ASTROMALIST

Panzerpappa's Astromalist is a selection of instrumental prog workouts with crystal-clear production bringing out the individual performances nicely. Although Michel Berckmans of Univers Zero guests, we're not plunging into scary or difficult RIO territory of the sort Berckmans' main band explores: instead, this offers a light and breezy tone stuffed with a mixture of complexity and whimsy in an approach which reminds me of Samla Mammas Manna. (Like Samla and early Henry Cow, I also detect a mild Canterbury influence in proceedings.) Guitarist Anders Kristian Krabberød shows a particularly interesting playing style, miles away from anything resembling conventional guitar heroics but at the same time still compelling.