LEFTOVERTURE

There are so many reviews about this album already that I don't want to go into detail about it. In fact, if you consider yourself a progger, then you are already familiar with the album and have already made up your mind about whether you like it or not. My opinion is that it is their masterpiece, it is Kansas in their finest hour and "Magnum Opus" is exactly Kansas' magnum opus. Nothing short of awesomeness here, everything is perfect. Kansas became a tight knit mini orchestra of sorts with this album. The problem is this; even though their next album "Point of Know Return" was a great album, it was not a progression from this album, it was a small tentative step backwards probably because of pressure to maintain radio air play and commercialism. In fact, Kansas stopped progressing and became more and more radio friendly after that, without progression their best music written after that only became stale and their worst music just became run of the mill. It's a sad story that exists all throughout prog. Kansas was an American progressive band that America could be proud of, but they became victims of corporate greed. However, while it's true that progressive rock was nurtured and grown best in Europe and other countries, progressive rock (and music in general for that matter) should know no boundaries. I think it would do us all a big service if all of us would forget about boundaries and appreciate music for being universal. Open your ears and your minds and listen to music from everywhere and I will promise you that you will find gems all over the world. There is music out there that is still being made that is just as good and sometimes even better than what is produced in your own country or your own culture. Get out there and discover it.