WHOSE DREAM?

Bun Chakeze is a talented quintet and I quite enjoyed their album, Whose Dream. By far the best aspect for me are the various guitar textures throughout- so many great tones and so many well-chosen notes. But great guitar-playing goes nowhere without a good rhythm section and other musicians to fill out the sound. However, this band goes above and beyond adequate background music. These gentlemen sound like they work well together, able to provide solid progressive music while allowing each member to shine in his time. The vocalist sounds like John Elefante of Kansas in the 1980s, which some might consider a failing, but I certainly don't. While Crossover is an apt genre label, Bun Chakeze possesses quite a few elements of both classic and modern neo-prog.

"Bun Chakeze" That opening instrumental, though brief, offers fresh and exciting music. I love the bursts of bass and guitar. It has Hispanic flavors and dynamic flourishes that warp me into Yes's Relayer.

"Whose Dream" The title track is a gentler song with ethereally masculine vocals- the initial frostiness of the track makes me think of Camel. The screaming guitar that enters is brilliant.

"Walk in Paradise" Bluesy synthesizer opens "Walk in Paradise," which leaps into more skillful guitar bits. I'm not crazy about the wild vocal explosions, but soon the music moves into a more pleasing, R.E.M.-like passage. The instrumental work consists of interplay between light piano and electric guitar- very nice.

"Handful of Rice" In "Handful of Rice," I hear a fusion of Genesis, Renaissance, and Van der Graaf Generator- somewhat theatrical, mysterious, and enticing. However, the Hispanic-sounding electric guitar runs and percussion sets it apart from all three of these bands.

"Flight of the Phoenix" Lovely acoustic guitar greets the listener in "Flight of the Phoenix." The piece gains some intensity as the rest of the band enters, and once again the lead guitar is amazing- the instrumental excursion here is like Pink Floyd on their best day. My only gripe with this song is the abruptly weak ending.

"Midnight Skies" "Midnight Skies" is a moderate song with both clean and gritty electric guitars, again evoking latter-day Pink Floyd in a number of ways.

"Long Distance Runner" This is one of those strange cases where everybody individually seems to be doing everything right, but as a whole, it just doesn't grab my attention. Sure it is a pleasant piece, but it doesn't go anywhere particularly exciting- an average song that reminds me of early Marillion during the latter half.

"The Deal" "The Deal" is the darkest piece on the album, sounding like a cross between something that belongs on Pink Floyd's The Wall (particularly with that "Run Like Hell" rhythm guitar chugging and shimmering along).

"Bun Chakeze (reprise instrumental)" The album closes with an instrumental reprise of the title track, and features riveting guitar once again.