CRY OF DERELICTION VOL. I

A project coming from the city of Asker in Norway, started in 2002 by singer/guitarist Dino Steffens and ending up to be a multi-national ensemble.And that's because he was joined by ex-White Willow Tirill Mohn on violin/percussion/guitar and Malayisian keyboardist Liew Ceng Teng to complete the original crew of Autumn Whispers.Their debut ''Cry of dereliction vol. I'' from 2012 shows an even more expanded line-up with Greeks Theodoros Kouelis and Vangelis Kalamaras on bass and drums respectively, Nils Einar Vinjor on guitar, Nick Jones on drums, Sigrun Eng on cello and Aleksander Koefoed on bass.It was released independently both on CD and digital format.

Autumn Whispers is actually the perfect name for the group.The melancholic and dreamy mood throughout this effort recalls the most depressive season of the year, while the sound is very whispering indeed: Mellow, laid-back and ethereal.With clean and expressive vocals and soft instrumentation, ''Cry of dereliction vol. I'' is pretty close to WHITE WILLOW's smoother musicianship, while Steffens cites British 70's Prog among his influences.And yes, touches from early KING CRIMSON and more Folk-centered acts such as PENTANGLE or FAIRPORT CONVENTION are particularly present in each track.What this album lacks is sufficient compentency and sheer dynamics, as it is mostly built around soft keyboard lines and pastoral acoustic guitars with strong psychedelic nuances and little similarity with the originality of the genuine Prog movement.Folky violins, traditional percussion and lots of acoustic textures are colored with light organ and Mellotron flourishes to offer soundscapes, which are pleasant to the ear and will satisfy fans of light Art Rock with a strong 60's influence.The long title-track contains a nice combination of Acid/Folk with jamming Prog/Psych and interesting electric guitars/keyboards along with a very spacey atmosphere towards the end.The rest of the album is dominated by acoustic instrumentation, swirling between melodic vocal tunes and rural, instrumental landscapes with scarce exceptions.

Decent album, that has nothing new to add to the scene of retro-inspired Art Rock.Pleasant, very relaxing listening with rare exceptional parts.Recommended mainly to fans of early-70's Psych/Folk Rock groups...2.5 stars.