2025, Part 4: Other Albums worth checking out for yourselves

 The albums presented below represent a group of albums that each came highly recommended to me but failed to capture my sustained attention. Knowing that I no longer have the patience, time, or interest in forcing myself to review every album that comes my way, I offer these up as a reminder of music you may wish to check out for yourselves. This has been a difficult decision for me in that my initial intentions on becoming a music reviewer were to try to offer fair and impartial, somewhat "objective" reviews of as many of the hundreds of new album releases I hear about from each and every year of this 21st Century. I apologize to all of the wonderful music professionals who had hoped that I might review their musics.

FLUCTUS QUADRATUM Laplacian

Melodic and proficient synth-oriented NeoProg from England.

Line-up / Musicians:
- Jopheus Burtonshaw / keyboards, synthesizers, guitar & bass effects
- Rick Burtonshaw / drums
- Curtis Adamczyk / vocals

1. Laplacian (6:07)
2. Dawn of Acquiescence III (7:11)
3. Inertia (5:06)
4. Where the Lack of Logic Lies (11:21)
5. The Grey Room (2:19)
6. The House Within Itself (6:41)
7. Consequences (6:09)
8. Bridge to Suffering (0:50)
9. Suffering in Serenity (6:43)
10. Alone. (5:56)
11. Mistwell (0:43)
12. Direlight (13:01)

Total Time: 72:07

The music on Laplacian is pretty good, it's just that it's a little too obvious that Jopheus' studio album music is predominantly controlled, programmed, and issued from a computer keyboard. This can be done well but not while using the kind of "dated" (1990s) sounds that Jopheus chooses (including/especially "bass", "piano", and "guitars"). The second "problem" I have with the music on this album is that it's very run-of-the-mill, stereotypic NeoProg, which, as I've been stating repeatedly over the past couple of years, feels as if it has been mined to death: we're now working on anything we can extract through the intensive extractive processes of shale oil mining, fracking, or even capturing fumes. Can music progress no more? Are we done? Condemned to work only from the combinations and permutations of existing sounds, instruments, and styles?

      Curtis Adamczyk's vocals are weak and poorly rendered in the engineering department (sounding just like they do in their live concert performance videos).

      Qualitatively this is really a three to 3.5 star album but the Burtonshaw brothers manage to eek out some exceptionally-engaging music despite the equipment insufficiencies.   

MOTORPSYCHO Motorpsycho

And then there were two: the Psychonauts' two founding members . . . and a bunch of hired hands. The realities of the modern way of making and publishing music has finally dawned on Bent and Hans.

Line-up / Musicians:
- Bent Sæther / lead & backing vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, bass, Mellotron, synthesizer, piano, organ, Omnichord, percussion
- Hans Magnus Ryan / lead & backing vocals, electric lead, rhythm & slide guitars, Mellotron, synthesizer, piano
With:
- Ingvald Vassbø / drums (1,6,8-11)
- Mari Persen / strings (2)
- Reine Fiske / electric guitar (3,4)
- Olaf Olsen / drums (3,4)
- Thea Grant / vocals (8)

