MOONLIGHT FLIT

German band from Sindelfingen with a decent 8-year career.They were formed in 1989 and led by guitarist Thomas Glonkler.By the time of their first album the line-up included also Ralf Grossmann on lead vocals/acoustic guitar, Steffen Herrmann on keys, Joachim Lauber on drums and Hartwig Dieterich on bass.This was recorded between 2nd and 20th of August 93' in Boeblingen and released the same year on Gaumoggel Records.

''Moonlight flit'' is an almost full hour of dynamic Neo Progressive Rock in the vein of ANTARES, ZIFF, COLLAGE and EGDON HEATH, having a very rich sound and a very good production to surround the band's adventurous ideas.What a lover of this style expects can be excessively found in ICU's debut.The compositions are filled with the emphatic guitar work of Glonkler with plenty of great grooves and emotional solos and the bombastic keyboard work of Herrmann.There are some nice interplays, symphonic grandiose passages and sudden breaks to lead to acoustic crescendos in ICU's sound, making them far from a flat Neo Prog band.Another positive asset is vocalist Ralf Grossmann and his expressive, non-accented voice with its multiple colors.The great balance between the lyricism and fiery instrumental sections will definitely please the fan of progressive music, again the problem of another album is the lack of a monster composition to push it to the next level.

MARILLION, IQ, PALLAS, ARENA and PENDRAGON fans will love ICU from the first listening and the high degrees of both emotion and execution are likely to satisfy more fans than only those deep into Neo Prog.Strongly recommended...3.5 stars.