THE WINGS OF REVELATION

The first thing I should mention is that Janos Varga was the lead guitarist for the Hungarian band EAST, a band that i'm quite fond of. I had heard some really positive things about the two albums he put out under the name JANOS VARGA PROJECT,which really is Janos going solo. He has brought along former EAST drummer Istvan Kiraly who absolutely shines on this record. Also there is a keyboard / piano player named Zoltan Lengyel. Janos plays keys as well and composed and arranged all the songs. There are some nice pictures of Janos and Istvan in the liner notes with these words: "This music is a step into a world where fantasies fly high and nothing can stop the wings of revelation, where past meets present". The surprising thing for me about this album is how prominant the synths and keys are throughout. The music here is often spacey and dreamy with outbursts of guitar. Janos certainly doesn't hog the spotlight. This is melodic,uplifting and soaring instrumental music that is a pleasure to listen to. It made my day to see that this band had been recently added.

The first track "I Must Be Going" is an almost 20 minute song that is broken into 6 parts. It begins with "I Must Be Going" as we are taken away by waves of sounds gently breaking over and over as guitar and synth sounds are heard. Light drums and heavenly sounding guitar melodies arrive 1 1/2 minutes in.The guitar melodies become more passionate. Incredible. Synths replace the guitar after 3 1/2 minutes. Very PINK FLOYD-like 5 minutes in until it ends with more waves of sound. "Flight Of Mind" is a drum led track with outbursts of guitar and synths as they trade solos. Very cool. Check out the drumming though 1 1/2 minutes in. Heaviness follows with more great drumming. "Prayer" is a short one minte section where the guitar simply soars with spacey background synths. "The Joy Of Starting" is a catchy drum led tune with synths. Guitar 2 minutes in comes and goes. "Mysterious Stars" brings us back to the slower paced, spacey climate of earlier. Bass and synths provide a relaxing mood as guitar is added. "Welcome To The Jungle" is a fitting climax to this suite. The same melody from previous song blends into this one except we get this guitar that wails over top and it's all so much more emotional and passionate. Amazing sound as Janos offers up some blistering melodies on his guitar.

"Matching Souls" is such a bright,uplifting track. This one features some piano with prominant drums. Synths 2 minutes in. The guitar is fantastic after 4 minutes. "Sunrise is an apt title to this one as it features some " beautiful, intricate guitar to open. The guitar changes in tone and style before a minute as it soars as drums come in. Gorgeous. Synths after 3 minutes. An exhilarating tune to say the least. "Hard Life" has more heavy drums with synths as the guitar really winds out. A change in the mood 2 minutes in as the pace picks up and synths replace the guitar. Guitar is back before it ends though. "All I Can Give" is my favourite song on here. Like the first song this one has a spacey, atmospheric intro before piano, keys and bass gently arrive. The synths wash in the background. The second half of the song feature the most beautiful, Gilmour-like, soaring guitar melodies. Talk about drifting away in the music. Very moving. The final song is "The Wings Of Revelation". It opens ominously before drums come in before 1 1/2 minutes. And they sound great as usual as they lead the way. Synths after 2 minutes. Guitar 3 minutes in is raw sounding. Nice. Synths replace the guitar after 4 1/2 minutes. The raw sounding guitar is back ripping it up as drums pound relentlessly. The song ends ominously, just like it began.

This is a solid 4 star record that I recommend wholeheartedly.