Disc 1 (40:49)
1. "Lucifer, Bringer of Light" (10:49) off to the races we go straight from the first frame--especially with metronomic JAKI LEIBZEIT-like drummer Ingvald Vassbø in the driver's seat. The harmonies on the team vocals are rather weak, even discordant at times. The song's chord structure is fairly straightforward with only a few interesting bridges or instrumental passages. The WHO "Baba O'Riley"-like third minute starts off interestingly but then devolves into a fairly straightforward ALLMAN BROTHERS-like guitar solo--and then slightly more interesting LYNYRD SKYNYRD-like duet/duel. This goes on until the ninth minute when the boys try to come back to a slightly-more sophisticated (and infinitely more interesting) variation on the opening theme for more vocals. (17.5/20)
2. Laird of Heimly (3:54)
3. Stanley (Tonight's the Night) (4:10)
4. The Comeback (4:32)
5. Kip Satie (2:25)
6. Balthazaar" (11:40) bug-buzz-saw playing around until Krautrock motif steps into play at the 0:56 mark (with a bass line that is a variation on the famous "Peter Gunn" riff). The team vocals are okay, melodic and smooth, I just don't know (or care) what they're singing about. Guitar solos with a variety of guitar sounds (one very Allman Brothers-like). Halfway into the song I'm finding the motif to be more annoying than hypnotic, this despite all the different guitar sounds and the addition in the sixth minute of piano chord hits. A turn given to synths for solos in the seventh minute provide a little diversion/relief but then we're right back into the rut for the next vocal section in the eighth minute. Around the eight-minute mark the band shifts a little (mostly drummer Ingvald Vassbø's drum beat and style) and then synthesized guitar takes off for the next solo (with the next sound). The eleventh minute brings us around to the final vocal section while the instrumental parts of the song show signs of cracking and, perhaps, dissolving. No such luck. And then there's the whole travesty of focusing a song about "Balthazaar" much less using the word as the exclusive occupant of the chorus's main lyric, repeated over and over. Sorry guys! This just doesn't live up to the high standards of your tremendous body of work! (17.375/20)
7. Bed of Roses (3:19)

Disc 2 (40:50)
8. Neotzar (The Second Coming)" (21:07) pretty weird and lame for the first 2:40 with piano-like guitar notes backing singer Thea Grant, but then the band kicks in with some decent cruise-drivin' music over which another lame vocal (and equally-lame background vocal) is set. The Mellotron strings work is mismatched and the guitar solos in the mid-section are just okay. At 8:15 there is a break before harp-like "heavenly" music fills a minute and more while, eventually, electric guitar plays a spacious series of mindless notes for another minute or so. In the eleventh minute some chords begin to form from behind, orchestral washes. At 12:15 some ominous and acerbic notes and chords begin amping things up until there is about 90 seconds of almost-UTOPIA/MAHAVISHNU/ZAPPA-like cacophony up to the end of the 14th minute. But then things smooth out and return to the main Motorpsycho highway though a more-subdued electric guitar continues soloing into end of the 15th minute before being rejoined by the other guitarist--who then takes over in the sixteenth. Man! It feels as if these guys have really been chompin' at the bit to have some loose solo time--even some vicious duels. Drummer Ingvald Vassbø really ups the chaos in the seventeenth minute but then things straighten out again for some piano and synth leadership--just before male vocalist steps in with a lame vocal. The final three minutes continue this piano-pounding palette while the guitarists (and vocalists--in the background) speed along toward the 21st minute in which they break it all down into bare-bones guitar and Mellotron note picking to the song's end. Interesting and sometimes exciting--especially if you're just into guitar shredding--but really not a greatly engaging or memorable song. (34.75/40)
9. Core Memory Corrupt (5:38)
10. Three Frightened Monkeys (8:41)
11. Dead of Winter (5:24)

Total Time 81:39

An album that feels like the two have rustled through their closets of old songs that had never made previous albums and dusted a few off for fresh renditions. I can see why most of these had been left in the closet. Even the ones that feel fresh are filled with either too much chaos or too much noodling: not the stuff that have kept me loyal to the cause for over 16 years.

EYE 2 EYE Lost Horizon

French NeoProg artist moving toward the heavier side.

 
Line-up / Musicians:
- Paul Tilley / lead vocals
- Bruno Pegues / guitars
- Philippe Benabes / keyboards
- Didier Pegues / drums, backing vocals, keyboards
With:
- Elise Bruckert / violin
- Etienne Damin / bass
- Djam Zaïdi / bass
- Valentin Gevaraise / guitars
- Nicolas Fabrigoule / piano
- Kelly Mezino / backing vocals
- Michel Cerroni / backing vocals
- Stéphane Baumgart / backing vocals

1. Garden of Eden (9:40)
2. The Letter (6:53)
3. Meadows of Silence (12:03)
4. Lost Horizon ( Ghosts Endgame) (22:45)
I - The Shoreline
II - Tempest
IIII - Sad Eyed Siren

