AS FAR AS THE EYE CAN SEE

Wow! More great music from 2011 yet revealed! This is part great neo-prog, part theatric rock opera (reminds me of a very, very toned down kind of UNEXPECT, if you can envision that), part eclectic-world music. What this is not is boring music: the myriad tempo and mood changes are so unexpected and out-of-the-blue as to always keep me interested--kind of like From.UZ or The Mars Volta. Plus, there are many interesting musical instrument choices (though, in this age of computer programmed composition one can never know what is authentic and what is played on keyboard--and Kalugin is, after all, a master keyboard artist). Favorite songs include: "Ring of Eternity" (9/10), "Stars of Cardiff Bay" (8/10), and the title song (8/10). Though Kalugin's vocal stylings are eerily similar to both COLLAGE/BELIEVE's Tomek Rozycki and TFK/TRANSATLANTIC's Roine Stolt, there are many other co-vocalists who add quite a bit of spice to each song. Another great release from 2011, The Year of Prog! Highly recommended.