THE LEAP

Very good, very interesting and diverse Neo Prog from Ukrainian veteran. I hear Keith Emerson, Pendragon, Andy Didorenko, and many classic and classy Neo Prog hooks and tricks in this music. Victor is definitely a gifted composer and engineer--the sound mixing (and choice of instrumental palettes) are always a notch above average or classic Neo Prog. Emerson keys, fretless Jeff Berlin-like bass, solid somewhat-Bruford/Alan White-like drums; and Allan Holdsworth-like electric guitar with vocals all over the place.

1. "Once Again" (5:15) nice catchy pop-prog. The instrumental parts are interesting and refreshing. The nasal vocal tone needs some getting used to. (8/10)

2. "2020. Hopes and Alarms" (3:39) A top three song for me. (9.5/10)

3. "Last Hope" (6:54) excellent prog song with a slightly dated keyboard sound palette. Once the vocals enter I find myself reminded of some of JON ANDERSON's solo material as well as a lot of JOHANNES LULEY's projects. (13/15)

4. "Pilot. Dream" (3:30) slow building atmospheric instrumental--until the dance hall rhythm tracks of the third minute. Interesting and fresh! (9/10)

5. "Tension" (6:39) piano-bouncing classic rock foundation given a barrage of proggy incidentals. Vocal is like one of THE PSYCHEDELIC ENSEMBLE's poorer ones. (8.5/10)

6. "Pilot. Conceit" (2:49) a jazzier, almost ADIEMUS/World Beat take on the "pilot" themes. Cool! (8.75/10)

7. "Flywheel" (6:27) A tension-filled, top-notch Neo Prog song and one of my top three. Victor's best vocal tracks on the album. (9.25/10)

8. "Pilot. Anticipation" (4:24) very cinematic. Good. ALAN PARSONS PROJECT/TONY PATTERSON-like. (8.75/10)

9. "2020. Move On" (8:37) what if Keith Emerson played with BRUFORD instead of Dave Stewart? This is what we might have gotten. 80s YES/ASIA-ish bombast for the second half. Such an amazing imitation! Also reminded of JON ANDERSON/TREVOR RABIN-era YES. (18.5/20)

10. "Pilot. Triumph" (3:09) a little hokey in its Broadway pit-orchestra imitation, yet competently executed. Unfortunately, the vocal takes away a little. (8.25/10)

11. "Everlasting Quest" (Bonus Track) (6:00) electronica? Kind of. If you combined 1978 jazz fusion with Klaus Schulze, this might've been what you got. Interesting, to be sure. (8.75/10)

Total Time 57:58

Victor Go has the unusual talent of being able to successfully forge multiple familiar musical styles and instrumental styles into interesting and engaging songs. Very well worth your while to check out for yourselves--especially if you like solving musical puzzles/games (e.g. "Where have I heard that before?") My suggestion to Victor: experiment with guest vocalists to sing your songs; you might find it adds new life, new dimensions to your music.

B+/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of progressive rock music.