CAST

Their music evolved through the years from almost neo prog with lots of Marillion, Camel, Genesis influences in their 90s albums to a symphonic band later on, but in each phases their really manage to survive in the scene and release music of a real intrest.

Arsis is a real symphonic prog album of the highest calibre, only 3 pieces here divided in many small ones, the opening has 30 min and is a pure delight. Inventive instrumental sections, lots of keyboards, piano motifs but in combination with the guitar parts the result is an excellent album all the way. Well crafted and composed, intresting orchestrations and lots of changes but done with taste.

All in all a solid album and among the best genre has to offer, all members involved done a great job and Cast once again must be taken in consideration when talking about genre best and longevive bands. Easy 4 stars and recommended.

As soon as it started, I knew I was in trouble, as it was clear from the very beginning that this was yet another superb piece of work from the guys. Formed in 1978 by keyboard player Alfonso Vidales, he is still there as is drummer Antonio Bringas who has been involved since before the debut album. It is the same line-up as the last album, with the band completed by Bobby Vidales (vocals), Lupita Acuña (vocals), Claudio Cordero (guitars), Roberto Izzo (violin) and Carlos Humarán (bass, backing vocals). Together they create a symphonic crossover progressive sound which is huge, and this time also brings in multiple theatrical elements, and I found myself being reminded of some of Clive Nolan's work.

There are those who may argue that some of the sounds they use can be somewhat dated, but I find the combination of those keyboards with the stunning guitar quite sensational. The vocals are superb, with all lyrics in English ? btw, it is really nice in these days of digital downloads to actually hold a physical CD and be able to read the lyrics in the nice booklet. As with many of Cast's albums, the artwork is also essential. There is no doubt that these guys have been top of the Mexican prog tree for many years, and I still find it strange that they are not more widely known in Europe, as they are producing prog which is vital, exciting, and incredibly dynamic. The interplay between the electric violin, keyboards and guitars on "The Unknown Wise Advice" is a sheer delight, and the album is well worth seeking out for that track alone!

If the name Cast is new to you, and you enjoy driving symphonic prog with elements of theatricality all wrapped up with great vocals, arrangements and musicianship then you need it investigate this immediately, if not sooner.

1. "Ortni" (5:31) nice instrumental (8.75/10)

2. "Black Ashes and Black Boxes" (6:18) nice piano intro and effected vocal. The rest of the band then picks up the same driving riff from the piano to build a hard-driving song from. Vocalist Bobby Vidales is so talented! I wish the music didn't sound so tired and hard-pressed. (8.67/10)

3. "The Unknown Wise Advice" (9:43) The first 4:45 sounds like an American Christian rocker. When things click into third gear and the guitars start to show it gets better. Is Cast the ghost of Neal Morse-era Spock's Beard? (16.5/20)

4. "Another Light" (3:40) More rote prog but still, it's at such a higher level than 95% of the other bands out there. A band that, when riding on fumes, still rides higher, faster, and smoother than most everybody else. (8.67/10)

5. "Manley" (5:16) a jazzy, spy-thriller soundtrack sounding song. Jose Antonio's snare sounds terrible! The complex keyboard and guitar chordal replication of an orchestral sound is excellent--were it not for those dated keyboards! (8.67/10)

6. "Location and Destination" (7:52) built around a folk dance melody, the music smooths out for the vocal section, with keys and violins providing a nice orchestral background and Lupita's background vocals supporting Bobby very nicely. These guys know each other so well! Piano and violin work shines. Relying purely on their intuitional mutual support works really well. I don't get how the final 2:30 wasn't clipped off in the editing room to be called/created as a separate song. Weird! Still, a top three song for me. (13/15)

7. "Crossing" (10:00) excellent plaintive bombastic prog opens this one--nobody does it better: that dynamic classical/theatric prog. I think I'm getting the point here that the instrumentalists had much more music created for this album than Bobby Vidales had for lyrical/story ideas: It's 3:47 before we even have a clue that there's going to be words/vocals. Again, Bobby is such a talented vocalist; too bad he couldn't come up with anything worth singing. The "harp" supported seventh minute is a real highlight for me. (17.25/20)

8. "The March" (7:21) piano and some "strings" support Bobby's vocal--perhaps his best, most sincere and heart-felt on the album. Strings become much more important as we go--as Bobby keeps singing. Great support from Lupita, and from Bobby himself, in the fourth and fifth minutes, respectively. The rock instrument presence builds but never takeover as Bobby sings start to finish with little-to-no break. Wow! (13.25/15)

9. "Contacto" (10:44) an instrumental of nice complexity and superlative performances all around (18.25/20): - i. Primer Acto - consists of two major motifs, two different speeds and styles (one infused with Spanish guitar) - ii. Profundi - at 6:30 we switch back into the first motif at a higher speed with very aggressive lead guitar. Beautiful ninth minute. Instrumental prog does NOT get much better than this. One of the best whole band selections you are going to hear from 2021.