Total Time 51:21

CROWN LANDS The Heart Is in The Body

Line-up / Musicians:
- Nicola Baigent / clarinet, bass clarinet, saxophone, recorder, flute
- Charlie Cawood / bass guitar, double bass, handbells, sitar
- Josh Perl / keyboards, vocals
- Sharron Fortnam / vocals
- Keepsie / drums, handbells
- Richard Larcombe / lead vocal, guitar, harmonium, harp, tin whistle, violin, cello, concertina, English border bagpipe, dulcimer
- Rhodri Marsden / piano, keyboards, bassoon, saw, recorder, tremolo guitar, percussion, theremin, vocals
With:
- Mark Cawthra / vocals (2,5,6)
- Susannah Henry / vocals (3)
- James Larcombe / hurdy gurdy (8)
- Sarah Nash / vocals (3,7)

1. "I Might Not" (5:36) (8.75/10)
2. "She Didn't Want" (5:56) (8.75/10)
3. "Weaker than Me" (5:06) (8.75/10)
4. "The Same Without" (6:39) (8.75/10)
5. "Et Tu Brute" (4:16) (I fear) I'm starting to get used to this music! (8.75/10)

6. "O Alexander" (5:36) the most stripped down yet-choral-oriented and vocal-bare of the album's songs. Still too angular and dissonant. (8.875/10)

7. "Did Look a Fool" (7:37) What?! an almost normal song?! The musicians seem to be building their weave around what feels/sounds almost like a straight 4/4 time. The XTC-like vocals are decent. If only the drum line and calliope player were older than six or seven-years old! (13.3333/15)

8. "A Sailor and His True Love" (9:46) the most Gentle Giant song on the album. (17.75/20)

Total time: 50:31

If I hadn't heard Gregorian chants, J.S. Bach, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Dimitri Shostakovich, Gentle Giant, Robert Fripp/King Crimson, Henry Cow/Art Bears, Hatfield & The North/National Health, Happy The Man, XTC, This Heat, Cheer-Accident, The Cardiacs, Mr. Bungle, Advent, Jack O' The Clock, Knifeworld, The Muffins/Dave Newhouse/Manna/Mirage, and William D. Drake, I would have said that Richard Larcombe & Company might be onto something with this quirky, angular mix of mediæval choir motets put to electrified/electronic minstrel/troubadour music. But, as it stands, my bombarded brain keeps telling me that I've heard this before. Were it not for the lyrics, I would be inclined to agree with the processing center of my central nervous system, but, as it is, I'm more inclined to say that I hope I never have to hear this music again: I have enough dissonance and cacophony in my life already, thank you very much. Despite all this, I must say that, over time, with continuous listening, the ear and CNS kind of grow used to the dissonant parts and are then able to begin to pick up on the "smoother" melodies--which seem to come from the choir-delivered vocals more often than not. This fact helps render this music listening experience into the more palpable, even likable, category that I find I've placed New Jersey band ADVENT and American Prog folk artist DAMON WAITKUS (Jack O' The Clock) into.

     As I sit with this music--really sit with it--I find myself imagining a troupe of brightly-colour-costumed minstrels and troubadours marching into my medieval village from distant adventures who-knows-where, dancing, prancing, and frolicking playfully around the central figure of the marching man beating padded drumsticks on the should-harnessed tonal bass drum to a marching rhythm as wooden flutes and recorders are played by the some of the dancing troupe members. The problem with these songs for me is in their monotonous sound and choppy, angular rhythmicity. Were I able to "hear" and make sense of the words of their lyrics instead of hearing them as another element of the monotonous wall tapestry of sound they might accrue more weight to make their way into my heart. As they are, I feel as if I "just made it through" another one of those stereotypic bombardments of mirth and merriment brought into town by these sly, creepy, somewhat untrustworthy itinerate minstrel troupes. ("Whew! Glad that's over! Hope they're not back any time soon!")    

