over the lively piano foundation. There is a weird "no sound" solo section at the end of the second minute but Lisa's confident piano playing never wavers, continues to deliver some wonderfully engaging work (to which I feel like playing "air piano"). The synth-supported multiple guitar soloing that occurs in the fourth minute is cool, too, but I could listen to Lisa's piano playing all day long--especially with recurring support of bursts of near-djenty bass-&-guitar passages. (9.125/10)
10. "Prelude To Anywhere/Weekend Conquistadors" (5:45) more of the same piano styling from "Kicking Rocks" over and within which synths, shredding violins and metal guitars, as well as periodic bass and drums help out. There's a lot of the TRANS SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA Christmas music feel to this sound palette. John and/or Jake join in during a solo piano lull around the three-minute mark, signifying the switch to the "Weekend Conquistadors" half of the song--a lament about modern man's use (and misuse) of the land that once supported herds of bison and Native American tribes. Weird "distant and fading" strummed electric guitar ending as a couple quotes from literature or legend as delivered as spoken word over the top. (8.875/10)
11. "Still Breathing" (5:58) long introduction eventually pans out in the second minute into a hard-driving violin-topped prog instrumental passage. This is disrupted around the 2:30 mark to allow plodding piano notes and increasingly thickening rock palette to support more of Lisa's computer-generated violin. John's guitars begin to increase in layers, gradually revealing some solo ideas until another sudden stop at the end of the fifth minute signals a shift back into the hard-driving motif of the second minute, over which John's twangy guitar steps up to really solo before the song's final chord--which is followed by a neighing horse whose hooves can then be heard galloping off onto the Plains. Solid prog if not so "perfect" as some of the previous compositions. (9/10)
Total time 66:41
Total time 66:41
There are many who will bemoan so much of this music being computer generated and "cleaned" but the end result--great prog music--cannot (and should not) be denied. Keyboard specialist Lisa LaRue is expressing a level of genius that not many prog artists have ever achieved. An album that is definitely in the running for 2026's Album of the Year--and deservedly so!
94.04 on the Fishscales = A/five stars; a masterpiece of wonderful progressive rock music that taps into the palettes and energy of both the NeoProg and Prog Folk realms of progressive rock music and represent the talents of a musical genius who is totally new to me: Native American Lisa LaRue. HIGHLY recommended!
The Minor Masterpieces
(Ratings of 93.33 to 90.0)
One of Radiohead's founding guitarists (and still member) Ed O'Brien releases his second studio album as a solo artist. I don't know any of the guest musician/collaborators but you can bet that Ed had his pick of the crème de la crème!
Line-up / Musicians:
- Ed O'Brien / guitar, vocals
- Dave Okumu / guitar, bass, additional arrangements
- Philip Selway / drums
- Dan See / drums
- Crispin 'Spry' Robinson / percussion
- Yves Fernandez / bass
- Nick Ramm / keyboards
- Luke Mullen / additional keyboards
- Shabaka Hutchings / flutes
- Robert Stillman / saxophone
- Eska / vocals
- Awsa Bergstrom / additional vocals
- Tallinn Chamber Orchestra / orchestra
- Tõnu Korvits / string arrangements
1. "Incantations" (7:41) a single repeating acoustic guitar arpeggio provides the bed for 1:45 of Ed's folk singing. It honestly sounds like something from an early Roy Harper album. Other instruments, hand percussives and electronics, join in to move the music into territory previously traveled by the likes of DONOVAN and BJÖRK. Floating background vocals sound like Björk's Inuit Choir on the Vespero tours. At 5:40 the percussionist(s) are joined by drums, electric bass, electric guitars, and keyboard atmospherics--which play out until slowly being faded out while Dave Okumu's bass and Ed's reverberating guitar notes continue to the song's end. Cool song! (13.875/15)
2. "Blue Morpho" (6:18) another really cool atmospheric sonosphere created by guitars, wordless vocals, bass, synth washes, and, this time, full symphony strings. It's quite lovely--even moving: chords and multiple melody lines floating, flowing, shifting, morphing, and melding into one gorgeous textural feast. And the whole time I'm feel quite a little debt owed (or homage given) to George Martin and The Beatles. (Think of songs like "Blackbird" and "I Am the Walrus" as well as albums like Magical Mystery Tour.) Brilliant and beautiful! (9.75/10)
3. "Sweet Spot" (4:10) double lines of picked acoustic guitar chords woven into one though coming from both sides of the stage starts out this beautiful, atmospheric and kind of eerie (like GRAVENHURST) music over/within which Ed sings both lead and backing vocals. I like the way the orchestra strings slowly move to the fore as Ed's lead voice sinks into the instrumental mix. Eventually, the strings (and, I'll assume, keyboard electronics) end up alone, finishing the song after everybody/everything else has left. Not as memorable as the previous songs but rewarded for the creative sound and structural tactics. (9/10)
4. "Teachers" (5:18) a funky bass 'n' drum pattern is surrounded and permeated by eerie atmospherics. Ed's heavily-treated ghost-voice enters toward the end of the first minute, singing in a pleasant monotone for a minute or so but then it leaves, whereupon the bass, drums, guitars, and synths all seem to spread out into loose, adventurous swaths away from but still anchored in the main theme. The final minute sees the vocal choir sing, "open wide" before the instruments all stop or fade away, leaving only weird electronic noises to close out the song. (8.875/10)
5. "Solfeggio" (2:36) guitar/electronic harpsichord chord perpetuated with sustain and arpeggiation open this before more layers of voice-originating atmospherics enter and steer the with an eerie yet unthreatening kind of melody line, repeated over and over before signing off with a final lower-register three-note sequence, all the while the glitchy electronica effects are increasingly present, even rising to a driver's position, like something from a SyFy Continuum soundtrack experience (think Au4's "Everyone Is Everyone [and Everything Is Everything]"). More genius song/sound making. (4.4375/5)
6. "Thin Places" (2:19) flute, wordless voice, synthetics all woven together to create a kind of dream-like out-of-body astral travel experience. (4.4375/5)
7. "Obrigado" (9:53) a very cool, almost jazz-lite rhythm track over/within which Ed & Co. deliver some pretty awesome atmospherics (as well as vocals). The reverse-delay guitar effects for Ed's guitar solo in the seventh and eighth minutes are only surpassed by the dreamy psychedelic soundscape floating and morphing beneath it (and, later, by the amazing wordless vocal tracks raging in the background--which I think one must attribute to Clare Torey-inspired Awsa Berstrom). Ed's ultra-cool voice reminds me of both George Harrison, Gadi Caplan, Donovan, and Harry Nilsson as well as, you know, Radiohead. Really a cool, amazing, and powerful song. A pleasure to listen to every single time I do. (19.5/20)
Total Time 38:15
7. "Obrigado" (9:53) a very cool, almost jazz-lite rhythm track over/within which Ed & Co. deliver some pretty awesome atmospherics (as well as vocals). The reverse-delay guitar effects for Ed's guitar solo in the seventh and eighth minutes are only surpassed by the dreamy psychedelic soundscape floating and morphing beneath it (and, later, by the amazing wordless vocal tracks raging in the background--which I think one must attribute to Clare Torey-inspired Awsa Berstrom). Ed's ultra-cool voice reminds me of both George Harrison, Gadi Caplan, Donovan, and Harry Nilsson as well as, you know, Radiohead. Really a cool, amazing, and powerful song. A pleasure to listen to every single time I do. (19.5/20)
Total Time 38:15
It's weird how much/how often I hear core/key Radiohead sounds in Ed's music here. This leads me to feel strongly how important and integral he was/is to the Radiohead sound--to their music.
93.1667 on the Fishscales = A/five stars; a brilliant display of creative/innovative sound and song crafting that stands out as a masterpiece of extrapolated future music (as if Ed's projecting himself into the 22nd Century or beyond--or even another dimension). A modern musical masterpiece. Highly recommended. One of the best albums I've heard from 2026.
93.1667 on the Fishscales = A/five stars; a brilliant display of creative/innovative sound and song crafting that stands out as a masterpiece of extrapolated future music (as if Ed's projecting himself into the 22nd Century or beyond--or even another dimension). A modern musical masterpiece. Highly recommended. One of the best albums I've heard from 2026.
ASCETA The Fool Leading the Blind
Chilean composer and bandleader Rodrigo Maccioni's third album release since 2021, all reporting pretty much the same cast of Avant-Garde musicians as this album. (Pianist Jorge Bugueño and English horn player Pascal Montenegro are new additions since 2023's Erebus, La Suite de las Sombras.) After reading the enthusiastic five star review that my esteemed colleague Scott "Evolver" posted on ProgArchives this morning I had to go back and familiarize myself with the band's excellent two previous albums (of which, sadly, I have yet to post reviews).
Line-up / Musicians:
- Alfonso Vergara / clarinets
- Arianne Guerra / viola
- Eduardo Rubio / bass guitar
- Leonardo Saavedra / drums and percussion
- Jorge Bugueño / electric piano
- Alejandro Vera / bassoon
- Pascal Montenegro / english horn
- Rodrigo Maccioni / electric guitar, keyboard and flute
1. "The Fool Leading the Blind" (21:34) opening with an odd array of creepy sounds before bassoon enters as the first truly recognizable instrument, setting a slightly lighter mood with its melody line. They are soon joined by various stringed, bowed, percussive, and keyboard instruments, creating a rather unusually-neutral tapestry of sound (I'm used to Avant/RIO songs ladling out a soup of dissonant or atonal gloom-and-doom moods) eventually sounding more like an expanded, orchestra perspective of KING CRIMSON's "Discipline" or even "Frame by Frame" music. The intricate mathematical weave of broad spectrum orchestral instruments continues with what seems like no instrument taking more than a few bars in the solo spotlight yet each and every one being given their turns. The overall feel and melody lines remain surprisingly (unexpectedly) upbeat and (for me) enjoyable, even into the new motif (which begins in the eighth minute). Another thematic shift in the ninth minute continues to leave me with the King Crimson Math Rock feeling despite the unraveling and simplification of the overall weave though I can now hear elements that remind me strongly of CHEER ACCIDENT. This is so lovely! I really enjoy a more upbeat, hope-filled and even light form of Avant-Garde music. At the end of the 12th minute Rodrigo strips down the weave to three or four basic Rock instruments (bass, drums, guitar) while allowing all of the other instruments to contribute riffs and accents to the overall motif--often sounding like circus fare despite the Crimsonian base. Those of you familiar with both my adoration of the Discipline album and my pronounced bias and preference for melodic music (as opposed to dissonant or atonal) while understand why I'm enjoying this song so much. I feel that over the years I've been pretty accepting and open to the "less pretty" musics of Avant-Garde/RIO (as well as Metal) artists--willing to be educated--but I have to admit to having found through this process that my preferences are very pronounced and ingrained by my pop and proggy youth. My attraction to and growing familiarity and understanding of Jazz-Rock Fusion and, through it, Jazz music has helped me increase my comfort and tolerance of dissonance and atonality yet I still find myself "enjoying" melodic, upbeat music more. What we have here is a wonderful composition of more melodic and more buoyant and even cheerful music--much like the feel that Rational Diet/Five-Storey Ensemble's Olga Podgaiskaya produces with her own music. Beautiful music, Rodrigo! Thank you so much! The only thing lacking from this wonderful composition are earworm melodies that my brain will never let go of. (38.5/40)
2. "Temple Of Mirrors" (5:44) Now this song contains some "earworm" melodies that have no trouble working their way into my brain. The music is quite similar to that of the previous song yet never evoking King Crimson, Cheer-Accident, Yugen, Factor Burzaco, or Five-Storey Ensemble along the way. This feels like "new" music for me! (9.333/10)
4. "Everything Stopped" (7:53) a more bombastic and cinematically-dramatic start--like music for a silent film or documentary soundtrack--the musicians' performances are eventually sublimated into something more mobile: sounding like a couple going on a morning walk through the local park or woods. With the arrival of the third minute there is a sudden suggestion of danger, fear, and/or cautious worry: as if the walkers have suddenly found themselves lost in a darker and unfamiliar part of the woods. The hackles on one's neck remain on alert, but the couple presses on, finding more resolve and hopefulness the further they go on, eventually finding comfort in the sixth minute as signs of a thinning tree canopy, a lightening of the sky, even, perhaps, a familiar landmark or two begin to make themselves known. Interesting! Quite an evocative journey! (13.5/15)
5. "Memento Mori (Remember That You Will Die)" (10:19) thought there is gravitas in this music, there is also a feeling of celebration and enthusiastic encouragement directed toward the listener--as if the composer (and band) is trying to remind people that they can LIVE, now, that they should live now, even with the knowledge that their death is imminent, but that it is in the future, not happening now, so take advantage of the now. The circular lines occurring within the weave seem to me to also be adding the reminder that it's all circular, cyclical: that life and all of the patterns in life are part of a cycle of repetition. Again, it's not the melodies or contrasting melody lines (of which there are few) but the overall spirit being expressed--or rather, the spirit that I'm feeling--that counts. I feel that there is a very positive, life-affirming message emanating from the bones of this music, from the fact of joint cooperation resulting in the music of this song. (18/20)
Total Time 52:56
I have to agree with my PA colleague Scott "Evolver" that this album present Prog World with some of the freshest, most exciting Avant-Garde/RIO music I've heard in a while: there's just something different about it; not as dark, not as insistent and unforgiving as the music of Univers Zero and Présent; there's some thing hopeful in this music that is often missing from other Avant-Garde/RIO albums (even Asceta's own two previous albums: while both Erebus, La Suite de las Sombras and their self-titled debut from 2022 are excellent, they don't feel as ground-breaking as this one does: they feel like continuations of that which UZed and Présent had already done). What Rodrigo and company have accomplished here is exciting for how how positive and engaging they've made dissonance and atonality sound.
93.08 on the Fishscales = A/five stars; a refreshing use of Avant-garde structures and palettes to create some music that is enjoyable on several levels.
93.08 on the Fishscales = A/five stars; a refreshing use of Avant-garde structures and palettes to create some music that is enjoyable on several levels.
SINGLELITO In Absence of Velocity
The haphazard and "low-fi" sound of Columbia's Fountain of Youth is back with (what?!!) his seventh full length studio album--and he's only just 20 years old (last month)!
