FOR KING AND COUNTRY

Rob Reed proves himself a capable multi-instrumentalist on the debut album by Cyan, which has a neo-prog sound reminiscent both of classic bands in the genre - a bit of Jadis, a smattering of The Lens, and a healthy dose of Jewel-era Pendragon - as well as those artists who had a key influence on the formative years of the neo-prog movement. (In particular, some passages of the album remind me of a significantly more keyboard-focused version of Steve Hackett's sound, circa Spectral Mornings or Defector). Not surprising, when you consider a lot of the material on here is rerecorded from a demo tape originally put out in 1984!

Reed isn't quite equally capable on all instruments - his drumming is acceptable but not special, whilst his vocals really aren't great and probably constitute the greatest weakness in this release, with the vocal passages inevitably letting the album down. That said, he's an adept enough guitarist to slip in some nice solos here and there and his keyboard playing on the album is excellent; usually, it is the keyboards that save the instrumental passages. It took a few listens for this one to win me over but on the whole I think it's a decent debut, though ultimately not a top tier release even in the context of Reed's own discography, let alone the wider prog scene. Recommended for hardcore fans of both the early 80s neo-prog scene and of Magenta, who of course are in many respects the successor band to Cyan.