Total Time 50:32

88.11 on the Fishscales = B/four stars; a collection of anachronistic-sounding music that will not be for everyone but it might be for you. 

ECHOLYN Time Silent Radio II

Line-up / Musicians:
- Brett Kull / guitar, lead vocals, backing vocals
- Ray Weston / lead vocals, bass, backing vocals
- Chris Buzby / keyboards, backing vocals
- Jordan Perlson / drums & percussion, backing vocals

1. Time Has No Place (16:37) :
- a. Into Blue and Green
- b. The Air of Ivy Hill
- c. Emerald Garden
- d. Forever Evermore
2. Water in Our Hands, Pts. 1-4 (28:51)

Total Time 45:28

ECHOLYN Time Silent Radio vii

Released the same day as Time Silent Radio II, this album exhibits more of a pop song simplicity.

Line-up / Musicians:
- Brett Kull / guitar, lead vocals, backing vocals
- Ray Weston / lead vocals, bass, backing vocals
- Chris Buzby / keyboards, backing vocals
- Jordan Perlson / drums & percussion, backing vocals

1. Radio Waves (7:01)
2. Silent Years (4:31)
3. Cul-de-Sacs and Tunnels (7:09)
4. Boulders on Hills (6:53)
5. Our Brilliant Next (5:47)
6. On We Blur (5:41)
7. Tiny Star (8:29)

Total Time 45:31

BJØRN RIIS Fimbulvinter 

One forgets about Airbag and its uber-talented guitar-songwriter due to the fact that everything they've ever done seems to be able to escape the realm of (and comparisons to) peak era, peak sound Pink Floyd. I always enjoy the rich and pristine production value but somehow end up feeling disconnected from it once it's over due to the fact that Pink Floyd already did it--and how many repetitions and reiterations of Pink Floyd do I (does the world) really need?

Line-up / Musicians:
- Bjørn Riis / vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, composer & producer
With:
- Henrik Bergan Fossum / drums
- Arild Brøter / drums
- Kai Christoffersen / drums

1. "Illhug" (1:43) an amazing little song, emotive and evocative on so many levels. Worthy of comparisons to anything David Gilmour has ever done. (5/5)

2. "Gone" (8:34) the background floating guitars in this are amazing but the vocals and bass and drum lines to this feel so derived from the 1980s New Wave scene that Bjørn has to do a ton more to win back my respect and attention. It doesn't happen, it just never happens. (17.333/20)

3. "Panic Attack" (10:56) on this one the listener can hear how Pink Floyd has evolved but cannot escape the fact that it's still grounded in all that is (was) Pink Floyd. The guitar solo in the song's peak--the ninth minute--is great BUT it's so David Gilmour--the song so Pink Floyd-turned-heavy-à-la-Porcupine-Tree that it makes me squirm with discomfort. And then he chooses to just end it mid phrase--like a death or loss of consciousness or end of a dream. (17.375/20)

4. "She" (6:33) emotional strummed acoustic guitar with background electronic loops support Bjørn's in-your-face whisper vocal. The lyrics, however, take so frickin' long to reveal what message he's trying to convey: they're sung so spaciously, drawn out over so much time. Read or sung straight it takes me no more than 20 seconds to read them; it took Bjørn four minutes to share them with us. They're a wonderful  tribute to "her"--and the plaintive wail of the electric guitar that follows is powerful and evocative--but, why? Really? (8.875/10)

5. "Fimbulvinter" (9:00) more sublimely solid lead guitar work over some interesting but, in the end, obnoxious off-beat syncopated guitar power chords and rock drum and bass play leave me feeling hesitant and left on the outside walking my own way. There is a certain mystique in some of the richly layered places in which the drums and chugging guitars are absent--something mythical in a cool Norse way--but ultimately it's a collection of sounds, textures, and stylings that every lover of David Gilmour has heard over and over for 55 years. (17.333/20)

6. "Fear of Abandoned" (7:36) sounds exactly like a song (or remnant) from Airbag's debut album--way back in 2009--sixteen years ago! (12.75/15)

Total Time 44:22

Unfortunately, the raw and fairly-untreated voice that Bjørn uses (possesses) is just not special enough to earn my praises--and his lyrics are not as compelling or poetic enough to earn acclaim or adulation. 