- Juan Pinto / drums, vocals, keys, bass (1-4), guitar, lyrics
With:
- Esteban Aparicio / trumpet (4)
- Luis Eusse / bass (5)
- Ricardo Santiago / lead guitar (5)
- Ainner Navarro / lead guitar (5)
- Ivan Insignares / lead keys (5)
- Angie Bula / vocals (5)
1. "Low-Level Depictions of Uncensored Kinetic Works" (9:30) the fearlessness is still there, the quirky reckless abandon, the singing of lyrics that often feel like stream of consciousness over musical vamps that it feels like he's created for just for extemporaneous improvisation. Straight out of the gate--on the album's very first song--Juan lays it all on the line, jumping into his shtick, his risk zone. And yet the song comes across as a medley, a suite of (dis-?) connected songs, lyrics, stories, and moods. But, it works! How can someone do this with so much flippancy, so much ease and chill, and get away with it?! I don't get it! Can a faceless musician have this much charisma? I mean, I'd vote for him! I'd rip off and throw my panties to him (and I don't even wear underwear much less panties!) It's like Juan heard Canterbury and then asked, "Why'd they stop so short? Why were they being so conservative, so fucking reserved and cowardly with their music?!" And if this is just the hormonal, under-developed cerebral cortex naïveté of a 20-21-year old, then please, PLEASE: let 20-21-year olds rule the world! (19.5/20)
2. "Handprints of a Wealthy Settler" (8:45) the Ben Coniguliaro-like opening minute is a bit challenging to engage with but then Juan moves into an excellent, even beautiful, section that serves as a bridge to the song's real meat: to a highway speed motif that supports some nice guitar and wordless vocal work while showing off Juan's bass, drum, and compositional sophistication skills. The song has the feel of something by Ben Coniguliaro, Ambrosia, Robert Wyatt, The Soft Machine, and even XTC, The Who, and even Steely Dan. Great bass, drum, Hammond organ, and Canterbury saw-organ work--and Juan's stream-of-consciousness English vocals are fun and so confidently delivered (even moreso than his Spanish ones). I would rate this very high for musicianship, high for compositional prowess, entertaining for lyrical content, and excellent for its service as a message delivery system. (18.333/20)
3. "Old People Sit Outside" (5:46) the second song in a row in which Juan's keyboard work is really trying to carry on the Canterbury work founded by Mike Ratledge, David Sinclair, and Dave Stewart--but this one is filled out into several dimensions that give it an even more Soft Machine orientation. Definitely an album favorite. Great, great song! (9.5/10)
4. "Lovesong - Letter - Poem - Anything for Ale" (6:57) Juan with guest setter Esteban Aparicio on trumpet expressing his youthfulness in the same way that Geordie Greep/black midi and, to a lesser degree, Ben Coniguliaro are doing. Over all this is one of Juan's best displays of his achievements as a master if his instruments. (13.5/15)
5. "Fuente" (6:02) for this dynamic song Juan has gathered into the studio some very talented to record this song that was composed by Juan and bassist Louis Eusse and guitarist Ricardo. Everybody gives great performances. It's especially nice to hear Juan getting some help with background and alternate vocals. (Nice job, Angie Bula!) (8.875/10)
Total time: 37:00
This is one artist that will keep me engaged in modern day progressive rock so long as he retains his youthful esprit de vie.
92.94 on the Fishscales = A/five stars; a delightful masterpiece of quirky Canterbury- and youth-infused creativity. HIGHLY recommended to any and all lovers of the high-spirited naïveté of youth!
FISTFIGHTS WITH WOLVES Sea Shanties for Future Sailors
Inspired by the amazing chemistry between of singers Anastasya Korol and Latifah Smith, San Diego's metal-grounded eclecticians have found a new direction: blending intricate multi-voiced vocal weaves over and within the boys' jazzified metal music.
Line-up / Musicians:
- Mathew Rakers /
- Anastasya Korol /
- Ryan Bradley /
- Latifah Smith /
- Nathan Robinson /
- Kevin Capacia /
1. "Prelude" (1:32) an a cappella shanty performed as a layered four-part choral piece by Anastasya Korol and Latifah Smith. It definitely introduces the new approach the band is choosing for the album as well as sets the tone for the essential if not primary role that sophisticatedly-arranged vocals will have over the course of each of the next eight songs. (4.5/5)
2. "Pirates" (4:59) an amazingly fresh weave of near-liturgical choral vocal music with/within sophisticated heavy, metal, and Jazz-Rock Fusion music. The shocking first minute blows away, the vocal arrangements of the second impressing big time, while the jazzy instrumental third-through-fifth sucks you into its groove and keyboard magic while the finale reminds you that these sacred songs are sea shanties. A lot like INNER EAR BRIGADE! (9.25/10)
3. "Gambler" (2:57) a very INNER EAR BRIGADE and iNFiNiEN-sounding tune with Anastasya and Latifah blending their voices over the funky prog music, sounding like something from SAY SHE SHE as well as the afore-mentioned quirk masters. Amazing! (9.5/10)
4. "Ice Eater" (4:21) more incredibly refreshing sophisticated choral vocal weaving woven seamlessly within some awesome heavy jazzy prog. The vocal arrangements are so pert and professional, reminding me of so many of today's incredibly inventive female-led bands like A FORMAL HORSE, iNFiNiEN, INNER EAR BRIGADE, THE MOULETTES, PLANTOID, BILLIE BOTTLE'S TEMPLE OF SHIBBOLETH, RESONAXIS, and even HANDS OF THE HERON and LYNSEY WARD's projects. (9.333/10)
5. "Archons" (2:33) the cheeky vocal performance here reminds me of both Aussie band RESONAXIS as well as KATHARINE BLAKE's projects and Billie Bottle's Temple of Shibboleth. Great theatric piano-based music beneath the vocal choir makes it all possible. Probably the most beautiful song on the album. Awesome! (9.667/10)
6. "Desert" (4:23) Latin-infused heavy Jazz-Rock Fusion with a theatric weave of cabaret-like vocals intertwined within results in another tune that has a cheek and frivolity to it--until 1:37 when Matthew, Ryan, Nathan, and Kevin open a door to horror soundtrack music while Anastasya and Latifah provide the light wordless vocalese "ooh"s. Then the song moves through a few other syncopated motifs over which the vocal choir performs as if in ceremonial or theatric setting. Interesting and respectable but ultimately a little too jagged edged for me to maintain my engagement and/or enjoyment. (8.75/10)
7. "Thing Eater" (5:48) another song based on even more dominating angular melody lines: presenting what feels like rock music that is much more constructed and composed around modern chromatic Classical Music traditions ("atonality," "Serialism," or "Expressionism"?). It's impressive but never as accessible or engaging as the album's other material. (8.75/10)
8. "Elegy" (6:54) male voices in the choir! This piano-based piece feels as if it truly needs a house of worship for its presentation. During the first half of this I find myself reminded of 2000s Texas phenomenon POLYPHONIC SPREE while at others I find myself thinking of some of the great Broadway musicals I've heard (especially Stephen Schwartz' Godspell). Even the infrequent injections of aggressive angular electric guitar do little to detract from the celestial/liturgical or courtly feel of this wonderful piece of music. I think Katharine Blake (Mediæval Bæbes), Hannah Moule (The Moulettes), Lynsey Ward and her Espera trio, and Bristol, England's Hands Of The Heron would be proud and envious of the achievement made here. (9.5/10)
9. "Recapitulation" (1:16) a folk-feeling four-voiced a cappella vocal finale--much like the album's opener--to wind things up. A perfect ending to an incredible album. (4.375/5)
Total Time 35:12
I am so grateful for the drastically improved sound engineering and album length (the two criticisms I've posted for all of the band's previous three albums). I really love the way the band's vocalists have gelled--how they've become confident enough in the choral approach to their vocal deliveries. I don't know if Anastasya and Latifah are doing all of the choral tracks themselves (I don't hear male voices in some of the songs) but it's okay (brilliant!): whatever they're doing/however they're doing it, it's amazing! And mega-kudos to the guys for going along with, supporting, even conceptualizing it!
92.03 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; an amazing and totally refreshing album of progressive rock music, putting on display, once again, the fact that the new artists of the 21st Century have got all of the tools and brains to keep pushing the boundaries of possibility for our beloved genre of music.
PAT METHENY Side-Eye III+
The look is all new, the styles and sounds a perfect blend of old and new, the results offer full satisfaction and intriguing fusions.
- Pat Metheny / guitars
- Chris Fishman / keyboards
- Joe Dyson / drums
- Daryl Johns / bass
- Brandee Younger / harp
- Luis Conte / percussion
- Leonard Patton / percussion, vocals
1. "In On It" (7:55) a sound palette and style that harkens back to the albums Pat was doing with his Group towards the end of their tenure together (1996-2004--particularly those of 2002's Speaking of Now). Drummer Joe Dyson does bring a different, perhaps "younger" feel to his play and keyboard maestro Chris Fishman and bassist Daryl Johns definitely bring new styles and sounds to the music, but the percussionists are fitted to the old proscribed Latin/Brasilian slots that they been filling since the days of Nana Vasconcelos. The song is full of twists and turns--and totally up to the skills expectations that Pat has put before us for over 50 years--as well as surprising sounds coming from the newbies (spring-less snare, active kick drum, odd bass riffs and chords, etc.) It even sports a few stop-and-go instances but the melodies and Pat's choice of guitar tone are all quite familiar. (13.5/15)
2. "Don't Look Down" (11:15) now here's a bass and drum pattern that we haven't heard from Pat in . . . forever?! Like something out of the early Sixties (Dave Brubeck's "Take Five" keeps coming to mind) yet the piano, percussion, and Wes Montgomery-like guitar tone and style are still quite within Pat's "normal" wheelhouse. Keep it fresh by going back to the old! Daryl Johns is definitely something beyond the Mark Egan, Steve Rodby, and Charlie Haden tools we were used to hearing from Pat's albums. The use of choir is also something new to me--it's as if Pat & Company are paying tribute to Burt Bacharach and that ilk. But then after "warming up" for the first eight minutes with "the old," we get to enjoy some of Pat's signature "horn guitar" in his soloing over the top of the full/busy final two minutes. Nice! I've enjoyed this "old meets new" listening experience! Pat just keeps on going! (18/20)
3. "Make A New World" (10:04) this one goes back to old guitar sounds and styles of the Sixties with piano and old-fashioned drum and bass support giving us a bit of a look at "Cool Jazz" or the early stuff that spawned the Smooth Jazz phenomenon (which became one of the dominant forms of Jazz left to us after the Fusion revolution of the 1970s). Joe Dyson's unusual play and miking of his drums gives Pat's "old" sounding guitar melodies a youthful pop and zing while other bass lines are presented from other instruments from the sixth minute on--just before Pat switches to a computer-MIDIed sound that sounds as if he had fused together a baritone clarinet with a Prophet 5 sound that allows him to spray notes over the palette as if Ornette Coleman were playing the piano with his hands, elbows, and head. But this is only brief, then he returns with his Wes Montgomery sound before letting the rich chords of the wordless vocal choir step up front to take us to the end. Nice product, guys! One of the new style! (18.333/20)
4. "Urban and Western" (7:22) for this motif Pat and his rhythm section pick up on Rickie Lee Jones' vocal melody lines from "A Lucky Guy" (from her 1981 masterpiece, Pirates, one of my top 10 favorite albums of all-time). Swirling 1960s organ--straight out of the original tele-evangelist churches, full-on Gospel-Pop choir, jazz guitar over bluesy bass and drum play, and big build up and crescendoing finish make this a fun and memorable song--and one that comes as quite a surprise when put up against all of Pat's previous works. (14/15)
5. "SE-O" (6:51) a marching motif that sounds part like the castle soldiers of The Wizard of Oz's Wicked Witch of the West and part like something that might have come off of a 1960s Miles Davis Second Great Quintet album (this despite the dominant sound of Chris Fishman's organ in the lead position--which allows us the rare opportunity to hear Pat playing gentle rhythm guitar support chords) until the end of the third minute when we switch into Brasilian mode with Pat up front and Chris receding to a supporting roll. Daryl Johns' double bass play is delightful--taking me back to Steve Rodby's work on Still Life (Talking), Letter from Home, and We Live Here. There is such a great, almost loose, but actually very tight and busy thickness of this complex track--especially in these last three minutes! Wow! Pat can still hang with the youngsters! (13.875/15)
6. "Our Old Street" (5:22) one of those gorgeous late-night nostalgia (or Missouri Sky-like) ballads that Pat usually squeezes onto his albums. Here, with Daryl on double bass, Chris on piano, and Joe really hashing up his cymbal play, Pat manages to conjure up something totally new melodically, which must be so hard to do after 50 years of recording and improvising. He and Chris really have a great symbiosis with their mutually-supportive melody-carrying chord play. But then we get into the fourth minute in which the band ramps up a bit while Chris jumps into the lead: me no like. Fortunately, they return to the original chord-based melody delivery mechanism for the final 90 seconds. Beautiful. (9.125/10)
7. "Risk and Reward" (9:58) a song that seems to be expressing a story in the way a jazz-pop artist (like Rickie Lee Jones) might do: lots of unexpected twists and turns, surprise road sights and scenic delights. This is one of the freshest, most charming/disarming pieces I've heard from Pat in a long time! My favorite song on the album. (19.125/20)
8. "So Far, So Good" (5:45) another soft, spacious with some interesting sound choices coming from the vocals and keys while Pat solos away on his favorite nostalgia/ballad tone. (8.875/10)
Total Time: 63:22
Total Time: 63:22
It's hard to believe that after 50 years Pat can still come up with new sounds, new melodies, new structural ideas, but, then, he is helped in that process by always choosing/attracting la crème de la crème in terms of musicians. Each of the newcomers on this album has brought a wealth of new sounds and ideas to enrich, augment, and even push Pat to higher heights. Mega kudos, Chris, Joe, and Daryl!
Released as a digital album by Blue Note Records on July 31, 2026. To hear about the two year process that JD and DOMi went through to realize this music to their satisfaction (and for public consumption) I STRONGLY urge you to watch the 1 hr 28 min long July 28, 2026 YouTube video release of Rick Beato interviewing DOMi & JD. It is EXCELLENT!