10. "Dredging to the Higher Plane" (10:13) violin and a bailar folklorico dance motif open this before Bobby quickly joins in with one of his finest Broadway-deserving performances in a long--certainly the best of this album. But then he's gone! The pit orchestra plays themes and overtures for the next four minutes straight! When he returns it is with no where near the acrobatic show of the opening minute; more like Javert on Les Mis. Then the musicians in the pit take over again--stretching out in their race to the end. A song with tremendous potential--especially as an album ender--but fails to bring closure satisfactorily. (18/20)

Total Time 76:38

A band that creates top notch music but whose continued use of outdated 1990s computer keyboards makes me often cringe. Both their dedication and their creativity are awe-inspiring, their skills as musicians of the highest caliber; where they seem to come up short is in innovation and adoption of /adaptation to evolving technologies. Masters of melody and great performers, all, it's really hard to downgrade their wonderful music for sounding "dated" and "same ol' same ol'" or "Cast doing what Cast does" because it's at such a higher than others level.

B/four stars; an excellent addition of high quality symphonic prog rock despite sounding at times like the product of a tired A-level band. Recommended.

'Ortni' for an energetic instrumental debut, make way for the good violin if I say KANSAS or SOLSTICE; a twirling theme, a grandiose, hard violin-guitar fight, from violin to synth, a conciliating power and progressive tune, breathtaking title, setting the bar high, followed by "Black Ashes and Black Boxes" sung by Bobby and Lupita for a sustained tune ; oozing energy, a frantic rhythm, the violin behind boosting this flamboyant, fruity and dynamic track; you have to be used to melting pot musical effects to fully appreciate this deluge of notes; the air slowly rises to a basic melody embellished with fresh and airy moments. "The Unknown Wise Advice" and one of the 4 great titles arises with the pride of melodic synths, it goes up keeping the rhythm of the power prog, pause of the piano then it swells,the violins and the guitar solo (Ah a bit of SAGA here) start off on verbal jousting at ARS NOVA; the tempo increases again, goes to semi-oriental tunes, the symphonic remains in place, electronic too, the KANSAS-style violin firmly in place ending in joust with Claudio's immense guitar, the voice on ARENA, in short it is complex and one feels the great instrumental mastery. 'Another Light' short, dark, melancholy, flirting on alternative rock more digestible, less stamped; the voice on an a la FAITHFULL in softer, violin and guitar bringing sounds of enjoyable romantic spleen, rock-pop is here with a short but fruity solo as it should be. 'Manley' for an anachronistic instrumental, violin variation on a jazzy tune, then metal, a little on the land of THERION without voice.An air of suspense, of fear linked to this chopped, aggressive violin which sets off to rave film music, a good refreshing interlude in fact, the drums frantically ensuring this colorful title which changes from the original sound. 'Location and Destination' for an ersatz ' la KANSAS, the voice making me think of MAGIC PIE and KERRS PINK, a good track which stretches but without much progression, more melodic, violin like RONDO VENEZIANO; you have to wait for the guitar solo that tears to have the break that kills, final rhythmic military to have a beautiful sequence of Roberto limit spleen which then makes me melt.the drums frantically ensuring this colorful title which changes from the original sound. 'Location and Destination' for an ersatz ' la KANSAS, the voice making me think of MAGIC PIE and KERRS PINK, a good track which stretches but without much progression, more melodic, violin like RONDO VENEZIANO; you have to wait for the guitar solo that tears to have the break that kills, final rhythmic military to have a beautiful sequence of Roberto limit spleen which then makes me melt.the drums frantically ensuring this colorful title which changes from the original sound. 'Location and Destination' for an ersatz ' la KANSAS, the voice making me think of MAGIC PIE and KERRS PINK, a good track which stretches but without much progression, more melodic, violin like RONDO VENEZIANO; you have to wait for the guitar solo that tears to have the break that kills, final rhythmic military to have a beautiful sequence of Roberto limit spleen which then makes me melt.rhythmic military final to have a beautiful sequence of Roberto limit spleen which then makes me melt.rhythmic military final to have a beautiful sequence of Roberto limit spleen which then makes me melt.

"Crossing" begins on the divine piano, you can feel the epic piece, the cavalcades of horses, in short, a title which makes you react, which takes you wherever your thoughts want it, full of drawers which make the piece very pleasant; after this instrumental interlude (ELP and GENESIS in the crosshairs), it's time for languid vocals, a calm air that will slowly rise in a fruity, jerky crescendo and at the limit of prog power metal, I find DREAM THEATER not for nothing. A flagship title with all the sensitivity and power of CAST, timeless. "The March" with a dark, intimate intro, the moving voice of Bobby on Roberto's violin and daddy's piano amplifying this moment; sweetness of a track which digests with a riff in the background starting, giving a classic metallic impulse, bathed in the romantic,sudden fall that goes out of context. "Contacto" for a centerpiece: symphonic, medieval, romantic, epicurean intro, majestic variation of the violin and keyboards, acoustic addition then it launches into a frantic race where all the instruments go to party, the pride of the guitar boosted; quality, technique, uncompromising progression, the synchronic sound of CAST in fact where everything is piled up to create the best, that's it; master-piece. 'Dredging to the Higher Plane' for a KANSAS-style sound by this twirling violin and its ubiquitous keyboards: it starts with an agreed theme, fruity, energetic and entertaining; the voice halfway through jerks just adds to the developed tune; it starts again in a thunderous way, hold a rhythm which starts on the tango, it becomes more modern like sound,less vintage in fact, with instruments that work to finish the album in the most beautiful way by intoxicating you.