87.41 on the Fishscales = C+/3.5 stars; a beautifully-sounding album that, unfortunately, offers very little in the way of new or excitingly fresh ideas. 

GREAT WIDE NOTHING A Shout into the Void

A band that I know/knew only from their 2023 album, Hymns for Hungry Spirits, Vol. II--which I reviewed and which left me with a favorable aftertaste. 

Line-up / Musicians:
- Daniel Graham / bass, guitars, vocals
- Dylan Porper / keyboards, guitars, supporting vocals
- Jeff Matthews / drums

1. "Utopia" (5:38) a song that seems to be trying to mixing three or four disparate styles of music: prog metal, Cure-like Goth synths, some ECHOLYN-like NeoProg and BUBBLEMATH-like vocal. The dudes are trying to convey that they're pissed off but it falls short due to the poor sound engineering/mixing of the tracks (and styles) as well as the less-than-convincing emotions trying to be forced into the singing of the "angry" lyrics. (8.6667/10)

2. "Rules of Engagement" (5:39) sounds like a cover of late 1970s SAGA's great classic rock hit, "On the Loose." Okay song version that just feels dated and uninspired in so many ways. (8.5/10)

3. "Chain of Command" (4:13) a song that exhibits some 21st Century creativity! Definitely a step up from the two previous songs, though the chorus is quite lame: sounding like something from a filler song on a Queen or Loverboy album. (8.7/10)  

4. "Brain of Fire" (5:38) a mutli-part opening whose three distinct parts are all quite interesting and intriging leads into a satisfying if dated sounding vocal motif. (It sounds likes a cross between MEATLOAF and a second-tier British New Wave band that I'm having trouble pinpointing [probably due to my general and quite intentional avoidance and predominant disdain for that style and era of music). Still, this is a nice song even if it does sound like I'm discovering a song from 1980 that I'd never heard before. (8.875/10)

5. "One Thousand Eyes" (7:13) Nice keyboard work from Dylan Porper over and within the fairly well-developed and well-performed rock motif that fills the majority of the seven minute song. And it's all instrumental! The second half puts on display some very nice bass play--a lot of which is presented as a very long and extended solo. Drummer Jeff Matthews performs admirably beneath, sometimes able to break through to become the instrument that I want to pay attention to. (13.333/15)

6. "Parting of Ways" (6:36) back to ancient sounding constructs, soundscapes, and sonic palettes, here using a hard-driving two-beat and then some really hokey choir-delivered wordless vocals to finish the chorus. Every time I pause and then come back to this song my immediate sense is that I'm listening to something from the early 1980s. Solid performances of some rather straightforward and generic by-the-numbers song construction. (8.75/10)

7. "You're Not In" (4:39) long-held organ chord opens this, holding strong while Daniel Graham's late-1970s/early-1980s vocal enters. The song remains firmly anchored in 1980 despite three different motifs--just too many hooks and signature riffs coming straight out of music from bands like 707, Buggles, Asia, and even Olivia Newton-John(!). More nice synth work from Dylan in the instrumental section. (8.7/10)

8. "A Shout Into the Void" (6:06) a song that feels more defined/inspired by BON JOVI, REM, and even later SIMPLE MINDS. (8.7/10)

Total Time 45:45

I am able to conclude that this is a less-than-professional band of musicians who are not committed to performing, promoting, or polishing their compositions before rendering them onto master tapes. Perhaps they were once an expert 1980(s) cover/tribute band that have recently decided to try to express themselves through their own compositions . . . created through their firmly established filters of 1970s and 1980s music and performed on the instruments that help them cover the 1980s sound palettes. In an effort to, perhaps, get down to more of their authentic core, the band seems to have here left behind some of its more blatant 1980s referents but, unfortunately, they have, thereby, left me stranded in a vacuum of bare-bones representation of one particularly small window of musical history. 