Line-up / Musicians:
- DOMi / keyboards, composer
- JD Beck / drums, composer
1. "Épiphanie" (2:34) I am really loving the return by many (young) Jazz artists to orchestration of their music and/or compositions. Not that it was a lost art or forgotten approach to musical rendering but it's nice to see how the artists that were raised with all of the modern conveniences (ProTools, Garage Band, MIDI, MTV, computers, microwaves, air conditioning, toasters, etc.) approach, employ, and realize their "orchestral dreams" in the Cyber-Digital Age! As for this piece, I think it quite lovely, quite mature and sophisticated in both its construct and achievement. Great opener! Makes me look forward to a kind of concept album. (9.5/10)
2. "Had Enough" (3:20) despite the symphonic Minimalist/Mark Isham Jazz instrumental opening, vocals are the surprisingly dominant feature of this song--here coming from JD in the lead and DOMi backing him up every step of the way (and more). The odd sound palette reminds me of a scenario in which OWL CITY gets together with Louis Cole and Genevieve Artadi (KNOWER) and Paddy McAloon and Wendy Smith (PREFAB SPROUT). Ultimately a kind of dull monotonous song that does have highlights (the instrumental intro, DOMi's strong and ethereal Wendy Smith-like vocal track in the third minute as well as her usual mind-blowing keyboard solo toward the song's end. (8.875/10)
3. "Exit" (2:53) more Prefab Sprout-like vocal weaving over that oddly muted and distorted drumming and spritely Vibraphone-voice MIDIed keyboard lead and electronic bass line. The melody lines are diminished, in my opinion, by JD's murkified voice and odd single note-per-syllable approach to singing. DOMi sounds amazing in her breathy Wendy Smith vocal role. (8.875/10)
8. "Small Eyes" (3:40) a gentle Pat Metheny-like chord opening that has individual wind instruments introducing and repeating several melodic riffs that are eventually woven and morphed into a Minimalist form as are the multiple lines of JD and DOMi's vocals! So cool! At 1:24 there is a dramatic stylistic shift above JD's spacious syncopated rhythm track: something that is even more spacious and syncopated with long poses and sustains between new note or chord introductions. Very cool! On this song JD's lead vocal is almost relegated to a place within the music instead of out front and DOMi's increasingly brave and adventurous voice seems to have been moved both up front and been given free reign to "do her own thing." The breaks and instrumental pattern shifts and solos coming from DOMi's banks of synth-generated keys are much more prominent, important, and significant (as opposed to just being a small part of the monotonous flows of the album's earliest vocal songs. (9.125/10)
9. "Lovely Masquerade" (2:50) the murkiness of JD's tracks are starting to get to me: I wish he would just let his humanity and the naturality of his instruments come shining through in their more-natural forms. The overall sound of this song feels so compressed and muted; I'd love to hear it without all of the engineering effects removed. (8.75/10)
10. "Puzzle Pieces" (4:15) opening with a beautiful arpeggiated keyboard chord and then chord sequence which is quickly joined by JD's drums as well as his lead vocal backed by DOMi's gorgeous harmony vocal. The tuned percussion melody lines flowing continuously beneath the singing is gorgeous and the jazzy instrumental section that allows DOMi the chance to soar on her keyboard is also awesome. Then the music flattens out with DOMi settling into a four-chord vamp within which JD jams (later with DOMi throwing a few flutters and flourishes as the song closes). Beautiful! I haven't made head or tail (yet) of the lyrics but the music is superb! (9.25/10)
11. "Phantom Thread" (3:34) slower and more drawn out (which doesn't bode well for DOMi as her strong suit is her astounding speed and dexterity). It does however pick up a little at the end of the first minute as DOMi's bass line deepens. Then the orchestral inputs begin to move up front, enriching and embellishing the music so that another one of JD and DOMi's droning Prefab vocal style doesn't threaten to put us to sleep (or worse: drive us to push "skip"). (8.75/10)
12. "Out of Sync" (3:52) harmonized vocals over DOMi's gentle REICHIAN keyboard melodies and some of JD's less-busy rhythm play. There is a bit of a Michael Franks/Owl City sound quality and feel to JD & DOMi's singing which makes it very easy and pleasant to listen to. One must marvel at DOMi's keyboard-generated bass play--this one carving a particularly impressive melody line. A top three song for me.(9.25/10)
13. "Concertino (for Piano, Drums & Orchestra)" (5:04) wonderfully orchestrated music that opens with a "waking" overture that sounds like Stravinsky, Samuel Barber, Khachaturian, or even Philip Glass. Then DOMi and JD enter and make it jazzy. Wonderful, wonderful piece: both compositionally and performatively. DOMi is amazing: weaving in and out of the orchestral inputs. And I love JD's temporal shifts and changes. Probably my favorite song on the album. (9.667/10)
15. "Épilogue" (4:04) the orchestrated instrumental bookend to end the album in the same way as it began. I could easily and very happily listen to an entire album of instrumental compositions just like this one. (9.5/10)
Total time: 53:38
Line-up / Musicians:
- Tom Penaguin / everything
With:
- Maureen Piercy / Vocals (3)
OK GOODNIGHT Stop / Go
These Berklee College of Music grads are up and ready to put on display their "new" reinvented versions of themselves and their music. It's been three years since their impressive The Fox and The Bird album was released which means they have high expectations for this, their third publication.
Line-up / Musicians:
- Casey Lee Williams / Lyrics, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, SFX
- Martín de Lima / Keyboards, Guitars, Orchestrations, Backing Vocals, SFX
- Augusto Bussio / Drums, Guitars, Backing Vocals, SFX
- Peter de Reyna / Bass, Backing Vocals, SFX
With
- Eve / Guitar solo (3)
- Ella Wilhelmina / Saxophones (5), soprano sax (4), clarinet (4), flute (4)
- Rodolfo Moreno / Saxophones (8)
1. "No Sound" (4:29) surprise: the band has incorporated a little sassy Country-Western flair into its music--especially in the first two minutes of this (Casey Lee could, I can hear, very easily have had a career in C&W--may have had or yet have!) There's even quite a little TAYLOR SWIFT in the song's pep and Casey's vocal styling. The chorus is heavy, even metallic, vocals and all, though sounding a lot like some of the British psychedelic punk artists of the late 1980s and early 1990s. (8.875/10)
90.26 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; though this kind of Classic Rock and sophisticated 80s Metal blend of prog is not really among my high preferences, I do appreciate the creative and complex song structures built here as well as the wonderful vocal work rendered by the collective members of the McDonald family (really, Rylee and Kristen).
Line-up / Musicians:
- Nicholas DiSalvo / guitar, vocals, synthesizer
- Michael Risberg / guitar, Rhodes piano, slide guitar
- Jack Donovan / bass guitar
- Georg Edert / drums, percussion
1. "Sigil To Ruin" (10:33) ambient space synths open this one before infinity electric guitar notes emerge from the depths to be joined by the complement of syncopated heavy rock walls of sound. This start leads to a cool atmospheric break at the two-minute mark which is followed by a more humane motif with Nicholas DiSalvo's augmented post-Tim Smith MIDLAKE-like vocals. This is really nice! I really like bassist Jack Donovan's sound and playing just above Georg Edert's syncopated rock drumming, just below Nicholas' rhythm guitar work. The chorus buildup is more like a return to the guitar-heavy opening. Cool synth and guitar effects in the sixth minute woven beneath the vocals. The eighth minute has a nice diversion of jagged, mathematical Synth Pop chords before guitar and vocals join in to ground it more in straight-line movement. Then the music gets djenty for the exposure of a nice little rock guitar solo. Though all of the musicians feel skilled, no one seems to be trying to out-perform the others--and there are very few overtly "solo" exhibitions. An impressive and likable opener if a bit regimented. (18.125/20)
2. "Capture/Release" (8:47) a gentle, prolonged cinematic synthesizer "space" introduction takes us to the addition of staccato notes and swirling spirals of waves from keyboards before the band launches into a nice two chord motif for the second minute. Enter lead vocalist Nicholas DeSalvo with a voice(s) and harmonized vocal sound that reminds me quite a bit of both John Young's LIFESIGNS and Belgian-based international supergroup FISH ON FRIDAY. The music continues to flow like a Post Rock band using a 1980s and 1990s techno/New Wave sound palette. The sound palette thickens and gets heavier in the second half--not unlike some of the walls of sound Jared Leach created on his masterful 2016 GHOST MEDICINE release, Discontinuance. Despite taking us on a fairly straightforward ride, the music is always easy to enjoy, the scenery evoked pleasant. (18.125/20)
3. "Through Zero" (9:06) cool heavily-reverbed electric guitar opening reminds me of both THE CURE and KINGSTON WALL but it quickly turns heavier, sounding more like some of the grungy metal of the 1990s (which is not quite as much to my liking as the opening). But this turns djenty as a lead guitarist solos over it until 1:25 when a two-guitar chord arpeggiation opens things up for Nicholas to enter with a Kevin Moore (Chroma Key)-like lead vocal to enter. The driving effect of the Georg's drumming is quite solid, even as the song takes a couple of detours, left and right, over the next minute or two. The motif that is held in the fifth minute is quite nice: something that really piques my interest. This is developed with searing infinity electric guitar notes and complex harmonized vocals until the band returns to the uber-heavy wall of sound for the seventh minute. Nice work in the complex weave of the eighth minute: bass, drums, and two guitars holding fast to their places in the weave. (17.75/20)
4. "Strata" (10:48) opening with alternating bass notes and keyboard arpeggio moving through a few chords together--again reminding me of both THE CURE but also the COCTEAU TWINS--before launching into a very cool almost KITCHENS OF DISTINCTION/early THE FIXX/ALAN PARSONS PROJECT motif with THE BUGGLES-like flat-toned robot-like harmony vocals on top. The instrumental passages between the vocal verses return to the CURE/COCTEAU motif of the opening section--which is really cool--and, eventually, include ICEHOUSE-like vocals on top, existing as the chorus. At the end of the fourth minute a searing JARED LEACH-like weave of twin lead guitars joins in, giving the music a much more grungy ALICE IN CHAINS/PEARL JAM-like feel and power--a wall of sound section that continues on well into the eighth minute. Around 7:15 the bass and drums let up on the gas a bit but the thick walls of sound continue and somebody's lead guitar solo intensifies until 8:10 when the whole soundscape switches dimensions, now chugging along to make more space for the return of Nicholas' vocals to re-enter around the 9:00 mark. Definitely my favorite weaves on the album so far. (18.25/20)
5. "Sight Unseen" (8:50) opening with a much longer and more spacious, even proggy, buildup and transitory weave than we've seen/heard on this album before, it becomes still fairly thick but highly melodic and almost electronic/Kosmische, especially in the second motif (which starts around the 3:20 mark) with a lead synth melody pattern dominating the four-or-five-instrument Math Rock-like weave. Another solid song even if it is only instrumental and only three prolonged motifs (with basically one speed coming from drummer Gerog Edert) drawn out over the nine minutes. The third motif (which slowly establishes itself in the seventh minute) is like a heavy, grungy Ozric Tentacles, but this very suddenly cuts out, allowing a space-atmospheric keyboard patch to fill the sonosphere for the final minute. (17.625/20)
6. "Blighted Age" (5:48) opening with picked acoustic guitars within which Nicolas joins in with a COLIN BLUNSTONE-like vocal sound and style. The music develops just like something from Kevin Moore's CHROMA KEY's albums from the turn of the century. This would actually have been one of the best songs from either Dead Air for Radios or You Go Now. There's just this haunting brainworm quality to the sound palette and repetitive chord progression used. Awesome song! (9.333/10)
91.867 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; yet another high ceiling of masterful Jazz and Jazz-Rock Fusion--the blending of old and new, both in terms of styles and ages of the collaborators involved, this is without hesitation another masterpiece from one of the absolute greatest musical creatives of the past half century!
DOMi & JD BECK Who Asked?
Released as a digital album by Blue Note Records on July 31, 2026. To hear about the two year process that JD and DOMi went through to realize this music to their satisfaction (and for public consumption) I STRONGLY urge you to watch the 1 hr 28 min long July 28, 2026 YouTube video release of Rick Beato interviewing DOMi & JD. It is EXCELLENT!
Line-up / Musicians:
- DOMi / keyboards, composer
- JD Beck / drums, composer
1. "Épiphanie" (2:34) I am really loving the return by many (young) Jazz artists to orchestration of their music and/or compositions. Not that it was a lost art or forgotten approach to musical rendering but it's nice to see how the artists that were raised with all of the modern conveniences (ProTools, Garage Band, MIDI, MTV, computers, microwaves, air conditioning, toasters, etc.) approach, employ, and realize their "orchestral dreams" in the Cyber-Digital Age! As for this piece, I think it quite lovely, quite mature and sophisticated in both its construct and achievement. Great opener! Makes me look forward to a kind of concept album. (9.5/10)
2. "Had Enough" (3:20) despite the symphonic Minimalist/Mark Isham Jazz instrumental opening, vocals are the surprisingly dominant feature of this song--here coming from JD in the lead and DOMi backing him up every step of the way (and more). The odd sound palette reminds me of a scenario in which OWL CITY gets together with Louis Cole and Genevieve Artadi (KNOWER) and Paddy McAloon and Wendy Smith (PREFAB SPROUT). Ultimately a kind of dull monotonous song that does have highlights (the instrumental intro, DOMi's strong and ethereal Wendy Smith-like vocal track in the third minute as well as her usual mind-blowing keyboard solo toward the song's end. (8.875/10)
3. "Exit" (2:53) more Prefab Sprout-like vocal weaving over that oddly muted and distorted drumming and spritely Vibraphone-voice MIDIed keyboard lead and electronic bass line. The melody lines are diminished, in my opinion, by JD's murkified voice and odd single note-per-syllable approach to singing. DOMi sounds amazing in her breathy Wendy Smith vocal role. (8.875/10)
4. "Silhouette" (3:31) opening with a little funkier groove generated by modern computer generated and modified drum and keyboard sounds (delivered in layers) the continued presence of the Prefab formula of vocals is improved dramatically by DOMi's increased volume and more adventurous singing (not as closely adhered JD's lead) and JD's more vocally expressive (less monotone and less note-per-syllable restricted). The music is totally within the realms of EDM (not unlike recent favorite VYLET PONY). I jiust wish the lyrics and vocal deliveries had more emotional impact. (8.875/10)
5. "Growing Older" (3:36) okay, just as I wrote that last sentence ("I just wish the lyrics and vocal deliveries had more emotional impact.") I get served a song that has a lyric that is not only understandable but totally relatable, even relevant. Here the Prefab Sprout vocal delivery approach works really well (or else I'm just getting used to it)--and JD is sounding much more relaxed, much more engaged (and much less autotuned). (9/10)
6. "Some Things Never Change" (3:51) another song that resonates and hits home thought musically it also feels much more Jazz Fusionary than a lot of the previous more-pop-oriented stuff. (9/10)
7. "Rain" (3:01) I don't know if these songs were composed, polished, and rendered in the order that they appear on the album, but I honestly feel as if each song displays a noticeable and continuous growth curve. JD's singing here shows his vulnerability and willingness to be human--to not "be perfect"--and DOMi's role as backing/harmony vocalist has grown and blossomed amazingly! I love her increasing confidence that allows her to inject her breathy vocal lines between JD's and, thus, come out more from "the shadows" of the lead--even exhibit some of her own "lead" qualities and chops! (9.125/10)
8. "Small Eyes" (3:40) a gentle Pat Metheny-like chord opening that has individual wind instruments introducing and repeating several melodic riffs that are eventually woven and morphed into a Minimalist form as are the multiple lines of JD and DOMi's vocals! So cool! At 1:24 there is a dramatic stylistic shift above JD's spacious syncopated rhythm track: something that is even more spacious and syncopated with long poses and sustains between new note or chord introductions. Very cool! On this song JD's lead vocal is almost relegated to a place within the music instead of out front and DOMi's increasingly brave and adventurous voice seems to have been moved both up front and been given free reign to "do her own thing." The breaks and instrumental pattern shifts and solos coming from DOMi's banks of synth-generated keys are much more prominent, important, and significant (as opposed to just being a small part of the monotonous flows of the album's earliest vocal songs. (9.125/10)
9. "Lovely Masquerade" (2:50) the murkiness of JD's tracks are starting to get to me: I wish he would just let his humanity and the naturality of his instruments come shining through in their more-natural forms. The overall sound of this song feels so compressed and muted; I'd love to hear it without all of the engineering effects removed. (8.75/10)
10. "Puzzle Pieces" (4:15) opening with a beautiful arpeggiated keyboard chord and then chord sequence which is quickly joined by JD's drums as well as his lead vocal backed by DOMi's gorgeous harmony vocal. The tuned percussion melody lines flowing continuously beneath the singing is gorgeous and the jazzy instrumental section that allows DOMi the chance to soar on her keyboard is also awesome. Then the music flattens out with DOMi settling into a four-chord vamp within which JD jams (later with DOMi throwing a few flutters and flourishes as the song closes). Beautiful! I haven't made head or tail (yet) of the lyrics but the music is superb! (9.25/10)
11. "Phantom Thread" (3:34) slower and more drawn out (which doesn't bode well for DOMi as her strong suit is her astounding speed and dexterity). It does however pick up a little at the end of the first minute as DOMi's bass line deepens. Then the orchestral inputs begin to move up front, enriching and embellishing the music so that another one of JD and DOMi's droning Prefab vocal style doesn't threaten to put us to sleep (or worse: drive us to push "skip"). (8.75/10)
12. "Out of Sync" (3:52) harmonized vocals over DOMi's gentle REICHIAN keyboard melodies and some of JD's less-busy rhythm play. There is a bit of a Michael Franks/Owl City sound quality and feel to JD & DOMi's singing which makes it very easy and pleasant to listen to. One must marvel at DOMi's keyboard-generated bass play--this one carving a particularly impressive melody line. A top three song for me.(9.25/10)
13. "Concertino (for Piano, Drums & Orchestra)" (5:04) wonderfully orchestrated music that opens with a "waking" overture that sounds like Stravinsky, Samuel Barber, Khachaturian, or even Philip Glass. Then DOMi and JD enter and make it jazzy. Wonderful, wonderful piece: both compositionally and performatively. DOMi is amazing: weaving in and out of the orchestral inputs. And I love JD's temporal shifts and changes. Probably my favorite song on the album. (9.667/10)
14. "Climbing High" (3:33) a nice bass-dominated (mute-effected drums and keys) song on which the vocal performance is still fully two-voice style but the volumes are pretty equal and the presence is place in the center (as if JD and DOMi are singing into the same mic, at the same time, smiling at each other as they sing their lyrics of happy of gratitude. Another album favorite. This one has real Prefab Sprout substance and quality. (9.333/10)
15. "Épilogue" (4:04) the orchestrated instrumental bookend to end the album in the same way as it began. I could easily and very happily listen to an entire album of instrumental compositions just like this one. (9.5/10)
Total time: 53:38
I've been listening to Who Asked? all week: in clips, single song versions, live with Rick Beatto, and, now, today, with the release of the full digital album, the whole thing and I am loving the vocal arrangements (the layering and complex arrangements of the harmony vocals are blowing me away) as well as the many, many classical music references. Yes, the final mixes of the music can be murky and washy, but I love hearing JD being adventurous and DOMi having room to solo--and I LOVE the orchestral renderings and arrangements. Plus, now knowing that the duo's inspiration was to render musically scenic filmscapes like those in their favorite two movies: Kubrick's Barry Lyndon and Kurosawa's Dreams--that they even had full film-like sets built in an Inglewood warehouse for the videographic performances of the songs--makes me so happy! I never really clicked with Not Tight--for similar reasons of all of you who are claiming to have been groomed by the Nord videos--but this one feels as if I'm listening to a modern symphony or film score. Loving it!
