Some albums from the past deserved to have a CD edition, and this is one of them. Michel Normandeau participated on all Harmonium efforts, before pursuing a solo career. Unfortunately, when he made this change of direction, prog rock was starting to decline in popularity and mídia space. I'm not really a consistent admirer of Harmonium's works, but this work has really captivated me. Despite the fact that it features a handful of former members of the aforementioned band, during my review the considerable diferences between them will become noticeable.

The smooth and folk beginning, with the acoustic guitar, grows with the gentle inclusion of other instruments. The vocals, in French, are exquisite. In fact, this is the case throughout the entire album. Some changes of time signatures occurs, a swing on the bass, and some brief but inspired interventions on clarinet and flute complete this music.

On the next song, acoustic guitar becomes even more lyrical, and bass delivers great melodies. Along with the singing, now there are some vocalizations. An immersive guitar, on the symphonic vein, closes the track.

Rhythmic sections on the first half of the third track are a bit simple. When the guitar gets along, significant changes happens. The musical combinations become more inventive. And on the end, the drums improve a creative march, and caddence is more accelerated.

A magnificent classical piano is developed on the following track.

Clarinet and acoustic guitar make an incredible dialogue on the opening of side B. Suddenly they give place to the piano, this time with some jazzy executions. And after that there's this fantastic piano solo.

6th song gives its name to the album. The entrance has a very strong pop approach. I like it, because of its tasty swing, and once again vocals are strong and complex. They switch harmonies, more to its middle, but keeping one foot on pop-prog. Piano has some cozy rhythyms.

Next track is one of the greatest discovers I made, in recent years, on progressive rock. "L'air de Rien" is outstanding, marvelous. The long introduction on the piano could be easily credited to some of the best acoustic stuff from Rick Wakeman. The other instruments seem to ask the most respectful excuse, very carefully, in order to enter on the composition. When the vocals come along the apotheosis is complete. Spectacular bass, and all the rest grows in intensity. Note 100/100.

The last track is very short, mainly structured around the accordion. It has a bit of a circus mood, and also a melancholic atmosphere.

I enjoy the whole album, and to me ir deserves a 4.1 rating.

DISTRICT 97 began life playing live around the city of Chicago in the 90's. A young band of players, playing all instrumental music in the LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT style. Before recording an album they decided that adding a vocalist would help them make more waves in the music world. And so enter American Idol finalist Leslie Hunt who gives them some exposure, while at the same time they change to a slightly more commercial sound. That commercial sound mostly comes from Leslie's singing, in fact if this was all instrumental it would be a Heavy Prog record, but with her singing Crossover.

I acknowledge that the lady can sing, I'm just not into her style or voice at times. I feel this way about the whole album really, as I find it very hit and miss. It wasn't a good sign when after my first listen I really did not want to play it again. And for me it's the vocals. And speaking of vocals we get John Wetton singing co-lead on the 10 minute "Perfect Young Man". Some guest violin as well on "Read Your Mind" which changes the sound quite a bit. They flirt with metal at times but also use a lot of piano. A nice heavy recording overall.

Metal comes to the fore on the opener "Back And Forth" with her rebel yell sort of speak and sound that I really like 3 minutes in and later at 8 minutes. This is probably my least favourite song when it comes to her vocals. Almost whiny but familiar as in commercial sounding. "Open our Eyes" is my second least favourite, so now you can see why I had such a hard time playing this one several times. The next track "The Actual Color" is better with the repeated themes, wordless vocals and intense opening.

I mentioned "The Perfect Young Man" earlier, and it doesn't even sound like Wetton, although I know he's a lot older here in 1997. I don't like her style of singing here. And while this track is excellent overall, I'm not all in. "Who cares?" is a good rocking number, but again the vocals after 2 minutes leave a lot to be desired. "Read Your Mind" has the violin and some heaviness in the metal realm 5 minutes in. The closer "The Thief" is the longest at almost 14 minutes. A ride as they say. And this might be their best song on here. The heaviness at times is impressive and that metal is lightly sprinkled throughout. It comes and goes. Synths lead very briefly 8 minutes in, and I swear I heard mandolin 2 1/2 minutes in.

