DWARVES & PENGUINS

CREA is a four-piece act hailed from Linkoping, Sweden. The line-up includes: Peter Gren (guitars, E-bow & lead singing), Nicke Bjerke (bass), Sonny Johansson (drums / percussion), Anders Karlsson (keyboards & b/ vocals). In early 2019 these collaborators present a debut CD 'Dwarves & Penguins' to demonstrate their own assimilation of various musical strains and show song-writing skills. Now I am just going to describe as many as I can. The set begins with adventurous track 'The Marsch Of Penguins' full of instrumental meanderings. In some respects, this spectacular jam is reminiscent of Gamalon (to my ears, at least). After such an attention- grabbing opener, the things switch into mellow 'Some Of Us' featuring characteristic neoprog atmosphere. Whilst the vocal delivery might be comparable with Martin Wilson (Grey Lady Down), the guitar passages share a kinship with elegance of Steve Rothery (Marillion). Besides, the keyboard courtesy, convincing bass and precise drums are prominent in the mix. (Noteworthy is a fact that this song was dedicated to late Hansi Cross, a respectful person on the Scandinavian prog-rock scene. His label became a launch pad for his own music, as well as for many other groups, including: Grand Stand, Brother Ape, Magic Pie, Adventure, Soniq Circus, Violent Silence, and the ilk). Oddly enough, the next cut 'Shattered Vision' has a musical structure evoking memories of the British new wave. The similarities to Duran Duran and OMD are detectable, but the common approach isn't a real carbon copy. The follower 'Second Thoughts' hangs close to Simple Minds territory. The diversity fest continues with 'Millenium' which segues into a ballad-like palette. Next up, stunning 'The Marsch Of The Dwarves' that displays the band's orchestral wealth. The gorgeous chapter 'Walk Into Bright Lights' sounds like it would be a lost GLD jewel. It perfectly combines the powerful aspects and the fragile elements. The entire album reaches its ending with 'Barbarossa', fluctuating from hypnotic echoes of Ontofield to soft melodicism a'la Tears For Fears. This composition twins and turns, staying intriguing all the way through. Yet again (as always before), delectable guitar performance is heard at the right places. To sum, I'd say that 'Dwarves & Penguins' is a good debut CD with plenty of interesting moments. Once you unpack and then actively listen for each component woven into the fabric of this offer, additional details appear and overall appreciation grows. So folks' Just take some time to discover another Swedish newcomer and appreciate their debut release. It may not be the most innovating work. But who cares, indeed?

It is rare to be sent an album which is so evocative of the neo-prog scene, something which has that genre absolutely nailed. So much so in fact, that the only names I could think of when trying to describe this was Grace, Galahad, Citizen Cain with elements of IQ. I was blown away to discover this band are Swedish as this is exactly what I was listening to some 25 years ago when the scene was booming in the UK (I know it didn't really, but it felt exciting at the time). It is an album which would have been released by Cyclops or SI Music, far too rock to have made it onto Musea, yet here we are in 2019 who have put it out on their own label. This is a quartet, with singer Peter Gren also providing guitar and e-bow, and he is joined by Anders Karlsson (keyboards, vocals), Nicke Bjerke (bass) and Sonny Johansson (drums, percussion, vocals).

While progressive rock is often sneered at by people who don't enjoy it, with the prog scene itself there appears to be a special circle of hell reserved for those who play this sub-genre. I've never understood the mentality, as I try to treat music fairly on its own merits no matter the genre, but I know that unfortunately there will be many progheads who won't even listen to this as they don't deem it worthy of their time, but take it from me they are the ones missing out. This is catchy, with good interplay between all the band, who are also prepared to have lengthier instrumental passages when they wish to. I am also very much a fan of Peter's voice, which combines elements of Mac Austin with Roger Chapman and Cyrus, and he also brings in multiple different styles to his playing while the rest of the guys are no slouches either, and a special mention should be made of the bass playing in 'Millennium' which sometimes is towards the rear and sometimes much to the fore but is always interesting and vibrant.

This is a really interesting incredibly solid debut album, and one I have enjoyed playing immensely and I am sure many other fans of the genre will feel the same. Well worth investigating.

3.5/5