91.25 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of a mix of modern Jazzy Pop with lots of MIDI and engineering effects, orchestral inputs, complex constructs, and dual vocal deliveries as well as the virtuosic time keeping and melody making of two of the 21st Century's brightest young stars. If you are disciplined enough to give this album a chance, I'll caution you: repeated listens will both sour your assessment of the music and the duo's talents and maturity, but even more listens and patience will eventually provide you with a rewarding and, yes, enjoyable experience--one that you will want to have in your life (while, at the same time, hope for both the continued growth and collaborative commitment of these two as well as their next album release). I know I've surpassed the "souring" stage, enjoy most everything on the album while at the same time I see so much potential and promise in the future of this collaboration--if they decide to stay together (which I hope they do).
91.25 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of a mix of modern Jazzy Pop with lots of MIDI and engineering effects, orchestral inputs, complex constructs, and dual vocal deliveries as well as the virtuosic time keeping and melody making of two of the 21st Century's brightest young stars. If you are disciplined enough to give this album a chance, I'll caution you: repeated listens will both sour your assessment of the music and the duo's talents and maturity, but even more listens and patience will eventually provide you with a rewarding and, yes, enjoyable experience--one that you will want to have in your life (while, at the same time, hope for both the continued growth and collaborative commitment of these two as well as their next album release). I know I've surpassed the "souring" stage, enjoy most everything on the album while at the same time I see so much potential and promise in the future of this collaboration--if they decide to stay together (which I hope they do).
TOM PENAGUIN Tom Penaguin II
- Tom Penaguin / everything
With:
- Maureen Piercy / Vocals (3)
On his Bandcamp page's "liner notes" Tom lists his "Gear used":
Fender Rhodes Mk2 (1,2,3,6)
Hohner Pianet C (1,3,6)
Hohner Cembalet I (1,3,6)
Columbia Elepian (1)
Hammond L122 (1,3,4,5,6)
Roland SH2000 (1,3,6)
SeagullS12 (1,3,6)
Gibson SG (1,6)
Gibson Les Paul Goldtop (1,4)
Jacobacci LJ612 double neck (1,2,3,6)
Fender Jazzbass
Yamaha Rydeen drumkit
1. "Didier Dandelion in the Year of the Great Winds" (13:24) sophisticated, more serious Canterbury Style music of the NATIONAL HEALTH sort. A lot of displaying of some mighty fine drumming beneath/within a multi-keyboard vamp. There is a lot of very immersive melodic music here. The multi-instrumentalist seems hell-bent on proving to the world his skills and talents on guitars and keyboards, too. (He is pretty good!) All in all, this is pretty good if sounding a bit like an extension of the 1970s Phil Miller-Dave Stewart-David Sinclair expressions of sophisticated Canterbury Jazz Fusion. The music of this song doesn't always propel--doesn't always feel as if it's moving forward (which was, when I think about it, one of the frequent failings/flaws of the Canterbury artist's music)--but it is an excellent rendering of that era's sound and style. And don't miss the nod to TONY BANKS/Genesis in the "Mad Man Moon" reference in the ninth and tenth minutes as well as the excellent Phil Miller guitar work--which later turns into near-ALLAN HOLDWORTH stuff!--as well as Tom's great drumming. (27.5/30)
2. "Mandatory Intermission" (3:47) a piece that feels like a true nod to the most unique genius of the Jazz-Rock Fusion movement: Allan Holdsworth. Even when Tom chooses to settle back into a fuzzy electric guitar over gentle-yet-erudite J-R F band support the lead and music carries with it a kind of reverent "history" of the many stages of growth of the great jazz guitarist: from Bradbury to 'Igginbottom to Nucleus to The Soft Machine up unto the Tempest Jean-Luc Ponty era. Nice homage! (9/10)
3. "The Ornamental Hermit Suite, 1st Movement" (5:21) a Canterbury-inspired weave of bass, drums, electric piano, and guitar that shifts in tempo and dominant (most forward) instrument/sounds between several motifs, including one that introduces a bunch of different keyboard and guitar sounds (including 12-string guitar) while allowing electric bass and drums to remain fairly consistent. I am very much reminded of ANTHONY PHILLIPS and even MIKE RUTHERFORD with a lot of the soundscapes, melodies, and thematic shifts. There's even a little Mike Oldfield in some of the nostalgic melodies and instrumental sound choices, but when Maureen Peircy's "The Northettes'" vocals enter at 4:21 I'm totally taken off guard. Part of me is offended that someone would so blatantly "lift", copy, or replicate such a sacred element of the Canterbury tradition. At the same time, I so welcome and enjoy the brief exposures to the sounds and stylings of these old guys. (9/10)
4. "The Ornamental Hermit Suite, 2nd Movement" (5:35) more Canterbury homage and comfort food. It's as if AI were asked to write some new Dave Stewart (Egg, Khan, Hatfield & The North, National Health) music. It's just too perfect, too much like a re-animation of the old guys: even the production values feel as if I'm listening to some newly-found tapes from 1975 (probably found under the floorboards of the old seaside Wyatt cottage in Lydden [Wellington House]--or better yet--found inside a hash cache inside the walls of Daevid Allen's Bananamoon Observatory in Deià [Majorca]). I love it while at the same time find myself squirming uncomfortably at the "authentic" feel and sound of the music. I absolutely LOVE hearing more of the peak Canterbury style sound palette--especially when it is rendered so faithfully and so lovingly as this, but more: this is just a great piece of music no matter who did it (or when it was done). (9.25/10)
5. "The Ornamental Hermit Suite, 3rd Movement" (6:18) this one's a little different: harkening back to some of the more sophisticated, mathematical "thought experiments" that Dave Stewart might have had back in the 1970s. There is a feeling of aloneness, even reclusiveness to this piece--even with the participation of the ghosts of Mont Campbell and Clive Brooks (or Richard Sinclair and Robert Wyatt) playing bass and drums, respectively. Even the classical music-mirroring three-part construction harkens back to the work and style of Mont Campbell's EGG trio. Though this replicates some of the early Canterbury music that I am not as attached to as others, I do appreciate its faithful replication of the sound and spirit of one of my all-time favorite eras of music. (8.875/10)
91.18 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of lovingly-replicated Canterbury Style music. If you love the era, the unique sound and style of those mythical Rainbow artists, you will find yourself melting to the music on this album. Highly recommended.
Fender Rhodes Mk2 (1,2,3,6)
Hohner Pianet C (1,3,6)
Hohner Cembalet I (1,3,6)
Columbia Elepian (1)
Hammond L122 (1,3,4,5,6)
Roland SH2000 (1,3,6)
SeagullS12 (1,3,6)
Gibson SG (1,6)
Gibson Les Paul Goldtop (1,4)
Jacobacci LJ612 double neck (1,2,3,6)
Fender Jazzbass
Yamaha Rydeen drumkit
1. "Didier Dandelion in the Year of the Great Winds" (13:24) sophisticated, more serious Canterbury Style music of the NATIONAL HEALTH sort. A lot of displaying of some mighty fine drumming beneath/within a multi-keyboard vamp. There is a lot of very immersive melodic music here. The multi-instrumentalist seems hell-bent on proving to the world his skills and talents on guitars and keyboards, too. (He is pretty good!) All in all, this is pretty good if sounding a bit like an extension of the 1970s Phil Miller-Dave Stewart-David Sinclair expressions of sophisticated Canterbury Jazz Fusion. The music of this song doesn't always propel--doesn't always feel as if it's moving forward (which was, when I think about it, one of the frequent failings/flaws of the Canterbury artist's music)--but it is an excellent rendering of that era's sound and style. And don't miss the nod to TONY BANKS/Genesis in the "Mad Man Moon" reference in the ninth and tenth minutes as well as the excellent Phil Miller guitar work--which later turns into near-ALLAN HOLDWORTH stuff!--as well as Tom's great drumming. (27.5/30)
2. "Mandatory Intermission" (3:47) a piece that feels like a true nod to the most unique genius of the Jazz-Rock Fusion movement: Allan Holdsworth. Even when Tom chooses to settle back into a fuzzy electric guitar over gentle-yet-erudite J-R F band support the lead and music carries with it a kind of reverent "history" of the many stages of growth of the great jazz guitarist: from Bradbury to 'Igginbottom to Nucleus to The Soft Machine up unto the Tempest Jean-Luc Ponty era. Nice homage! (9/10)
3. "The Ornamental Hermit Suite, 1st Movement" (5:21) a Canterbury-inspired weave of bass, drums, electric piano, and guitar that shifts in tempo and dominant (most forward) instrument/sounds between several motifs, including one that introduces a bunch of different keyboard and guitar sounds (including 12-string guitar) while allowing electric bass and drums to remain fairly consistent. I am very much reminded of ANTHONY PHILLIPS and even MIKE RUTHERFORD with a lot of the soundscapes, melodies, and thematic shifts. There's even a little Mike Oldfield in some of the nostalgic melodies and instrumental sound choices, but when Maureen Peircy's "The Northettes'" vocals enter at 4:21 I'm totally taken off guard. Part of me is offended that someone would so blatantly "lift", copy, or replicate such a sacred element of the Canterbury tradition. At the same time, I so welcome and enjoy the brief exposures to the sounds and stylings of these old guys. (9/10)
4. "The Ornamental Hermit Suite, 2nd Movement" (5:35) more Canterbury homage and comfort food. It's as if AI were asked to write some new Dave Stewart (Egg, Khan, Hatfield & The North, National Health) music. It's just too perfect, too much like a re-animation of the old guys: even the production values feel as if I'm listening to some newly-found tapes from 1975 (probably found under the floorboards of the old seaside Wyatt cottage in Lydden [Wellington House]--or better yet--found inside a hash cache inside the walls of Daevid Allen's Bananamoon Observatory in Deià [Majorca]). I love it while at the same time find myself squirming uncomfortably at the "authentic" feel and sound of the music. I absolutely LOVE hearing more of the peak Canterbury style sound palette--especially when it is rendered so faithfully and so lovingly as this, but more: this is just a great piece of music no matter who did it (or when it was done). (9.25/10)
5. "The Ornamental Hermit Suite, 3rd Movement" (6:18) this one's a little different: harkening back to some of the more sophisticated, mathematical "thought experiments" that Dave Stewart might have had back in the 1970s. There is a feeling of aloneness, even reclusiveness to this piece--even with the participation of the ghosts of Mont Campbell and Clive Brooks (or Richard Sinclair and Robert Wyatt) playing bass and drums, respectively. Even the classical music-mirroring three-part construction harkens back to the work and style of Mont Campbell's EGG trio. Though this replicates some of the early Canterbury music that I am not as attached to as others, I do appreciate its faithful replication of the sound and spirit of one of my all-time favorite eras of music. (8.875/10)
6. "The Ornamental Hermit Suite, 4th Movement" (11:50) more modern replication of the sounds and spirit of the uniquely "Canterbury" style geniuses of the 1970s composed, performed, and rendered with truly loving detail. The organ chordplay in the movement's opening minute so remind me of the genius mathematical musings of the great Dave Stewart that I almost tear up. After the 90-second intro enter piano, drums, bass, and electric guitar, gearing up into a real rip-roarer of woven tongues of flame. In the fourth minute the quartet takes a sharp turn down one of the country roads as if on a long descent from the high ground down toward the sea and its beaches and waves--where everything smooths out and soothes the soul. Here Tom chooses to introduce the lead guitar: and lo! and behold! It's Mike Oldfield (or, at least, the ghost-spirit of). I love the infusion in this piece of riffs and stylings from other realms of 1970s prog: Mike Oldfield's guitar in the sixth and seventh minutes, Tony Banks' electric piano sound and stylings, even some sound and chord play that is a nod to Jean-Luc Ponty (in the eighth minute). There is definitely genius (as well as infinite reverence) in this man's compulsion to create (and re-create) music of the artists and magical eras gone by. I find it hard to find fault with this amazing rendering. It even ends with the sound of the tolling of the church bells of some ancient gothic church as if to re-affirm the timeless and universal place that these musics have in our lives. (23/25)
Total time: 45:51
91.18 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of lovingly-replicated Canterbury Style music. If you love the era, the unique sound and style of those mythical Rainbow artists, you will find yourself melting to the music on this album. Highly recommended.