CAST made prog symphonic at CAST, mastering his titles from start to finish; CAST may surprise you given the debauchery of disparate titles and sounds released on this album; very high level, current sound and a wonderful moment that I did not expect so intense; I have to say that it will reach my top potential, a guarantee of quality.

In the Nineties I listened to a serie of albums, and witnessed Cast on a Dutch progrock festival. But then I lost the band, this new studio album (#20 since Landing In A Serious Mind from 1994) is my first musical encounter with Cast since the late Nineties, so I was very curious to Cast its latest effort entitled Vigesimus (the successor of Power And Outcome from 2017). Well, during my first listening session I could hardly believe my ears, because in my memory Cast was a fine blend of symphonic rock and Neo-Prog, no more or less. But this 2021 version of Cast blows me away: outstanding musicians and interplay, tastefully arranged compositions (between 3 and 11 minutes) with flowing shifting moods and lots of musical ideas, the Holy Trinity of keyboards, violin and guitar, and what an exciting blend of classical, symphonic rock, jazzrock and Heavy Prog!

The album opens with Ortni, one of the 3 instrumentals. This track showcases the huge progress and skills of this current Cast line-up. The band starts with an exciting up-tempo in a bombastic atmosphere, featuring outstanding interplay between heavy guitar, keyboards and violin. Then the music turns into a slow rhythm with wonderful piano and violin, soon followed by a virtuosic acoustic guitar solo. Then a mid-tempo with propulsive guitar riffs, the amazing interplay is in the vein of the best jazzrock, including swirling violin work. In the end a sumptuous atmosphere, topped with with fat Minimoog synthesizer flights, intense violin, and heavy guitar riffs, welcome to Cast its the New Musical World, wow! The other two instrumentals are also amazing, often Kansas come to my mind. Manley delivers propulsive and dynamic percussion, a bombastic climate, awesome interplay guitar, violin and keyboards, and finally a blistering guitar solo. Contacto features lots of captivating musical climates (alternating between dreamy and bombastic), embellished with intense violin and piano, heavy guitar, sparkling piano, an acoustic guitar solo, romantic work on piano ' and violin play, and halfway a break with Heavy Prog, including a blistering guitar solo. So many thrills, this instrumental part of Cast reminds me of 76-82 jazzrock master Al Di Meola his exciting solo work.

The other seven outstanding and alternating tracks (from dreamy to bombastic) feature strong contributions from a male and a female singer (solo and duo), from warm to powerful, at some moments the use of the vocals brings Ayreon to my mind. Prime mover Alfonse Vidales shines with his varied and tasteful keyboard work: from sparkling Grand piano and orchestral keyboards to flashy Minimoog flights. Alfonso is the leader of Cast but he gives plenty of room to his talented fellow musicians: the classical sound of the violin (from warm to swirling) and the heavy sound of the guitar (from moving to blistering) create lots of tension and dynamics in the music.

What a very tasteful stew of classical, symphonic rock, jazzrock and Heavy Prog, check out!

Bouncing back and forth between dramatic instrumentals and lyrical "what's is life?" songs, Cast never loses focus. Four ten minute mini-epics! We die alone, yet we share a common soul, hurtling toward a future unknown, powered by something delightful, I can't quite fathom, but we'll celebrate with every fiber of our senses, our energy bound up this corrupted flesh. Mature compositions. Melodies abound. Highly recommended. Easily, a top ten 2021 album.

Sounds of imagination is the second release issued in 1994 and from this one on they become a prolific band releasing 2 even 3 albums in a year. As previous output this is another fine little Marillion/Genesis inspired music with some mexican prog Nazca or Iconoclasta added in the mix, memorable moments from start to finish. Everything is around of truly top keyboard player Luis Alfonso " Poncho" Vidales, one of the most overlooked keyboard players ever.

The instrumental sections are great, symphonic prog very well melted with some neo prog momenets here and there. I like a lot the bands vintage sound, it was impossible to sound for 1994 year but after a small research everything was clear, the first 7 pieces were recorded in 1985.The keybords were constructed in combination with the rest of the instruments, creating a fine symphonic/neo prog sound. I'm not bothered by the voice like others said, ok the vocal passages are not the main attraction here, but are well sung and has it's moments of beauty. Now the instrumental pieces and instrumental sections are truly great, each musician offers his best moves nice and intresting little pieces with lots of keybords, inventive drums and brilliant guitars. The album goes in this direction from start to finish, plenty of memorable moments, musicianship is top notch so no complains from me. Pieces like Dragon's Attack or lets say A Run In The Rain are more then ok like the rest. The vocal passages are theaterical recalling the best of some french neo prog bands of the era, aswell dutch neo prog.

I was very pleasent surprised about Cast music for many years now, being one of my fav bands ever regardless of genre, 3.5 stars easy for Sounds of imagination. They need a far more more recognition, much better then many well know bands from this realm.