BLACK GARDEN

After six years , with a new guitarist(Karl Johnson) and a new vocalist (Josh Gleason) the K2 are back with a new studio album called Black Garden. For those who are interested(I rarely listen to the lyrics these days) , apparently this is a concept album about ancient Oceania and the journey of ancient Polynesians. The music is kind of 70's prog with traces of Genesis, Yes, ELP and whatever... but sounds fresh and original enough. The opening track "Black Garden" is also the best in my opinion. Seven melodic tracks out which six are six to eleven minutes long, filled with great vocals, soaring keyboards,and superb guitars. The problem is with the slower songs which fail to hold your atention until the end. 3.5 stars rounded down to 3, because it's less good than some 4stars albums released this year.