These Berklee College of Music grads are up and ready to put on display their "new" reinvented versions of themselves and their music. It's been three years since their impressive The Fox and The Bird album was released which means they have high expectations for this, their third publication.
Line-up / Musicians:
- Casey Lee Williams / Lyrics, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, SFX
- Martín de Lima / Keyboards, Guitars, Orchestrations, Backing Vocals, SFX
- Augusto Bussio / Drums, Guitars, Backing Vocals, SFX
- Peter de Reyna / Bass, Backing Vocals, SFX
With
- Eve / Guitar solo (3)
- Ella Wilhelmina / Saxophones (5), soprano sax (4), clarinet (4), flute (4)
- Rodolfo Moreno / Saxophones (8)
1. "No Sound" (4:29) surprise: the band has incorporated a little sassy Country-Western flair into its music--especially in the first two minutes of this (Casey Lee could, I can hear, very easily have had a career in C&W--may have had or yet have!) There's even quite a little TAYLOR SWIFT in the song's pep and Casey's vocal styling. The chorus is heavy, even metallic, vocals and all, though sounding a lot like some of the British psychedelic punk artists of the late 1980s and early 1990s. (8.875/10)
2. "22" (5:14) do I hear early Cocteau Twins?! The Cure?! Very engaging melodies and vocal performance through the first two minutes (reminding me of both Siouxie, plantoid, and Children In Paradise's Dam Kat). For me this is definitely one of those songs that works its way into my brain and never lets go. The second half goes full metal with those djenty guitar/bass chords and soaring, near-growling vocals. Definitely a top three song for me! (9.333/10)
3. "Top of the Bottom" (4:54) with this song I hear a heavier, more jagged version of bands like EVANESCENCE. (Casey the new Amy Lee?) Despite the familiarity, this is an excellent song--another song that is burning into my memory. I also feel a little similarity with this music (and Casey's vocal performance) to one of my favorite singers & bands of the 2020s: Elizabeth Heaton, Midas Fall. Great guitar shredding in that final minute with a cool techno-meltdown finish. Almost a top three song--so deserving! (9.125/10)
5. "Spiral" (5:47) a spacey weave of arpeggiating sounds is sung over by Casey's siren-like whisper-voice--reminding me of MIDAS FALL and a bit of DEMEN as well as the creativity of Canadian progger queen Jane Siberry. Another amazingly-nuanced and very theatric song crafting! I like the new spirit of this 2.0 version of the band! Amazing performance, Casey! Another of my top three favorite songs from this album. (9.125/10)
3. "Top of the Bottom" (4:54) with this song I hear a heavier, more jagged version of bands like EVANESCENCE. (Casey the new Amy Lee?) Despite the familiarity, this is an excellent song--another song that is burning into my memory. I also feel a little similarity with this music (and Casey's vocal performance) to one of my favorite singers & bands of the 2020s: Elizabeth Heaton, Midas Fall. Great guitar shredding in that final minute with a cool techno-meltdown finish. Almost a top three song--so deserving! (9.125/10)
4. "The Game" (5:34) "big room" (reverberated--like Talk Talk and Steve Jansen) tom-toms and jazz bass open this one while Casey sings "from a distance" runs into the heavy walls of metal sound in the chorus. Cool melody choices by Casey and the band's chord selections. Pause and atmospheric "underground" section take over at 2:56: clicks and "distant" echo guitar chords with whispered vocals--and saxophone! Then at 3:45 Casey and the band start to bring it back up to surface, culminating in a spirited vocal-led finish. So PLANTOID-like! This is one finely crafted, well-thought out song! Not as brainworm effective but so finely sculpted that it will earn many more listens in order to try to glean all of the nuanced choices made to "finish" it. Big respect! Another top three tune. (9.375/10)
5. "Spiral" (5:47) a spacey weave of arpeggiating sounds is sung over by Casey's siren-like whisper-voice--reminding me of MIDAS FALL and a bit of DEMEN as well as the creativity of Canadian progger queen Jane Siberry. Another amazingly-nuanced and very theatric song crafting! I like the new spirit of this 2.0 version of the band! Amazing performance, Casey! Another of my top three favorite songs from this album. (9.125/10)
6. "Call Me Away" (2:17) gentle guitar play: kind of jazzy electric in the front with acoustic guitar and piano in the background as Casey sings in a plaintive almost Americana/torch singer voice. Despite its length, it feels like a pretty complete song to me! (With some of the genuine passion in it that I feel with the work of Portland's VYLET PONY). (9/10)
7. "The Show" (4:59) theatric like a cabaret (or radio) performance, but the music is full on jazzy heavy prog and Casey's vocal performance between the radio play samples is quite passionate (and forceful). I love the near-microtonal djenty-ness of around the three-minute mark. The echo/reverb effect(s) that Casey's wailing voice are being filtered through could be cleaned up a little. Cool song--though not one that I'll probably play a lot for pleasure (more for educational purposes: to my radio audiences). (8.875/10)
8. "Humpty Dumpty ("Some Body!")" (4:42) now here's a song after the old Fistfights With Wolves model. Incredible musicianship on display with this one--and both competing polyphony as well as polyrhythms! The melodies aren't quite as engaging as I like, but the performances are so committed. (8.875/10)
9. "The People" (4:20) this one sounds like something that could have come from both iNFiNiEN and PLANTOID and yet it contains a spirit and genius entirely its own. Sophisticated and cool. I like the weirdness of the fourth minute--out of which comes a jazzier element in the form of Peter De Reyna's awesome fretless Jazz Bass. Cool! (9/10)
10. "Where I'm From" (5:08) reaching back into that bag of Americana sounds and traditions, the band manages a peppy, upbeat tune that still somehow evokes the stark open lands of the American West. (8.875/10)
Total time: 47:24
I really like this new and reformed version of Ok Goodnight! With their maturity has come the courage to grow, try new (or incorporate old) things, become more eclectic and adventurous in their mediums of expression. Mega Kudos, Casey, Martín, Augusto, and Peter! I want to see you on tour! So many songs that I like that I feel it premature to name a top three--cuz I feel that the list with change as I continue to get to know the album (which I will be listening to for a long time). Sure to occupy an important position on my 2026 Year-End Top Albums list.
90.46 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of metal-anchored eclectic progressive rock.
P.S. I really like the Severance-inspired video for "22."
ADVENT HORIZON Falling Together
Over its near-20 years of existence, Utah's Rylee McDonald has seen his high school musical project turn into a kind of family affair, adding his partner and wife and their two children to the mix.
Line-up / Musicians:
- Rylee McDonald / vocals, guitars, keys, percussion
- Mike Lofgreen / drums, percussion, screams
- Cason Wood / bass, fretless bass, synthesizers, electric and acoustic pianos, organs, hand claps
- Grant Matheson / vocals, keys, guitars
- Kristen McDonald / vocals
With:
- Zach Boorman / guitars, pianos, synthesizers, backing vocals, percussion
- Doug Robinson / guitar (1)
- Cressa McDonald / backing vocals (7)
- Griffin McDonald / backing vocals (7)
1. "In A Lone and Dreary World" (19:03) a djenty low end does not deter this prog extravaganza from taking us on a journey that reminds me of the music of 21st Century projects like LIFESIGNS and NUMEN and even COSMOGRAF and DAVE BRONS . . . (if a little metal edge were applied). Though I am not a fan of this kind of "plastic" drum sound, I very much appreciate the skills and creativity of the performance on the batterie exhibited here by Mike Lofgreen (though it is also mixed into the soundscape as a kind of anomaly of isolated individually-distinguished sterility; that is, the rest of the sounds are given those standard effects we now associate automatically with prog, i.e. reverbs, distortions, gates, sustains, compressions, etc.) Oh! really love the voice of Kristen McDonald. The collective sound of the band's vocal palette reminds me of short-lived band from Naughties, THE REASONING as well as second- and third- album PURE REASON REVOLUTION (2009's Amor Vincit Omnia and 2010's Hammer and Anvil). Paired up with those syncopated djenty guitar chords and we have quite a cool sound and mix. Then you have to take into consideration the common human plight being expressed in the song lyrics: dissatisfaction and distrust of all we've been raised to believe and value, all we've been told--including that coming from parents and family--learning to listen to and trust one's own inner voice and inner truths and beliefs--the awakening to the power of a spiritual perspective (perhaps even a Christian rebirth): "No enemies" and "saved and sound." Though the length taken to deliver the message/story is a bit over-protracted, it is effective and well-rendered with little or no fluff and appropriate nuance and theatrics. Nice work. (36.5/40)
Line-up / Musicians:
- Rylee McDonald / vocals, guitars, keys, percussion
- Mike Lofgreen / drums, percussion, screams
- Cason Wood / bass, fretless bass, synthesizers, electric and acoustic pianos, organs, hand claps
- Grant Matheson / vocals, keys, guitars
- Kristen McDonald / vocals
With:
- Zach Boorman / guitars, pianos, synthesizers, backing vocals, percussion
- Doug Robinson / guitar (1)
- Cressa McDonald / backing vocals (7)
- Griffin McDonald / backing vocals (7)
1. "In A Lone and Dreary World" (19:03) a djenty low end does not deter this prog extravaganza from taking us on a journey that reminds me of the music of 21st Century projects like LIFESIGNS and NUMEN and even COSMOGRAF and DAVE BRONS . . . (if a little metal edge were applied). Though I am not a fan of this kind of "plastic" drum sound, I very much appreciate the skills and creativity of the performance on the batterie exhibited here by Mike Lofgreen (though it is also mixed into the soundscape as a kind of anomaly of isolated individually-distinguished sterility; that is, the rest of the sounds are given those standard effects we now associate automatically with prog, i.e. reverbs, distortions, gates, sustains, compressions, etc.) Oh! really love the voice of Kristen McDonald. The collective sound of the band's vocal palette reminds me of short-lived band from Naughties, THE REASONING as well as second- and third- album PURE REASON REVOLUTION (2009's Amor Vincit Omnia and 2010's Hammer and Anvil). Paired up with those syncopated djenty guitar chords and we have quite a cool sound and mix. Then you have to take into consideration the common human plight being expressed in the song lyrics: dissatisfaction and distrust of all we've been raised to believe and value, all we've been told--including that coming from parents and family--learning to listen to and trust one's own inner voice and inner truths and beliefs--the awakening to the power of a spiritual perspective (perhaps even a Christian rebirth): "No enemies" and "saved and sound." Though the length taken to deliver the message/story is a bit over-protracted, it is effective and well-rendered with little or no fluff and appropriate nuance and theatrics. Nice work. (36.5/40)
2. "Faiths Window" (5:20) with industrial horn humming in the background a dirty-distorted electric guitar's two-chord strum repeats itself, occasionally moving between subtly different chords as Rylee McDonald sing/talks over the top, turning into singing as the rest of the band's sound cascades into the mix. It's heavy but it's symphonic with the layers of instruments easy to distinguish from each other. In the fourth minute the lyrics are delivered through growl-screams before the McDonald family choir takes over. A metal instrumental passage takes over with searing electric guitar, etc. but then Kristen emerges as the lead vocalist, taking us to the song's (rather sudden) end. (8.875/10)
3. "Patience" (4:53) a normal rock sound palette over which Rylee's single male voice leads the way gradually turns heavy metal with the chorus, playing out as such into the final fadeout of electronic keyboards. A solid song but there is nothing very new or innovative here. (8.75/10)
4. "Past Life Parable" (5:03) more solid heavy prog steering toward the more sophisticated hair band sounds and music of the 1970s and 1980s, the big difference here is the use of djenty guitar chords and some more-modern sounds as well as an admirable level of sophistication in the construct/composition. (8.875/10)
5. "Gravity I" (2:35) nice Spanish acoustic guitar play surrounded by proggy drum 'n' bass and textural synth washes and other keyboard and, eventually, electric guitar effects. Impressive drum play toward the end--just before the transition/bridge to "Gravity II." (4.625/5)
6. "Gravity II" (4:49) bleeding over from the previous "introductory" song, Rylee's voice in the lead position is backed/doubled by Kristen. Nice use of organ bass pedals and harpsichord sound in the third minute, but then we are quickly back into the metal, even djenty music long before the minute's end. I really like the guitar djent-play in this section (as well as the more subdued vocal performance), but then we shift back into hyperdrive with the machine gun bass pedal play for a few bars before cutting out for a near-a cappella passage, but then we nearly as quickly and suddenly find ourselves back in the fray of machine gun beats and rapid-fire beat-down low end guitar chords. Still, I like and respect it overall. (9/10)
7. "Animals" (5:34) Rylee's single male voice is singing while only accompanied by lone acoustic guitar picking. After one time through a round of the verse and chorus the keys, bass pedals, and stark drum play join in the now split (R & L) two-acoustic guitar picking foundation. I wish I could pick out who Rylee's voice reminds me of: it's definitely one of STYX's lead vocalists: either Tommy Shaw or Dennis DeYoung. The McDonald family choir is cited for this song but their role is, sadly, rather quiet, minor. Still, this is a pretty cool song--one that only lacks for seriously brainworm melodies. (9.125/10)
Total Time 47:17
Total Time 47:17
The McDonald family's sound and style cannot help but be compared to the bands mentioned above--especially THE REASONING and early PURE REASON REVOLUTION but also bands like RUSH, STYX, INTROITUS and MEER. From its Led Zeppelin inspiration and Rush fueling and modeling, the band seems to have come into its own: into something that sounds like . . . but is really their own thing--which is really nice.
90.26 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; though this kind of Classic Rock and sophisticated 80s Metal blend of prog is not really among my high preferences, I do appreciate the creative and complex song structures built here as well as the wonderful vocal work rendered by the collective members of the McDonald family (really, Rylee and Kristen).
ELDER Through Zero
The Boston-based band's eighth studio album release since 2007.
