SOLAR POWER

Big Cinema Music

I have listened to the new album of LWB whole this week, and I got the idea that this album is like a cinema sound track; strings and lead violin surround you and make you feel like you are in a big theatre watching a big drama. It starts with The Voyage of which track title fits the music very well. This is really like very impressive music of a screen play. Imaginative. Also, the album goes as a total concept one, which takes you to a screen world. As a prog rock fan, I like some King Crimson tastes you can hear in tracks like Solar Power, but also as a pop rock fan, I like the gentle guitar and voice with beautiful melody in Nothing. Not to forget, the artwork of this new album is much better for me than the previous album. I am sure I can enjoy the music for a long time.

Believe in me or not, ten years passed after their first release and the Russian band LOST WORLD, remains at the top of crossover progressive-rock bands, and beside this... they continue evolving. At this time, which call me more attention have been a "narrowing" between the classical/world- music/progressive style of L W with a more heavy prog passages. But this more heavy-prog or hard- prog passages have moved for beyond the influences from bands like KANSAS, and this affirmation is easy to observe in some tracks, as for instance in the track 7 "Run That By Me Again" (starting 0:46 sec ) which presents a riff very similar with DEEP PURPLE'S "Space Truckin' " . Other significant new "increment" are the Fripp's guitar style that I could observe in track 4 "Detached" and track "Tongues of Flame I" but not a plagiarism, only a similarity. The disk is full of energetic moments blended with soft melodies, like track 2 "Metamorphoses" and track 6 "Facing the Rain". My rate is 4 stars with enthusiasm !!!

This long-played studio album is the fourth one by LOST WORLD BAND. In general, the style of music is the same. It is the symphonic prog with leading violin which is the original mix between KING CRIMSON, AFTER CRYING, KANSAS, neoclassical music (especially Shostakovich), something similar to 'cinema music', and also the unclassifiable one. The professional level is very high, and the violin player is the virtuoso. The album can be listened to both in detail and as a background. Unlike two previous studio albums this one is not purely instrumental. The tracks with vocals are very good. The mellow voice excellently fits with the music. It is difficult to find the highlights here. I think that the best tracks are 'Metamorphoses' with excellent vocal melody and its follow-up title track ('Solar Power') with energetic themes and its development. The non-stopped 'combination' of these two tracks is very good. Perhaps, this album lacks 'catching' moments, the disc is too much 'uniform' and 'flat' unlike (the very first) 'Trajectories' album which was full of inspiration and the breath-taking beauty (I think that it is really the best album by LOST WORLD BAND). Sometimes this music can be described only as the 'background' one. Besides, possibly, some tracks are overloaded by 'prog clich' like tempo/measures changes and use of dissonances. In general, this album is very good addition to any prog rock music collection.

3.5/5

I first came across these guys somewhere around the time of the release of their official debut album, and it is quite hard to realise that 'Trajectories' came out some ten years ago while the original three members Vassili Soloviev, Andy Didorenko and Aleksander Akimov met more than 20 years ago at a music conservatory in Moscow. Over the years there have been a few line-up changes and since 2009's 'Sources' they have become a trio with Andy Didorenko taking on even more responsibility (violins, guitars, bass, keyboard, vocal as well as providing all of the songs) while Vassili Soloviev is still there on flute with new member Konstantin Shtirlitz on drums. The biggest problem with this album is working out how best to describe it, as while I could list influences (King Crimson, Miles Davis, Kansas, After Crying, KBB plus many more) it just doesn't do justice to what is a wonderful collection of music.

There are times when the music is in perfect harmony, at others in imperfect dischord, yet at all times making perfect musical sense and daring the listener to sit down and concentrate on something that is a perfect meld of prog rock and jazz while being beholden to neither, and instead creates something that is quite different. The classical training and influences also come through at times, with a resulting mix and morass that is multi-layered and complex yet is also easy to work through. If one sometimes feels that a song or album is just like a snack, over way too quickly and being okay but not really filling, then take it from me that this is a feast. If you are musically adventurous and want something to get your teeth into then this is it. www.lostworldband.com

Russian constellation LOST WORLD BAND, previously known as Lost World, has been around in one form or another since 1990, making their official debut as recording artists back in 2003. A total of 4 studio albums and one live production have been released by this band as of the time of writing, and "Solar Power" from 2013 is their most recent one.

The fourth studio album by this fine Russian band is an impressive one too. Extremely hard to categorize, and featuring short, tight compositions sporting enough alterations, shifts and thematic developments to keep even the very attentive listener busy for quite some time just trying to follow events. Keeping track of them as well a task I'll just note down as challenging. Not that this is a chaotic album by any means, as all the songs flow nicely and logically through the myriads of changes, alterations and revisits of previously explored themes and arrangements. It's just that there's quite a lot going on here.

There's often a folk music sheen to the proceedings here. The violin used extensively throughout, with occasional flute details adding a certain emphasis to this aspect. Occasionally with the band more or less briefly taking on a sound that invites to namedropping Jethro Tull as a likely influence. Metamorphoses a nice example of just that, once the initial movement shifts. At other times there's more of a Floydian tinge to the proceedings, and King Crimson can probably be added to the stew of not unlikely influences. Gnarly dark toned guitar riff constructions dueling with violin is another aspect of this bands repertoire, and fans of jazzrock and fusion is thrown the occasional bone as well. All of this subtly flavored with electronic effects, and with build ups to more or less majestic symphonic escapades as a central, recurring feature in just about all the compositions.

It'll take plenty of listen throughs before this album sits in your mind, as there's quite a lot going on here. As I experience this disc I'd say that it will take something of an eclectic taste in music to be able to fully enjoy this one, and most likely a taste for music somewhat unconventional as well. But if you can subscribe to such descriptions, "Solar Power" is an album that should be a rewarding and enticing experience for you.

A talented group of musicians whose songs can be quite proggy and sophisticated but often tend toward simple and syrupy--especially when vocals are involved. For example, while the opening song, an instrumental entitled "The Voyage" (5:58) (9/10) remains polished and sophisticated--very much an eclectic- or fusion-type of prog song--very much like a FROM.UZ or KOTEBEL song--the second song, "Metamorphoses" (3:42) (7/10) revolves around a very simple (and strangely recorded/effected) vocal with some very simply constructed support music--until the ending instrumental jam. Also, there is something about the recording/engineering of Lost World Band's albums that seems to feel unpolished or home-made. For example--especially around the mix of the differently effected individual instruments. (I find myself especially bothered by the recording effects used for the vocals and the internally microphoned 'acoustic' guitars.) This could be a masterpiece of progressive rock music were it not for a few recording and qualitative inconsistencies. Granted, these may be entirely personal, but I'm wondering if others will find such poppy songs as "Facing The Rain" (3:56) (7/10), "Nothing" (3:13) (8/10) and "Your Name" (4:04) (6/10) a bit too cheezy and less than up to the standards of the other instrumental songs.

Favorite songs: the Fripp-sounding guitar and 70s RETURN TO FOREVER-sounding, "Detached" (3:42) (except for the 'acoustic' guitar) (9/10); the COPELAND-ish "At The Waterfront" (3:09) (9/10) with its excellent interplay between violin and piano; "The Voyage," and; "Swept Off" (4:35) (8/10).

A 3.5 star effort rated up for the excellent instrumental work--especially violin and keyboards.