A good album but less vocals and more keyboards would be awesome. I am happy to see that she continues to be the band's singer as they are now five studio albums in, with the latest from 2023.

This was a suggestion from a friend of mine who used to work at a record store. Although he played me a couple of songs from The Courage of Others, I ended up buying this one. I usually don't listen to this kind of music, but this is an album I keep spinning from time to time when I am in the mood for something atmospheric. The title-track that kicks the album off has some interesting orchestrations at the background, nice vocal melodies and an imposing atmosphere. Now it isn't far-fetched at all to say that this is pretty much the recipe for the entire album which doesn't exactly claim to be diverse and multi-facet. As a result, it depends on the inspiration they had on each song. Some are better, or, should I say some sound nicer to my ears than others not because they are differently crafted, but simply because their melodies appeal to me more. Consequently, side A flows better (where the instrumental Vale somehow differentiates from its mates and The Old and the Young is my absolute favourite). Then I'm not sure what happens, perhaps the music becomes too self-referential and wears me a bit out. Same tempo, same motifs, absolutely no surprises, they somehow play safe. Occasionaly I notice some interesting orchestrations way back in the mix like on Ages and to my taste they could be more audible like the violin on the reprise of Provider. The main goal of the band is to create atmosphere primarily with keyboard sounds and secondarily with electric and acoustic guitars. Mind you, melodic passages played by the guitar are nowhere here if you are fans of this.

All in all, it's not an album I regretted that I bought. Surely it doesn't rank among my favourite ones, but I when I want to zone out it is always among my choices.

"August in the Urals" is the debut full-length studio album by US progressive rock/jazz-rock/fusion act Deluge Grander. The album was released through the Emkog Records label in July 2006. Keyboard player/vocalist Dan Britton and drummer Patrick Gaffney formed the band after their former outfit Cerebus Effect disbanded in 2005. I don´t usually talk too much about cover artwork, but it´s interesting to note that Deluge Grander have opted to use the same detail of Thomas Cole's (1801-1848) painting "The Voyage of Life: Youth" as the cover for "August in the Urals" as the Swedish doom metal band Candlemass did on their third full-length studio album "Ancient Dreams" from 1988.

While Deluge Grander is in some ways a continuation of the progressive rock/jazz-rock/fusion style of Cerebus Effect, there are some differences. Deluge Grander for example don´t flirt with progressive metal and as a result "August in the Urals" is a less hard edged release than Cerebus Effect´s sole studio album "Acts Of Deception" (2005). The highly eclectic and everchanging nature of the music are features the two artists share though. Deluge Grander however appear a little more in sync, and their material a bit more mature.

Although the music occasionally features vocals (they are featured quite prominently on the title track and on "Abandoned Mansion Afternoon"), it´s predominantly instrumental, busy, and quite challenging in nature. The balance is pretty equal between the progressive rock leanings and the jazz-rock/fusion elements and Deluge Grander master both with seamless ease. There is indeed som high level musicianship on display here. That´s also needed when you compose tracks as long as Deluge Grander do on "August in the Urals". Just remembering tracks featuring as many different parts as the 26:57 minutes long album opener "Inaugural Bash" or the follow-up 15:52 minutes long title track is quite impressive. Playing the many different parts and understanding and delivering the right dynamics are interesting features too.