- Nicholas DiSalvo / guitar, vocals, synthesizer
- Michael Risberg / guitar, Rhodes piano, slide guitar
- Jack Donovan / bass guitar
- Georg Edert / drums, percussion
1. "Sigil To Ruin" (10:33) ambient space synths open this one before infinity electric guitar notes emerge from the depths to be joined by the complement of syncopated heavy rock walls of sound. This start leads to a cool atmospheric break at the two-minute mark which is followed by a more humane motif with Nicholas DiSalvo's augmented post-Tim Smith MIDLAKE-like vocals. This is really nice! I really like bassist Jack Donovan's sound and playing just above Georg Edert's syncopated rock drumming, just below Nicholas' rhythm guitar work. The chorus buildup is more like a return to the guitar-heavy opening. Cool synth and guitar effects in the sixth minute woven beneath the vocals. The eighth minute has a nice diversion of jagged, mathematical Synth Pop chords before guitar and vocals join in to ground it more in straight-line movement. Then the music gets djenty for the exposure of a nice little rock guitar solo. Though all of the musicians feel skilled, no one seems to be trying to out-perform the others--and there are very few overtly "solo" exhibitions. An impressive and likable opener if a bit regimented. (18.125/20)
2. "Capture/Release" (8:47) a gentle, prolonged cinematic synthesizer "space" introduction takes us to the addition of staccato notes and swirling spirals of waves from keyboards before the band launches into a nice two chord motif for the second minute. Enter lead vocalist Nicholas DeSalvo with a voice(s) and harmonized vocal sound that reminds me quite a bit of both John Young's LIFESIGNS and Belgian-based international supergroup FISH ON FRIDAY. The music continues to flow like a Post Rock band using a 1980s and 1990s techno/New Wave sound palette. The sound palette thickens and gets heavier in the second half--not unlike some of the walls of sound Jared Leach created on his masterful 2016 GHOST MEDICINE release, Discontinuance. Despite taking us on a fairly straightforward ride, the music is always easy to enjoy, the scenery evoked pleasant. (18.125/20)
3. "Through Zero" (9:06) cool heavily-reverbed electric guitar opening reminds me of both THE CURE and KINGSTON WALL but it quickly turns heavier, sounding more like some of the grungy metal of the 1990s (which is not quite as much to my liking as the opening). But this turns djenty as a lead guitarist solos over it until 1:25 when a two-guitar chord arpeggiation opens things up for Nicholas to enter with a Kevin Moore (Chroma Key)-like lead vocal to enter. The driving effect of the Georg's drumming is quite solid, even as the song takes a couple of detours, left and right, over the next minute or two. The motif that is held in the fifth minute is quite nice: something that really piques my interest. This is developed with searing infinity electric guitar notes and complex harmonized vocals until the band returns to the uber-heavy wall of sound for the seventh minute. Nice work in the complex weave of the eighth minute: bass, drums, and two guitars holding fast to their places in the weave. (17.75/20)
4. "Strata" (10:48) opening with alternating bass notes and keyboard arpeggio moving through a few chords together--again reminding me of both THE CURE but also the COCTEAU TWINS--before launching into a very cool almost KITCHENS OF DISTINCTION/early THE FIXX/ALAN PARSONS PROJECT motif with THE BUGGLES-like flat-toned robot-like harmony vocals on top. The instrumental passages between the vocal verses return to the CURE/COCTEAU motif of the opening section--which is really cool--and, eventually, include ICEHOUSE-like vocals on top, existing as the chorus. At the end of the fourth minute a searing JARED LEACH-like weave of twin lead guitars joins in, giving the music a much more grungy ALICE IN CHAINS/PEARL JAM-like feel and power--a wall of sound section that continues on well into the eighth minute. Around 7:15 the bass and drums let up on the gas a bit but the thick walls of sound continue and somebody's lead guitar solo intensifies until 8:10 when the whole soundscape switches dimensions, now chugging along to make more space for the return of Nicholas' vocals to re-enter around the 9:00 mark. Definitely my favorite weaves on the album so far. (18.25/20)
5. "Sight Unseen" (8:50) opening with a much longer and more spacious, even proggy, buildup and transitory weave than we've seen/heard on this album before, it becomes still fairly thick but highly melodic and almost electronic/Kosmische, especially in the second motif (which starts around the 3:20 mark) with a lead synth melody pattern dominating the four-or-five-instrument Math Rock-like weave. Another solid song even if it is only instrumental and only three prolonged motifs (with basically one speed coming from drummer Gerog Edert) drawn out over the nine minutes. The third motif (which slowly establishes itself in the seventh minute) is like a heavy, grungy Ozric Tentacles, but this very suddenly cuts out, allowing a space-atmospheric keyboard patch to fill the sonosphere for the final minute. (17.625/20)
6. "Blighted Age" (5:48) opening with picked acoustic guitars within which Nicolas joins in with a COLIN BLUNSTONE-like vocal sound and style. The music develops just like something from Kevin Moore's CHROMA KEY's albums from the turn of the century. This would actually have been one of the best songs from either Dead Air for Radios or You Go Now. There's just this haunting brainworm quality to the sound palette and repetitive chord progression used. Awesome song! (9.333/10)
Total time: 53:52
They're still heavy but they might be a little more proggy, a little more prone to atmospheric and melodic passages than before.
90.19 on the Fishscales = A-/4.5 stars; an excellent and very solid and consistent heavy prog that displays nicely disciplined musicianship as well as exquisitely-forged compositions.
Some excellent Israeli Retro/Neo Prog. The nostalgic music feels as if it came from early 1970s Pink Floyd and Camel.
Line-up / Musicians:
- Avi Barak / drums, flute
- Liran Herrnstadt / bass, vocals
- Eze Sakson / keyboards, synths
- Tal (Stein) Rubinstein / guitars, backing vocals
With:
- Salit Lahav / flute
2. "Field of Fade Memory" (11:48) who would have ever thought that anyone would ever want to recreate the weird vocals of Camel's Moonmadness (which are, in my opinion, the weakest element of that otherwise wonderful album)? But here they are! In the fifth minute the band moves into a 1-2-3-rest pulsing Tony Banks/GENESIS motif which moves along at a bit of a faster pace until finishing in a guitar solo and synth-and-organ chord at the end of the tenth minute before the bass and finger-picked delay-echoed electric guitar and Richard Mason electric piano space chords take us into some inverted realm of Pink Floyd. Nicely done! (22.375/25)
3. "Valley of Delirium" (11:35) the dulcet almost-mediæval folk tones of flute and ANTHONY PHILLIPS-like picked acoustic guitar open this one with the flute(s) performing in two different octaves as Mellotron-like synth warbles in tremolo-like support. At the very end of the second minute the first movement closes and an arpeggiated electric guitar chord emerges to be joined and supported by bass, drums, and electric piano in a JIMMY WEBB-like motif. Lovely (if simplistic)! At 3:13 a JAN AKKERMAN-like "Love Remembers" solo electric guitar jumps into the lead position as mutliple tracks/layers of an organ become a little more prominent in support. In the sixth minute the vocals reappear and suddenly we're back in King Crimson's "I Talk to the Wind" mixed with The Eagles' Timonty B. Schmit's 1979 hit "I Can't Tell You Why." Then, at 7:45, the organ and rolling bass falls into a PINK FLOYD "Dogs"-like motif which is then made more BOSTON- (and NEKTAR-) like with organ and guitar power chords. This is so ELOY! It's a great send up but lacks any true originality except for the way they have melded all of these disparately-sourced riffs and motifs together. (17.75/20)
4. "Somewhere Along These Lines" (10:51) a gentle, spacious full-on PINK FLOYD motif opens this one, filling our Atom Hearts with the Dark Side of the Moon and Wishing You Were Here for a good six minutes before segueing into some Tales of the Mystery of ALAN PARSONS's Imagination for a couple of minutes before ending in some Animals territory. What a great homage! (18/20)
Total Time 45:21
LAZULI Être et ne plus être
These Frenchmen are proving themselves to me to be the absolute best progressive rock band to ever "crossover" into the business of creating masterfully-crafted and eminently-enjoyable pop songs (even if they are in French). All of these songs
Line-up / Musicians:
- Claude Leonetti / Léode
- Arnaud Beyney / guitar
- Romain Thorel / keyboards, French horn
- Vincent Barnavol / drums, percussion, marimba
- Dominique Leonetti / vocals, guitar
2. "Chaque jour que soleil fait" (3:53) a decent if a little overly-saccharine song. (8.875/10)
3. "Sourire" (3:30) a little too pop-Beatles-like for me. Nice lead guitar work. (8.75/10)
4. "Matière première" (3:26) like a love song from a horror film or film noire. Interesting. (8.875/10)
5. "L'eau qui dort" (7:05) the 12-string guitar presence is nice, and the song just keeps getting better, richer, more nostalgic the further it goes. Masterful keyboard work, Romain! (13.875/15)
6. "Une chanson Cherokee" (3:54) a delightful little motif is set up by guitarist Arnaud Beyney's senstively-picked and strummed acoustic guitar work while Dominique and the rest of the band blend in with their support with such professional perfection. Such a seasoned team! (9.125/10)
7. "Quel dommage" (5:41) a little more bombastic and theatric than the previous fare, but such great performances from an obviously-fully-invested entourage--especially Dominique! Brilliant! I think Romain had fun with this one: playing like that on a grand piano! The vocal-cum-"orchestra" section in the fourth and fifth minutes is awesome--followed by Arnaud's searing guitar solo. Impressive! Way to take the blues and make it sound fresh! (9/10)
8. "L'instinct" (3:58) sensitive finger-picked acoustic guitar and vocal (possibly all done by Dominique). Not for the first time, Dom's immense talent reminds me of Supertramp's Roger Hodgson. Gorgeous. (9/10)
9. "L'homme sûr" (7:05) this one just sounds a little too firmly rooted in old stuff but there is some great lead guitar work. (13.25/15)
10. "Mon body se meurt" (4:30) another song that feels a little too simple and laid back--taking quite a long time to ramp up into more interesting fare (most of which comes from Claude's odd Léode sounds). (8.75/10)
11. "Les 4 Raisons" (3:50) a cool acoustic instrument-dominated palette that is coupled with 1970s-like Elton John orchestra sound plus some cool synth sound choices from Romain. Unfortunately, the song doesn't do enough to wow me. (8.875/10)
12. "Au Bord Du Précipice" (8:28) this song starts out sound very much like one of my favorite songs from their previous album, "Le pleureur sous la pluie," but it builds into something very thick, very NeoProggie, with some great lead guitar (Léode?) work in the second half. Great album-ender. (18.375/20)
Total Time 60:32
- Avi Barak / drums, flute
- Liran Herrnstadt / bass, vocals
- Eze Sakson / keyboards, synths
- Tal (Stein) Rubinstein / guitars, backing vocals
With:
- Salit Lahav / flute
1. "Topography of Mind" (11:07) great lush flute-led 12-string guitar NeoProg in the vein of ANTHONY PHILLIPS, CAMEL and IVORY with just a little Klaus Schulze and Jan Akkerman "Tommy"-like fare thrown in there in the second half for good measure--not to mention the KING CRIMSON "I Talk to the Wind" motif explored in the eighth minute before turning back into Camel. The most independent and original concoction on the album--and the one that shows the instrumental skills of the band members the best. (18.5/20)
2. "Field of Fade Memory" (11:48) who would have ever thought that anyone would ever want to recreate the weird vocals of Camel's Moonmadness (which are, in my opinion, the weakest element of that otherwise wonderful album)? But here they are! In the fifth minute the band moves into a 1-2-3-rest pulsing Tony Banks/GENESIS motif which moves along at a bit of a faster pace until finishing in a guitar solo and synth-and-organ chord at the end of the tenth minute before the bass and finger-picked delay-echoed electric guitar and Richard Mason electric piano space chords take us into some inverted realm of Pink Floyd. Nicely done! (22.375/25)
3. "Valley of Delirium" (11:35) the dulcet almost-mediæval folk tones of flute and ANTHONY PHILLIPS-like picked acoustic guitar open this one with the flute(s) performing in two different octaves as Mellotron-like synth warbles in tremolo-like support. At the very end of the second minute the first movement closes and an arpeggiated electric guitar chord emerges to be joined and supported by bass, drums, and electric piano in a JIMMY WEBB-like motif. Lovely (if simplistic)! At 3:13 a JAN AKKERMAN-like "Love Remembers" solo electric guitar jumps into the lead position as mutliple tracks/layers of an organ become a little more prominent in support. In the sixth minute the vocals reappear and suddenly we're back in King Crimson's "I Talk to the Wind" mixed with The Eagles' Timonty B. Schmit's 1979 hit "I Can't Tell You Why." Then, at 7:45, the organ and rolling bass falls into a PINK FLOYD "Dogs"-like motif which is then made more BOSTON- (and NEKTAR-) like with organ and guitar power chords. This is so ELOY! It's a great send up but lacks any true originality except for the way they have melded all of these disparately-sourced riffs and motifs together. (17.75/20)
4. "Somewhere Along These Lines" (10:51) a gentle, spacious full-on PINK FLOYD motif opens this one, filling our Atom Hearts with the Dark Side of the Moon and Wishing You Were Here for a good six minutes before segueing into some Tales of the Mystery of ALAN PARSONS's Imagination for a couple of minutes before ending in some Animals territory. What a great homage! (18/20)
Total Time 45:21
I like the justification that the band uses for so much cut-and-paste borrowing of classic/iconic riffs and motifs from the Masters of the 1970s: "Topography Of Mind reflects on memory - tracing both the inner terrain and physical places that echo within it." At the same time, I do have to admit to liking the memories these "tribute" songs evoke within me.
90.15 on the Fishscales = A-/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of retro prog ear candy that, though cleverly-crafted and performed to perfection, I feel compelled to down-grade a bit for its borrowing of so many (virtually all of its) melody and sound palette ideas. If you like your prog to sound like the past masters, you will LOVE this!
Line-up / Musicians:
- Ally Carter / guitars, soprano & tenor saxophones, keyboards
- Tree Stewart / vocals, keyboards, flute, handSonic, Roli Seaboard
- Dave Greenaway / 6 string bass
- Tom Jackson / drums
1. "Song of the Rainforest" (21:20) a vocal-less and more keyboard-generated epic than the usual Emerald Dawn offerings. Also, it feels as if the presence and contributions of Dave Greenaway and Tom Jackson here are on the same level of importance (and dynamics) as those of Ally and Tree. (36/40)
- i. "Balance" - after a long 90-second intro of cave dripping sounds and two alternating sustained organ chords slowly establishing their pace and fullness and then the entrance and establishment of bass and drums into an awesome funk-lite vamp groove of two gorgeous Mellotron-like chords Ally enters with his seering electric guitar to deliver one of his best guitar solos ever--for five minutes! The contagious groove established by Dave Greenaway and Tom Jackson is awesome.
