NOW AND THEN

This album originally came out in 1979 (actually on december 31!) on the Baal Label with only 300 pressings (with a different cover depicting the band standing with a crying moai). Of those 300 pressings 100 were collector's edition (as if it already wasn't) with a gold moai's tear. Anyway this is an LP collector dream, but later the same Miceli made a CD reissue in 1991 and changed its name to Now And Then. The first and last tracks are not on the original album (well, Wanderer's Lament seems to be a remixing of a part of the original Face To Face intro). Going straight to the music, I think this album is a mixed bag. While it has its top moments, some are dull and boring (especially on The Alchemist Suite). The album begins with Face To Face, a hard piece whose only part I really like is the ending. Genius Of The Dance (what is this song about?) has a definite Yes flavour all over it, I was reminded a lot of The Revealing Science Of God. Solar Sailor gets more to serious business, it is way more complex than the last 2, but still nothing impressive, oh, and the chorus vocals have this falsetto-like dramatic touch, it is horrible. Winds Of Time might be the best song of the album, pure instrumental prog KB mayhem (except for short vocals at the end), it is outstanding really! Side 2 has The Alchemist Suite, which I don't enjoy a lot neither, Prelude is just an useless intro, Life Celebration has again an awesome ending with lots of synths. Telesterion is boring and dumb for me, just percussion along with soft synths. Resurrection gets a little better but still not a worthy ending (I would have put Life Celebration as the last part). The last song (that isn't a bonus track) is Summerland, it is not that bad, vocals seems to get better but it has this popish feeling that causes me trouble. For what I had been told about this album, I certainly was hoping for something better, still many call this a masterpiece and even Greg Walker ranks it as one of the greatest prog albums ever made (Greg's tastes are a bit strange sometimes with US bands, he even calls Quill's Sursum Corda as one of the top 5 american prog records, *fail*), still a worthy discovery for advanced prog fans. I'm rounding this to 3 stars because of its interesting rarity and in memory of Mark Hendricks (drums) and Ray Vogel (keys), who apparently passed away before the 1999 comeback with Mother Sun.