THE CIRCLING HOUR

Any Iona album is worth owning and listening to regularly--even the most recent, more-overtly and heavily Christian, Another Realm. The Circling Hour is no exception. Coming right on the heels of guitarist DAVE BAINBRIDGE's IONA-collaborated "solo" effort, Veil of Gossamer, and six years since the last studio album, the supreme achievement that is Open Sky, 2006 finds the band still in great form.

Song favorites: "Sky Maps" (6:43) (10/10), "Empyream Dawn" (7:50) (13.5/15) and the three-part "Wind, Water and Fire" suite (35/35).

At first I thought that this album didn't have the staying power of their previous efforts, but I was wrong: it has grown on me over the years. It is not only an amazing display of prog folk mastery but a very rich and deeply engaging listening experience from start to finish.

Nothing less than five stars will serve.

Iona is a band that has few equals in 21st Century prog world.