2. "Rivers of Tears" (14:58) opens with a jaunty journey of jazz-classical-sounding solo piano play. Among the most impressive and pretty keyboard play I've ever heard from Tree! At 1:40 bass, drums, and, eventually, Ally's "reverberated-into-the-background" electric guitar slowly enter. Tree continues to tinkle the ivories within and behind the guitar, bass, and drums while adding some washes of synth strings to the mix as Ally continues shredding (as he does). Then Ally stops, making room for Tree to expand her piano note play as Tom and Dave slowly, gradually slow down and drop out. a pause/break at 3:30 results in the unleashing of Tree's reverb-drenched voice over only the banks of synth strings chords and still tinkling piano note play (mostly in progressing arpeggios)--which eventually becomes just synth strings as we enter into another little pause around 5:30. Here Tree establishes a chord progression with the repetition of four descending arpeggiated chords over which the rhythm section joins in and Ally deploys his tenor sax. Another pause at the seven-minute mark leads into a transference of the play of the descending chord pattern to synth strings as Tom and Dave kick back and Ally switches to electric guitar. Here Dave's bass playing is a bit rote and uninventive while the embellishments that Tom adds to his drumming feel a bit forced and "required" while Ally's guitar shredding sounds/feels . . . the same as ever. A little pause at the end of the tenth minute is filled with Tree's vocal lines until the band re-emerges with a kind of two-chord "tropical" vamp. Yet another stop and transition at 11:45 as the band shifts into a much more dark and ominous section--launched off as Tree shouts out a "Poison. Into. It's veins." declaration. This section could almost be coming from NIL or KING CRIMSON--even with Tree's operatic high-note repeat delivery of the word "poison." The motif then morphs in the second half of the 14th minute into something more akin to a Led Zeppelin descending chord progression--which it plays out to the song's end with embellishing accents coming from Ally's synths and Tom's drums. Not bad! (26.375/30)
3. "Paradise" (8:56) opening with some excitingly pregnant synthesizer play--chords, bass, and peppy upper register riffs--which subside when Tree's plaintive, melancholy voice enters at 0:33 to introduce the song's theme. By the one minute mark she pauses wherein Tom and Mark enter with a cool, jazzy, STING "Englishman in New York"-like motif (which then happens to support Tree's "Englishman in New York" vocal melody lines). Nice bass line beneath Tree's organ chords as Ally enters with a bluesier Gilmour-like approach to his injections of guitar riffs and flurries. Around the four-minute mark the band slows things down, Tree's voice softens, while Mark and Tom's play kind of moves into greater prominence as Ally and Tree's keyboard play slides more into the background of the mix. Interesting! And I like it: I like having the bass and drums mixed in front of the keys, guitars, and saxes. The synth strings and guitar soloing in the next two minutes feel much more like the sound palette of Polish NeoProg masters COLLAGE's great textures on their Moonshine masterpiece (especially "The Blues"). In the seventh minute one of the keys begins to repeat and develop a melody line from THE MOODY BLUES' "Nights in White Satin," to which Tom backs down for a bit, but then everybody ramps up again into a fully-COLLAGE motif in which the synth strings continue soloing as other synth chords continue to deploy the "Nights in White Satin" chords and melody-reminders. Brilliant! And this is how they choose to end the song, the album! Awesome! Despite the "borrowing" of the sound palette and melody/chords, I finally feel as if The Emerald Dawn have arrived to the gates of top-tier prog, the symphonic side! (18.75/20)
90.15 on the Fishscales = A-/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of retro prog ear candy that, though cleverly-crafted and performed to perfection, I feel compelled to down-grade a bit for its borrowing of so many (virtually all of its) melody and sound palette ideas. If you like your prog to sound like the past masters, you will LOVE this!
THE EMERALD DAWN The Land, The Sea, The Air (Volume II)
Cornwall's anachronistic Arthurian spacemen return with their seventh full-length studio album release since their formation (in Edinburgh) in 2010 and second in two years (which is unusually fast for them).
Line-up / Musicians:
- Ally Carter / guitars, soprano & tenor saxophones, keyboards
- Tree Stewart / vocals, keyboards, flute, handSonic, Roli Seaboard
- Dave Greenaway / 6 string bass
- Tom Jackson / drums
1. "Song of the Rainforest" (21:20) a vocal-less and more keyboard-generated epic than the usual Emerald Dawn offerings. Also, it feels as if the presence and contributions of Dave Greenaway and Tom Jackson here are on the same level of importance (and dynamics) as those of Ally and Tree. (36/40)
- i. "Balance" - after a long 90-second intro of cave dripping sounds and two alternating sustained organ chords slowly establishing their pace and fullness and then the entrance and establishment of bass and drums into an awesome funk-lite vamp groove of two gorgeous Mellotron-like chords Ally enters with his seering electric guitar to deliver one of his best guitar solos ever--for five minutes! The contagious groove established by Dave Greenaway and Tom Jackson is awesome.
- ii. Incursions - a stop-and-pause precedes a very slow switch to Smooth Reggae groove over which Ally solos with his tenor sax. As Trees synth strings enter (and Ally's tenor sax desists), the beat is sped up (we're now into the ninth minute), which prompts Ally to switch to his soprano sax--which gives Tree a little more room and license to embellish with her variety of synth strings riffs: often matching or meeting Ally's sax lines with her own.
- iii. "Loss" - in the 11th minute another interlude of synth strings intervals paves the way for a heavier, almost ominous motif to set up with Tom's more tribalistic tom-tom-centered (synthetic talking drum?) drumming and Dave's heavily-wowed bass play being stomped over by some deep monster-saw keyboard and guitar riffs. The keyboards continue riffing--kind of soloing--for a couple of minutes over this motif before . . .
- iv. "Regret" - the 14th minute has the establishment of a peaceful, perhaps sad motif of jungle/tropical sounds (including Tree's Amazonian flute) woven loosely around one another until the 18th minute when saw synth chords take over and Ally returns to shredding emotionally on his guitar. One of the most evocative, sensitive, and surprisingly tight--even thoughtful--sections of any Emerald Dawn song I've ever encountered.
- iii. "Loss" - in the 11th minute another interlude of synth strings intervals paves the way for a heavier, almost ominous motif to set up with Tom's more tribalistic tom-tom-centered (synthetic talking drum?) drumming and Dave's heavily-wowed bass play being stomped over by some deep monster-saw keyboard and guitar riffs. The keyboards continue riffing--kind of soloing--for a couple of minutes over this motif before . . .
- iv. "Regret" - the 14th minute has the establishment of a peaceful, perhaps sad motif of jungle/tropical sounds (including Tree's Amazonian flute) woven loosely around one another until the 18th minute when saw synth chords take over and Ally returns to shredding emotionally on his guitar. One of the most evocative, sensitive, and surprisingly tight--even thoughtful--sections of any Emerald Dawn song I've ever encountered.
2. "Rivers of Tears" (14:58) opens with a jaunty journey of jazz-classical-sounding solo piano play. Among the most impressive and pretty keyboard play I've ever heard from Tree! At 1:40 bass, drums, and, eventually, Ally's "reverberated-into-the-background" electric guitar slowly enter. Tree continues to tinkle the ivories within and behind the guitar, bass, and drums while adding some washes of synth strings to the mix as Ally continues shredding (as he does). Then Ally stops, making room for Tree to expand her piano note play as Tom and Dave slowly, gradually slow down and drop out. a pause/break at 3:30 results in the unleashing of Tree's reverb-drenched voice over only the banks of synth strings chords and still tinkling piano note play (mostly in progressing arpeggios)--which eventually becomes just synth strings as we enter into another little pause around 5:30. Here Tree establishes a chord progression with the repetition of four descending arpeggiated chords over which the rhythm section joins in and Ally deploys his tenor sax. Another pause at the seven-minute mark leads into a transference of the play of the descending chord pattern to synth strings as Tom and Dave kick back and Ally switches to electric guitar. Here Dave's bass playing is a bit rote and uninventive while the embellishments that Tom adds to his drumming feel a bit forced and "required" while Ally's guitar shredding sounds/feels . . . the same as ever. A little pause at the end of the tenth minute is filled with Tree's vocal lines until the band re-emerges with a kind of two-chord "tropical" vamp. Yet another stop and transition at 11:45 as the band shifts into a much more dark and ominous section--launched off as Tree shouts out a "Poison. Into. It's veins." declaration. This section could almost be coming from NIL or KING CRIMSON--even with Tree's operatic high-note repeat delivery of the word "poison." The motif then morphs in the second half of the 14th minute into something more akin to a Led Zeppelin descending chord progression--which it plays out to the song's end with embellishing accents coming from Ally's synths and Tom's drums. Not bad! (26.375/30)
- i. "The Natural Cycle"
- ii. "Disruption"
- ii. "Disruption"
3. "Paradise" (8:56) opening with some excitingly pregnant synthesizer play--chords, bass, and peppy upper register riffs--which subside when Tree's plaintive, melancholy voice enters at 0:33 to introduce the song's theme. By the one minute mark she pauses wherein Tom and Mark enter with a cool, jazzy, STING "Englishman in New York"-like motif (which then happens to support Tree's "Englishman in New York" vocal melody lines). Nice bass line beneath Tree's organ chords as Ally enters with a bluesier Gilmour-like approach to his injections of guitar riffs and flurries. Around the four-minute mark the band slows things down, Tree's voice softens, while Mark and Tom's play kind of moves into greater prominence as Ally and Tree's keyboard play slides more into the background of the mix. Interesting! And I like it: I like having the bass and drums mixed in front of the keys, guitars, and saxes. The synth strings and guitar soloing in the next two minutes feel much more like the sound palette of Polish NeoProg masters COLLAGE's great textures on their Moonshine masterpiece (especially "The Blues"). In the seventh minute one of the keys begins to repeat and develop a melody line from THE MOODY BLUES' "Nights in White Satin," to which Tom backs down for a bit, but then everybody ramps up again into a fully-COLLAGE motif in which the synth strings continue soloing as other synth chords continue to deploy the "Nights in White Satin" chords and melody-reminders. Brilliant! And this is how they choose to end the song, the album! Awesome! Despite the "borrowing" of the sound palette and melody/chords, I finally feel as if The Emerald Dawn have arrived to the gates of top-tier prog, the symphonic side! (18.75/20)
- i. "Losing Paradise"
- ii. "Harmony Regained"
Total Time 45:14
- ii. "Harmony Regained"
Total Time 45:14
I like the more sophisticated complexities ED are injecting into their compositions as it diminishes the dreaded monotony wrought of their old style of endlessly jamming over simple and often drawn-out single- and/or double-chorded vamps. Either their music theory has improved or they've decided to let go of the stoner-rock approach to song-rendering and employ more symphonic structuring for their music--whatever it is, I like it!
90.14 on the Fishscales = A-/4.5 stars; a stunningly-improved advancement of compositional design yields the best album of The Emerald Dawn's career--one that has them knocking on the door of the Valhalla of the Symphonic Prog masters! Bumped up into masterpiece status for the surprising display of growth as well as this being, in my opinion, Emerald Dawn's best album yet.
90.14 on the Fishscales = A-/4.5 stars; a stunningly-improved advancement of compositional design yields the best album of The Emerald Dawn's career--one that has them knocking on the door of the Valhalla of the Symphonic Prog masters! Bumped up into masterpiece status for the surprising display of growth as well as this being, in my opinion, Emerald Dawn's best album yet.
These Frenchmen are proving themselves to me to be the absolute best progressive rock band to ever "crossover" into the business of creating masterfully-crafted and eminently-enjoyable pop songs (even if they are in French). All of these songs
Line-up / Musicians:
- Claude Leonetti / Léode
- Arnaud Beyney / guitar
- Romain Thorel / keyboards, French horn
- Vincent Barnavol / drums, percussion, marimba
- Dominique Leonetti / vocals, guitar
1. "Être ou ne plus être" (5:12) a nice opener with some very pleasant, very engaging sound combinations melody lines, and vocal performance. The band is really firing on all cylinders! (9.333/10)
2. "Chaque jour que soleil fait" (3:53) a decent if a little overly-saccharine song. (8.875/10)
3. "Sourire" (3:30) a little too pop-Beatles-like for me. Nice lead guitar work. (8.75/10)
4. "Matière première" (3:26) like a love song from a horror film or film noire. Interesting. (8.875/10)
5. "L'eau qui dort" (7:05) the 12-string guitar presence is nice, and the song just keeps getting better, richer, more nostalgic the further it goes. Masterful keyboard work, Romain! (13.875/15)
6. "Une chanson Cherokee" (3:54) a delightful little motif is set up by guitarist Arnaud Beyney's senstively-picked and strummed acoustic guitar work while Dominique and the rest of the band blend in with their support with such professional perfection. Such a seasoned team! (9.125/10)
7. "Quel dommage" (5:41) a little more bombastic and theatric than the previous fare, but such great performances from an obviously-fully-invested entourage--especially Dominique! Brilliant! I think Romain had fun with this one: playing like that on a grand piano! The vocal-cum-"orchestra" section in the fourth and fifth minutes is awesome--followed by Arnaud's searing guitar solo. Impressive! Way to take the blues and make it sound fresh! (9/10)
8. "L'instinct" (3:58) sensitive finger-picked acoustic guitar and vocal (possibly all done by Dominique). Not for the first time, Dom's immense talent reminds me of Supertramp's Roger Hodgson. Gorgeous. (9/10)
9. "L'homme sûr" (7:05) this one just sounds a little too firmly rooted in old stuff but there is some great lead guitar work. (13.25/15)
10. "Mon body se meurt" (4:30) another song that feels a little too simple and laid back--taking quite a long time to ramp up into more interesting fare (most of which comes from Claude's odd Léode sounds). (8.75/10)
11. "Les 4 Raisons" (3:50) a cool acoustic instrument-dominated palette that is coupled with 1970s-like Elton John orchestra sound plus some cool synth sound choices from Romain. Unfortunately, the song doesn't do enough to wow me. (8.875/10)
12. "Au Bord Du Précipice" (8:28) this song starts out sound very much like one of my favorite songs from their previous album, "Le pleureur sous la pluie," but it builds into something very thick, very NeoProggie, with some great lead guitar (Léode?) work in the second half. Great album-ender. (18.375/20)
Total Time 60:32
As with their last album, 2023's excellent 11, the Leonetti's have created an album on which every single song has radio-friendly hit potential: every song is so well crafted, each containing multiple hooks and melodies to charm the apple from the girl. Simply put, these guys, after almost 30 years of making music together, are putting out the finest crafted prog-paletted and prog-informed pop music on the planet.
90.06 on the Fishscales = A-/4.5 stars; a collection of easily-accessed song compositions rendered by a well-seasoned ensemble who seem to be pouring their proggy sensibilities into more reflective, radio-friendly, and listener-accessible commodities.
90.06 on the Fishscales = A-/4.5 stars; a collection of easily-accessed song compositions rendered by a well-seasoned ensemble who seem to be pouring their proggy sensibilities into more reflective, radio-friendly, and listener-accessible commodities.
Special Mentions:
ALIO DIE Fragrant Shade
All music composed and recorded by Stefano Musso in the summer of 2025, arranged and mixed at Lunae studio between December 2025 and January 2026 in Lunigiana, Italy and then released digitally on Hic Sunt Leones on March 6, 2026.