"August in the Urals" features a well sounding production job, which is both organic and sharp when it needs to be. Upon conclusion "August in the Urals" is a strong debut release from Deluge Grander. I do feel the compositions are sometimes a bit fragmented and maybe features too many different songwriting ideas, but if you´re interested in progressive rock music which changes a lot and which is performed by a cast of incredibly skilled musicians, "August in the Urals" isn´t the worst pick. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

The pivoting eclecticism on the latest Tim Bowness album is an underrated musical gift from 2024, a year full of surprises and excellent releases all throughout, and it is 'Powder Dry' that really stands out among "solo" albums as a very self-aware journey exhibiting not only the unique vocal style of Bowness but also his songwriting prowess as he is in control of the entire work. This has to be a semi-conceptual album that reflects a lot of current issues, including communication, love, and depression among other things, made up of sixteen short fragments in the form of musical ideas developed as vignettes that cover a tremendous array of genres and techniques, ultimately reflecting the instinctive interests of the creator. You will hear acoustic melancholic pieces as well as washes of synth-pop and electronica, among nuances of stomping and cold mechanical bruise with distorted guitars and spacious percussion.

This really is an expansive, career-defining work that is just formally informed by its predecessor 'Butterfly Mind', but it develops much more organically as the listener is bombarded with so many ideas and moods that 'Powder Dry' would require repeated listens in order to be fully understood. And with mixing works and creative advice from Steven Wilson, Bowness had created a post-No-Man piece of art that takes in all the different aspects of the author's musical identity and reproposes them in the form of almost impressionistic canvas of sounds - this is, of course, reflected by the vibrant artwork. Most pieces on here are around the two-minute mark, with just one song clocking in at five minutes. Among the more intriguing offerings you might discover the sturdy opener 'Rock Hudson', the joyous and emotive 'Summer Turned', the haunting 'Films of Our Youth', the cathartic title track, or even the acoustic 'This Way Now'. Fantastic stuff from start to finish; you can take bits and pieces of it out or you can listen to the whole thing all at once, it always works rather beautifully.

3.5 stars. ARBATEL were from Mexico releasing two studio albums in the 00's including this one called "Sumerios" their second from 2008. It was recorded at Decibel Vega Studios in 2007. While the debut had some guest vocals they add both a male and female singer this time out making them a six piece here. The female singers name is Rosario Maza Hernadez and she is the lead vocalist. And she may make or break this album for a lot of people. A soprano singer, but she also narrates, talks, shouts, you name it. Very entertaining but I'm not sold by a long shot.

There's a quote on the back cover from Gianni Leone from IL BALLETTO DI BRONZO but it's in Spanish. He does mention this album by name though so I'm sure it's simply a recommendation of the music. A lot of people mention RPI with this band. Perhaps it's the keyboards. There was guest violin on the debut but none here. The keyboards do dominate along with the upfront drumming. And no the production is far from perfect but acceptable. Lots of organ, synths and piano here. The bass is good, and I do like the drumming. Guitar is well done.

It's funny that almost all written reviews for both of their albums give 3.5 stars but click that 3 stars. We all like the music but there's issues. I looked forward to spinning this each time though but Rosario often brought me back down to earth. We get nine tracks worth over 43 minutes. My favourite being the 3 minute second track which perhaps just sounds so good because that opener leaves a lot to be desired. I mean it's good, but ethnic percussion and wordless female vocals lead the way until she narrates to end it. So then comes track two and that upfront bass before a full sound arrives along with wordless vocals. It's like the first half of it is repeated on the second half.

We get soprano female vocals on that third tune but she keeps it restrained. A surprising calm with piano around 3 1/2 minutes in. I say that because all before that is fast paced. "Marduk" is organ led and Jon Lord comes to mind for sure here. Active drumming and female vocals. Some nice guitar at 2 1/2 minutes.

"Base Espacial Ki" is the longest song at over 7 1/2 minutes. I like the samples but not her whispered words. The atmosphere that follows is cool. It kicks in around 3 /2 minutes with the organ leading. Male vocals(a rare thing) are countered by the female shouting and being dramatic. Kind of like Arlette from FULANO but Rosario is not in the same league, but then who is. She's straining here at times. Male and female are talking to each other on the next song before it turns instrumental.This is a good one. Some intensity, then a CAMEL vibe around 4 1/2 minutes.

