ONE

I was both surprised and pleased to see this band added to PA because I know them for several months now and was actually a bit frustrated because they were not on our site so I couldn't review this excellent album. First time I heard the album I was blown away really to here such a high talented band I never heard of before. That was on itself not strange because this is their only album so far and it's from last year so that explains. In fact I'm also surprised the teams decided to place them in the symphonic subgenre because this is more right in between prog metal and heavy prog with just some neo/symph leanings. Never mind, the most important thing is they are included now.

The album starts with a cracking opening song In this Life which is a proof of my statement about subgenres. This is extremely melodic prog with lots of heavy elements but also many quiet moments. These moments have that special feel that only Polish bands can produce it seems: piano, synthesizer and strings doing a great job here but also electric guitar and the other usual instruments are top of the bill. 4,5*.

Second short track is more of an interlude with a theme (acoustic guitar) that will keep coming back throughout the album. This time it's called Rain which is ambient when you listen. 3,75*.

Ready to Live is even much more prog metal than the opening song with prominent heavy guitar setting the tone for this second captivating song. It's amazing how naturally these guys succeed in combining the heavy stuff with quiet moments, sheer genius. Amazing guitar solo around 6:00 by the way. 4,75*.

Sunrise is the second interlude and is more of a song than Rain, though almost equally short. Lovely acoustic guitar. 4*.

Home is more of the huge level of first and third song, this time with keyboards in the front line. Another brilliant track with lots of variation, just slightly less than the other two. 4,25*

Farewell Tears is the 3rd short one, like I said all with the same recognizable little theme. Footsteps through pebbles accompany the track. 3,75*.

Nobody's Dream is the song where the band proves the other near masterpiece tracks were no coincidence. Beautiful piano opens the track followed by sensitive vocals. After two minutes the first terrific guitar solo sets in. Then the vocals return followed by an atmospheric key passage halfway. This seems like a small set back but in fact it's meant as build up for a grand finale of this song: several instruments alternate before the superb electric guitar rounds things of. Last four minutes of this masterpiece track are simply amazing. This one is probably the best of them all, even slightly better than Ready to Live. 4,75%.

Somewhere Between is the least of the longer songs ruining the last bit of chance for the maximal rating. But that's also because the rest is tremendous. Still there's some great acoustic guitar and piano to enjoy. It's more like the ballad of the album you might say. 3,5*.

So I already gave away my final rating there, it will have to be 4 stars although I was tempted to give 5 really. Therefore I wouldn't hesitate if I were you. If you like a superbly melodic band that made an album that is right in the middle of the 4 subgenres I mentioned (prog metal 40%, neo prog 25%, heavy prog 25% and symphonic prog 10%) I'd say go for this one. 4,5* is the right score.

Excellent debut by this new band from Polland. Their sound is basicly classic symphonic sound of the 70´s with some wonderful retro keuboards with many elements found iin other neo prog groups (like dramatic and convincing vocals and emotional and melodic guitars solos). Mindfields shows they are not only terrific musicians, but also quite mature songwriters. Even if the CD is a bit too short for my taste, what they deliver is pure gold (probably with the exception of the last track, which is good, but could be better).

One consists of five ´proper´ songs, plues 3 small acoustic tracks that work as interludes linking one theme with the other. Production here is top notch and the mixing is very good. Musically they sound like no one else really, and still they belong from a tradition of other great polish prog bands: you can hear echoes of Collage, Satellite and Quidam, as well as hints from classic bands like Yes, Genesis, Marillion and, specially, Pink Floyd. There are also some more modern influences here and there, like the almost progmetal riffs of Learning To Live. The arrangements are tasteful, the playing is solid.

My personal favorite is the powerful Nobody´s Dream: great slow start with grand piano and vocals that builds up through its 11 minutes until it explodes with one of the most beautiful and moving guitar solos I´ve ever heard in a long, long time. This song alone is worth the price of the CD. Fortunaltly there is a lot more. The opener In This Life is another terrific epic that wil please both symphonic and neo prog lovers. The only fault I can find in this entire CD is the fact that, at 49 minutes, it ends too fast. I just can´t have enough of it.

Conclusion: one of the best debut albums I heard from any band, past of present. Very strong stuff that promises a great future for these polish guys. Final rating: 4,5 stars.

Highly recommended! .

Mindfields were a Polish five-piece who recorded just the one album back in 2007, and then no more. Well, that's not exactly true as drummer Tomasz Paśko (who also provided the lyrics, which are all in English) has a day job in the wonderful Milennium, while guitarist Marcin Kruczek is in Moonrise, and he and keyboard player Rafał 'Karmel' Muszyński provided the music. The line-up is completed by bassist Wojtek Famielec (later in Redemptor and Disperse) and singer Rafał Gołąbowski. So, was this ever meant to be more than a one-album project? Hard to tell this far down the track, but what they have left behind is an album that is certainly worth searching out for those who enjoy great songs, heavily influenced by the likes of Camel and Alan Parsons Project.

Like those bands, this album contains music that has plenty of space within it, and a lightness that combines with melodic, almost pop, sensibilities. Although the rhythm section has an important part to play, the ear is drawn mostly to the deftness of touch displayed by Marcin. This guy can play, really play, but this is far more than just shredding, it is all about playing exactly the right notes in the right style to create the impact. Rafał also has a wonderful touch, and this is clear when he is playing piano as opposed to keyboards. This is a multi-layered sound, music that is both timeless and ageless, and although the vocals have their part to play, and are sung in a delicate manner, I found myself happier when listening to the lengthy instrumental passages. Ideas are bounced between the two main protagonists, and when the time is right then the guitar crunches hard, but that is just to provide the counterpoint to the next delicate passage. Five proper songs, with three vignettes (one of which, 'Sunrise', is a beautiful demonstration of what is so good about acoustic classic guitars), there is a great deal depth, a wonderful world to be discovered.

This is a beautiful album in just so many ways, and now that ten years has gone past possible the time is right to do another? Please?