HORA NATA

An undistinguished mid 70s symphonic progressive album with some fusion slants. The only unusual aspect is that the band is from Belgium. I hear influences from Nektar, Yes, Genesis, and even snippets of Camel/Focus and Moody Blues especially in the shorter bonus tracks, but this is a pretty longwinded work of generally poorly composed and arranged tracks that happen to be well played, if that makes any sense. Influence and skill do not equal inspiration, and in fact they can cause bands like Banzai to overreach. Because the bonus material consists of shorter less indulgent songs, they are almost better than the original album. From the initial release, the best is "Try", which sounds the most Nektar like. But unless you are a collector of continental symphonic prog, and you don't think Machiavel is worthy enough to represent Belgium, you can steer clear in good conscience.