IMPERMANENCE

English newbie progger DOMINIC SANDERSON is a fine example of a younger crowd of a new generation finding great inspiration in the prog legacies of the past not to mention some of the newer kids on the block. While prog artists are a dime a dozen these days with many excellent albums coming out monthly, it's always a pleasant surprise to hear a twenty-something musician release something so haunting and captivating, something that echoes the past while sounding perfectly grounded in the contemporary world of high tech production and interesting deviations from the established paradigms.

IMPERMANENCE is SANDERSON's debut release and like the title implies features an eclectic array of sounds and styles to back it up. While clearly steeped in the prog 70s retro scene, SANDERSON has borrowed many tones and textures from bands like Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Yes, Marillion along with the newer retro players in the form of Anglagard, Antekdoten and Porcupine Tree only there's no accusing him of being a carbon copy of any of the aforementioned prog bigwigs but rather SANDERSON displays a firm command of tackling this visionary fusion into a bonafide cauldron of 21st century prog splendor.

The album is a journey through many shapeshifting moods and head spaces. "I Don't Think I Can Get Over This After All" starts it all in a folk inspired melancholy which mistakenly leads one to believe that the album is going to be a total mellow slow burner but in no time the darkness descends with a lugubrious piano run and fluttering flutes with totally different melodic counterpoints overshadowing the primary vocal hooks. It's at this point where it's obvious Steven Wilson and his Porcupine Tree projects were a key player in the inspiration department but wait! There's more!

While the opening track was somewhat of a tone setter, "The Twisted Hand of Fate" makes it clear that SANDERSON is no one trick pony and immediately morphs into a more guitar based King Crimson "Red" era style only just a smidge shy of an energetic display that would qualify as prog metal. The nebulous twists and turns of quite and louder passages with nice contrapuntal excesses gets my interest immediately despite a rather sleepy intro track. "This Night and the Wounds It Will Bring" seems to take us into a sort of early Wobbler sound as it meanders around in a spaced out Pink Floyd rock sound only with extra helpings of symphonic keyboard heft. "Is There Calm Amongst This Chaos?" picks up the speed big time with some extra chunky riffs that at this pint clearly do reach the thundering bravado of fully fueled prog metal only laced with brutal prog time signature punches but cedes to a mellower downer sound.

"An Empty Room" is basically an orchestrated classical guitar piece followed by " A False Sense of Promise" which is really nothing more than a continuation. Here we get more Floydian references in Porcupine Tree mode which sustain the entire near five minutes of playing time. The best of the album is saved for last with the closing near 20-minute sprawler "Like Shards of Glass Falling Through My Fingers" which borrows heavily from the classic Yes area only tinged with jazz-chord excursions, mopey vocal performances and proggier than thous excesses which in my case is a true plus. The beauty of this grand finale is the nice controlled meandering through all ki nds of familiar prog turf only on SANDERSON's own terms.

Excellent beginning however if i had to complain about something it would be that there is way too much mellow spaced out time and not enough rocking parts for my own tastes but if you accept the album on its own terms then there is no doubt that this debut was a work of passion as there are really no bad moments on this album however like many modern prog acts perhaps a bit too much time spent worshipping the past rather than on innovative modern interpretations. Still a solid 4 stars.