LAND OF GREEN AND GOLD

Antony Kalugin has released another studio album which, as often happens with other artists who release new releases very often, has led to an unfortunate - at least for me - tendency to repeat itself. If we review his discography both in his solo project and in his band Karfagen, we realize that he has released about eight albums in the last four years. This incredible musical activity has been accompanied by a desire not to leave his comfort zone, in addition to the fact that his latest works no longer have the same creative force as, in my opinion, his best albums: "Echoes from Within Dragon Island" ( 2019) and "Birds of Passage" (2020).

"Land of Green and Gold" is another work that features guitar and keyboards, apparently without much creative input from the other band members, which makes this sound like another one of his solo projects. There is also the nostalgic jazz atmosphere that we are used to and the influences of bands like "Camel" and "The Flower Kings". Perhaps the real problem is that the album lacks memorable moments (there are some good moments on tracks 2 and 7, but the rest is reduced to "pretty melodies") that motivate future listeners.

Perhaps in future works Antony seeks to renew his sound, or perhaps he will continue releasing the same album year after year. The truth is that every time I find his music less interesting.