I do like that closer but in the end this record is just too hit and miss to go 4 stars. But "Sumerios" has it's fans, check it out!

I had moderate expectations going into this one. I wasn't expecting to want to break the record 1/3 of the way into it. The music in here is abysmal. I don't care if its "prog" before its anything, it has to be good. No, I am getting ahead of myself. Before it is good, it has to at least not be bad. And Greenslade's debut sounds like music for kids who might or might not ride the short bus. Don't get swayed by the reviews here unless you delight in hearing music for kids TV shows. There is not one good or even an okay sounding track. Hopefully their other albums are better, but if this is the most acclaimed here...

— First review of this album —

Excessive is the collaboration of musicians attending the same school and the same vision with a love for complex progressive metal. From the first song, the band starts with a techno beat, but soon the heavy guitar riffs emerge. The raw and screaming style of the vocalist displayed in the second song reminds me of Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols. The music shows the band's influences, which are Dream Theater and Evergrey. They use many rhythm changes, some impressive synth passages, and heavy guitar riffs that sometimes reach the border of extreme metal. While there's no credit for a backing vocalist, I can hear some in places. The singer has, I said, screamed his heart out in a similar punk attitude. You are going to find some breathtaking moments that will surprise you. The songs are played in a typical fast-paced metal style except for a little breather with the song "Until the End." This is a recommended prog-metal album for a band that has some potential.

A really drab album! This is the sixth studio release by Robin Armstrong-headed progressive rock project Cosmograf and this also happens to be one of the releases on the heavier end of the Cosmograf spectrum. 'The Hay-Man Dreams' is melancholic and sorrowful act and is actually conceptually bound by the family story of a great-grandfather's passing, with the music reflecting the overall dark themes and explorations with a sound that is quite vintage, full of heavy, sweeping guitars and scorching mellotron cries, topped by the idiosyncratic vocals of Armstrong which are always recognizable and a significant part of the Cosmograf musical universe.

And while the retro measures of the album are there, structured as a six-track single LP, there are a few contemporary influences as well, meaning that amidst the Floyd-ian or pastoral 70s musings, you might as well catch glimpses of a Porcupine Tree or Thomas Thielen-reminiscent episodes. This is all good but somewhere along the lines the excitement wears thin, the tension that is usually omnipresent on other releases by Armstrong is a little dim on 'The Hay-Man Dreams' as the record meanders through some extended instrumental passages like on 'The Motorway' or the 12-minute title track. On the contrary, 'Cut the Corn' and 'Trouble in the Forest' successfully deliver just that tasteful piece of grim melancholia, with that soaring grip of the mastermind's vocals delivering the rather forlorn lyrics of the songs. This 2017 release is good, tight listen but I genuinely feel that there are stronger offerings in this discography.

'Eve' comes to be the fourth studio album by the Alan Parsons Project, a less exciting addition to the catalogue that is essentially a pop album with progressive influences. Gone are the days of classical crossover for the band and the playful, sometimes funky tunes of the previous two albums are also not to be found on here. But what do you expect from a concept album on women written and performed [mostly] by men? And with the loose conceptual side of the project's releases, one must acknowledge that 'Eve' is also a well-done album for what it is, an enjoyable, easy listen that might not captivate with the complexity of the textured sound but can rather make an impression upon the listener with the well-constructed pop/soft rock songs and the gorgeous melodies. Being an Alan Parsons Project album, 'Eve' is also a finely-produced work but also quite an imbalanced one - with the first side being overshadowed by the largely better songs on side two, including 'Damned if I Do', 'Secret Garden' and 'If I Could Change Your Mind'. 'Lucifer' is a great into, of course, and worthy of mention. I believe this album was never intended to be a creative apex and if you take it as a pop record that continues a thread began on 'I Robot', you might as well enjoy bits and pieces of it.