Line-up / Musicians:
- Stefano Musso / drones, loops, zithers, tambura swarmandal, turtle percussion, rattles, bells, gong, bubbles in water, field recordings
1. "Secret Entrance to Sensitive Maps" (22:08) Stefano throws us into a peaceful, ever-shifting shimmer of beautifully-nuanced ethereal garden song--like meditating in a greenhouse in the middle of winter when the sun is trying to break through some foggy morning clouds. The randomly-arriving and then -looping horns, drones, and gentle zither arpeggi and delicate glissandi serve as the sounds of waking insects, the voices of plants stretching as they welcome their daytime companions, as well as the external sounds of the world that serve to remind us that we have work to do in order to let go of the distractions of Earthly life--in order to transcend these detractions to the quest of reuniting with one's Higher Self and remembering one's Divine Essence (as well as the entrapments we agreed to immerse ourselves within when we contracted these human bodyminds). The gentleness of this song, the sublime peace it offers us, is enough to make it a priceless contribution to any person struggling through the trials and tribulations of the human condition (this meaning, YOU!). Thank you, Stefano, for gifting us this 22-minute respite. Invaluable. (45/45)
2. "Fragrant Shade" (20:55) for this garden tour we are perambulating, moving slowly through one of India's lush gardens--or, rather, watching the young matron of the estate do her slow and attentive morning walk through her gardens (or even through the above greenhouse). The plants, insects, and, verily, each and every molecule in the vicinity is quaking with excitement to be feeling the waves of unconditional love and attention proffered by la maîtresse, making sure to do their best to exhibit their most inflated expressions of jubilance and gratitude. All the while, the human visitor seems to move with an effortlessness that suggests the weightlessness of perfect detachment, a natural inclination toward total obliviousness to self and ego. The experience is wonderful if flawed for the fact that the observer/listener is unable to feel her, to be her, and is, therefore, left with the frustrations of ego and selfhood--the opposite attributes that one admires in the woman, the attributes that one longs for in oneself. (35.5/40)
3. "Dissolved in Resonant Harmony" (24:37) this one conjures up images of me patrolling my English manor house gardens after everyone has awakened and is busily engaged in their day-to-day business. Among my encounters on the garden paths are the foraging and mate-seeking birds, the gardener and his wheel barrow, a number of natural-substance wind chimes hanging beneath the eaves of the the gazebos and overhanging shade-branches above the sun-bleached to the point of being decrepit wooden benches as well as various automated sprinklers and the occasional fully-leafed tree bough chassé-ing in the fickle June morning breezes, as well as the distant noises of construction workers banding and clanging away at the perpetual job of up-keep of our old lodge and its various semi-functional out-buildings. A wonderful blend of attending to the delights and mundane magnificence of Nature while lazily allowing the creep of the concern and reminder for the litany of daily human tasks ahead in the commitment to management to flit in and out of consciousness. A cleansing yet sobering "invocation" to life. (45/50)
Total Time 67:40
Total Time 67:40
92.96 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of music in general but a significant contribution to the support of psycho-spiritual health and awareness.
Despite the fact that this is a reunion album in which the band performs cover versions of it's old material, it's always nice to hear Quidam music--and to hear them reunited with former founding lead singer Emilia Nazaruk (née Derkowska) is a real treat--even these 30 years later. The other founding members present from that wonderful first album from 1996 are guitarist Maciej Meller and keyboard maestro Zbigniew Florek--the two dudes who have been writing the bulk of the band's music since day one.
Line-up / Musicians:
- Bartosz Kossowicz / vocal
- Zbigniew Florek / keyboards
- Maciej Meller / guitars
- Maciej Wróblewski / drums
- Mariusz Ziółkowski / bass guitars
- Jacek Zasada / flutes, percussions
With a special guest:
- Emilia Nazaruk / vocal
1. "Głęboka rzeka / Deep River" (6:57) there's a bit of an aged/anachronistic (1990s) sound to the instrumental palette and recording renderings here, and the song is rather simplistic on all levels, but it is so nice to hear Emilia's voice that I find myself not even caring. (13.25/15)
2. "Łza / One Small Tear" (5:03) (8.75/10)
3. "Jesteś (w labiryncie myśli) / You Are (in the Labyrinth of Thoughts)" (4:03) straight away this was my favorite song on the album as it does such a marvelous job of letting uber-talented Emilia prove to us how she's still got all the skills and talents that she put on display back in 1996. (9.375/10)
5. "One Day We Find" (6:11) (9.375/10)
6. "Spotykanie" (7:32) Here we have a remake of a song that first appeared on the band's last previous album, 2012's Saiko. I always love it when Quidam (or any band from non-English speaking countries) sings in their native tongue. Here Bartosz and Emilia take turns and even back one another as well as dueting within a gorgeous soundscape of guitars, synth washes, piano chords, and lilting flute melodies over Mariusz and Maciej Wróblewski's warm and comforting bed of hypnotic rhythms. Then there's Maciej Meller's wonderful soaring guitar solo in the sixth and seventh minutes before Bartosz, Emilia, and Zbigniew so delicately tuck us in (for a wonderful night of peaceful sleep). Bravissimo! Great ending song to a fine comeback album! (14.125/15)
Total Time 34:56
Bass player Mariusz Ziółkowski continues doing his great job of filling the shoes of the band's previous bassists as does flutist Jacek Zasada: filling an equally-important role to this band's traditional sound. It's so nice to have Quidam back and still going strong!
- Bartosz Kossowicz / vocal
- Zbigniew Florek / keyboards
- Maciej Meller / guitars
- Maciej Wróblewski / drums
- Mariusz Ziółkowski / bass guitars
- Jacek Zasada / flutes, percussions
With a special guest:
- Emilia Nazaruk / vocal
1. "Głęboka rzeka / Deep River" (6:57) there's a bit of an aged/anachronistic (1990s) sound to the instrumental palette and recording renderings here, and the song is rather simplistic on all levels, but it is so nice to hear Emilia's voice that I find myself not even caring. (13.25/15)
2. "Łza / One Small Tear" (5:03) (8.75/10)
3. "Jesteś (w labiryncie myśli) / You Are (in the Labyrinth of Thoughts)" (4:03) straight away this was my favorite song on the album as it does such a marvelous job of letting uber-talented Emilia prove to us how she's still got all the skills and talents that she put on display back in 1996. (9.375/10)
4. "Not So Close" (5:10) a song that avails itself with great power as Bartosz Kossowicz earns his place among the pantheon of great Polish prog vocalists. (9/10)
5. "One Day We Find" (6:11) (9.375/10)
6. "Spotykanie" (7:32) Here we have a remake of a song that first appeared on the band's last previous album, 2012's Saiko. I always love it when Quidam (or any band from non-English speaking countries) sings in their native tongue. Here Bartosz and Emilia take turns and even back one another as well as dueting within a gorgeous soundscape of guitars, synth washes, piano chords, and lilting flute melodies over Mariusz and Maciej Wróblewski's warm and comforting bed of hypnotic rhythms. Then there's Maciej Meller's wonderful soaring guitar solo in the sixth and seventh minutes before Bartosz, Emilia, and Zbigniew so delicately tuck us in (for a wonderful night of peaceful sleep). Bravissimo! Great ending song to a fine comeback album! (14.125/15)
Total Time 34:56
Bass player Mariusz Ziółkowski continues doing his great job of filling the shoes of the band's previous bassists as does flutist Jacek Zasada: filling an equally-important role to this band's traditional sound. It's so nice to have Quidam back and still going strong!
91.25 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of NeoProg.
HOLY WAVE I'm DADA
Line-up / Musicians:
- Ryan Fuson / acoustic guitar, synthesizer, vocals, and lyric writing
- Joey Cook / lead guitar
- Kyle Hager / bass, lead guitars, and vocals
- Julian Ruiz / drums, percussion, and synthesizers
Additional Contributor:
- Joey Cook / lead guitar
- Kyle Hager / bass, lead guitars, and vocals
- Julian Ruiz / drums, percussion, and synthesizers
Additional Contributor:
Joo Joo Ashworth: lead guitar, samples, drum machine, and record production/mixing
1. "US 54" (4:10) acoustic guitar(s) are fxd in, weaving with synth, until the 1:00 mark when bass and drums kick in and a whole bunch of weird vocal samples start flitting in and out of the mix. Then a smooth male voice enters (doubled or harmonized) singing about being okay as the music propels us across the dusty Great Plains. Great opener! Captures the laze/malaise of SW open air living and traveling. (9.25/10)
2. "s33.u.in/HAL" (5:27) turning toward the gorgeous funky psychedelic acoustic guitar-strummed acid-trip-textural musical of their last album à la BRAINSTORY and TAME IMPALA. The Kevin Shields-like guitar in the "can you help me now" chorus even adds to that impression. Awesome song! Definitely one of my top three songs. I even love the lyrics and sampled voice lines. (10/10)
3. "happy song" (4:36) a HAPPY MONDAYS-like addled brain drug-trip adventure into psychedelia. I like the additional MaryQueen/WEST INDIAN GIRL effect of sexy young female vocals working as if a distraction in the mix. The song gets better when the heavily-distorted guitar strums mixed with the gentle synth melody line take over for the final 90 seconds. (9/10)
4. "first DAE" (3:21) nice groove with some excellent instrumental and vocal melodies worked into it with great subtle vocal harmonies lurking below the lead vocalist's vulnerable lyric lines. A really nice construct and sonic mix. (9.125/10)
5. "lull" (4:52) this song just feels like an unfortunate weak link due to its dull vocal performance and middle school drum beat but there are redeeming features in Joey Cook's guitar work as well as some of the glitch/static sound fx applied to the guitar(s). (8.75/10)
6. "I'm DADA" (5:13) another song that feels cute but unsubstantial--other than the play of the heavily-effected lead guitars. Rather boring/monotonous vocal performance. (8.75/10)
7. "unison" (4:38) a song that definitely feels in the sound/wheelhouse of bands like Tame Impala, Stereolab, and The Flaming Lips. The long 1:45 intro is great but it gets even better when the drums, bass, and pulsing Farfisa organ chord hits join in. (9.25/10)
8. "too one" (4:13) more hypnotic and ethereal the music is so dreamy and the lyrics so child-like that I find myself drifting back to memories of my own childhood summers--especially those lazy, hazy, ciccada-filled days on Elm Court (before the Dutch Elm Disease forced the city to remove all of the majestic old elms). (9/10)
9. "to the other" (2:38) the title makes it an expectation that this song would be tied into its predecessor--and it is, the foundational loop is just varied/turned around or turned onto its side while piano is the only instrument moving forward in real time as conversational human voices creep into the mix. No drums, no bass, no strumming guitars. No vocals. Just ambient loop with a recording of a human family dinner scene worked into the mix to the end (which only serves to affirm and amplify my memory trigger of the song before). (4.5/5)
10. "dewey's dirge" (5:39) an innocuous piece that feels as if it is a reprise of one of the previous songs and, therefore, should've been shortened for its effect as a closing bookend to the album, but, no! They had to extend it, making it overstay its welcome far beyond its comfort zone. (8.75/10)
Total time: 44:47
The comparisons I've read to Stereolab's Dots and Loops and Air's Moon Safari are not unwarranted. I would add The Beatles, Tame Impala, and The Flaming Lips to that list. Overall, this album leaves me with a wonderfully-comforting feeling long after it's finished.
90.92 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; a very welcome package of nostalgia-provoking songs delivered in that warm, wonderful humidity of modern psychedelic Shoegaze (apparently called "NuGaze").
ALIO DIE Vimana Mercury Vortex Engine
All of the music here was composed and recorded by Stefano Musso in March 2024, arranged and mixed at Lunae studio in summer and winter 2025, Lunigiana, Italy, and then released digitally on the Hic Sunt Leones label on May 1, 2026.
In the words of the artist:
Gradually refining the orchestra of undulating and spacious sounds, I worked on multidimensional synchronisms in meticulously harmonizing the multiple vibrations upward in appropriate proportion and perspective.
Giving life to spaces of temporal suspension, where the fusion of elements is in perpetual change and opens up to luminous and profound contemplative dimensions.
A colorful library of sounds and evocative suggestions, a space of delicate enchantment and profound catalysis.
The arpeggios of Tambura Swamandal and Zither dissolve into an enveloping sea of sound waves, hypnotic and delightful, a journey that touches and leads to graceful perceptive states.
I couldn't agree more!
Line-up / Musicians:- Stefano Musso / drones, loops, zithers, tambura swarmandal, turtle percussion, rattles, bells, gong, bubbles in water, field recordings
Since this is definitely one of Stefano's best albums that I've heard in a while--perhaps since 2017! Perhaps its time I go back and catch up to his 24 other releases from the past decade!(!)
1. "The Room of Secrets" (14:51) one can truly feel the "temporal suspension" of the "sea of soundwaves," "hypnotic and delightful." This is befitting of my favorite Alio Die album of all-time, the collaborative record of his work with Lorenzo Montanà, Holographic Codex. (29/30)
2. "Perpetual Shift" (24:28) this one could be an enriched mix-down of Brian Eno's production of street musician Edward Larry Gordan's zither work (otherwise known as Ambient III: Day of Radiance) combined with some of Eno's work on Plateaux of Mirror and On Land or even Harold Budd's collaboration with The Cocteau Twins, The Moon and the Melodies from 1986. I'm guessing that Stefano studies the masters. This is a perfect blend between those gorgeous, ever-giving, lush musics. Wonderful! (51/55)
3. "Mercury Vortex Engine" (36:57)this song is more of a background ambient texture on which to float or sleep, not really the "engine" that I was hoping for (for out-of-body transportative support). It's good but nothing really new or out-of-the-ordinary. As a matter of fact, it sounds like a lot of the previous material I've heard from Stefano. (I'd love to ask him to list the ways in which he thinks the sounds and textures of this song differ from previous material. Some backwards looping? Different sounds used for the loops? A different key? More electronic layers? Louder crickets? A new zither?) Still, it is almost always a good thing to drop an Alio Die album into one's life. (To do so on a daily basis would have the effect of establishing a therapeutic habit.) (65/75)
3. "Mercury Vortex Engine" (36:57)this song is more of a background ambient texture on which to float or sleep, not really the "engine" that I was hoping for (for out-of-body transportative support). It's good but nothing really new or out-of-the-ordinary. As a matter of fact, it sounds like a lot of the previous material I've heard from Stefano. (I'd love to ask him to list the ways in which he thinks the sounds and textures of this song differ from previous material. Some backwards looping? Different sounds used for the loops? A different key? More electronic layers? Louder crickets? A new zither?) Still, it is almost always a good thing to drop an Alio Die album into one's life. (To do so on a daily basis would have the effect of establishing a therapeutic habit.) (65/75)
Total Time 76:15
Since this is definitely one of Stefano's best albums that I've heard in a while--perhaps since 2017! Perhaps its time I go back and catch up to his 24 other releases from the past decade!(!)
90.625 on the Fishscales = A-/five stars; another gem of an album from the 21st Century's master of Ambient music.
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