87.32 on the Fishscales = C+/3.5 stars; a not unenjoyable romp down memory lane as retro sounds, stylings, and constructs take one back to the year 1980. 

THE AURORA PROJECT EVOS12

Line-up / Musicians:
- Dennis Binnekade / lead vocals
- Alex Ouwehand / guitar, backing vocals
- Remco van den Berg / guitar, backing vocals
- Marcel 'Mox' Guijt / keyboards
- Rob Krijgsman / bass
- Joris Bol / drums & percussion

1. Slave City (6:27)
2. The Movement (5:41)
3. Have Some Tea (11:36)
4. The Traveler (5:46)
5. Freedom of Thought (9:09)

Total Time 38:39

CELESTE Anima Animus

The phoenix that is Celeste continues to fly high on its computer keyboard-enriched Prog Lite / NeoProg sound palette. Here the band adds flutist Marco Moro to its full-time cast.

Line-up / Musicians:
- Ciro Perrino / mellotron, eminent, solina, Oberheim oba, minimoog, ARP 2600, EMS AKS, percussion
- Enzo Cioffi / drums
- Francesco Bertone / bass, Fretless bass
- Marco Moro / flute, alto flute, bass flute
- Mauro Vero Chitarre / acoustic and electric guitars
With:
- Ines Aliprandi / lead vocals
- Marco Canepa / piano
- Mirco Rebaudo / soprano sax, alto sax, tenor Sax, baritone sax, Clarinet
- Paolo Maffi / soprano sax, alto sax, tenor Sax
- Enrico Allavena / trombone, bass tuba
- Davide Mocini / 12 strings guitar (3,6)
- Marco Fadda / percussion

1. "Anima Animus" (8:40) syrupy symphonic Prog Lite schlock. (17.33333/20)
2. "Roots and Leaves" (5:40) something sophisticated and jazzy! I never expected anything like this--especially after hearing all of the album's other songs. Parts of it could almost come from a LAGARTIJA album or perhaps even a NOVICENTO album. (8.875/10)
3. "Cosmic Carnival" (6:59) a little creativity and life showing in this one. (13.25/15)
4. "De Rerum Natura" (9:03) opening with piano like something from a classic classical music piece or perhaps a Broadway musical.  Joined by synths the piano then takes a different turn to exhibit a new motif which is joined by guitars, flutes, and the rest of the band. The piano part throughout sounds so much like a kid practicing scales--even through the rather rough edits and splices. I like this one most for its feel of being founded in classical music--though at times it's as annoying as a theme song from a long-running television show. (8.875/10)
5. "Lilith" (6:32) interesting late-1970s/1980s techno/New Wave music that reminds me of The Buggles and Claire Hammill's "Icicle Rain" from her all-voice-generated album, Voices from 1986. (8.6667/10)
6. "El Mundo Perdido" (6:44) a percussion opening that reminds me of MICKEY HART's world music creations facilitated through his Planet Drum albums. Yes, this is definitely more befitting a 1980s World Music smooth jazz album. I was into this music from about 1984 through 1990 and would have definitely purchased an album like this back then. Nice and melodic, but now too schlocky for me. (13/15)
7. "Secret Crime" (6:25) an opening that sounds like a classically-inspired pop-jazz song using both Satie, Minimalism, Mark Isham, and Laurie Anderson for examples. Surprisingly enjoyable even if it is rather schlocky (like something from a MANHATTAN TRANSFER album). (8.875/10)
8. "Moon and Cloud Dancing" (12:01) (syrupy symphonic Prog Lite schlock. The prog-by-numbers drum play is almost sickening. (21/25)

Total Time 62:04

86.63 on the Fishscales = B-/3.5 stars; a pleasant, nice-sounding album of fairly simple, often schlocky tunes that fails to live up to the hype it's been given.