LOST SYMPHONY

I must be missing something. This is pleasant enough but hardly compares to the seismic shift that the arrival of "Tubular Bells" created. There is nothing here that couldn't be heard at any time in garden centres all over the UK = new age music to soothe the phalanxes of frenzied pensioners armed with fearsome elbows, all in search of that elusive marigold. No real symphonic touches, with the near 20 minute "Symphony of Sound", especially, proving to be more like the Symphony of Relentless Tedium. This said, "Sylph" and "Daydream" hold together nicely in the middle of the work, and there is a quite haunting (and, sadly, very brief) slice of organ music on "Orgaria (Scene 2), but the noodles and doodles elsewhere are not compelling. A (wholly unlikely) "Best of" compilation of Karfagen's output to date (including "Amused fair" and "Silent anger") might result in a half-decent amount of music to listen to as dusk gathers, but this offering alone doesn't do enough to stand on its own two feet.