THE LAB EXPERIENCE

1. "A Long Time Ago" (4:22) a upbeat weave of NeoProg palette sounds that has merit for its sophistication and intricate instrumental demands. The tempo and motif switch at the halfway point is rather subtle--"sneaky"--and it leads into a section that is impressive both for its Hammond and synth solos and bass and drum play. Well met! (9/10)

2. "m.a.r.i.k." (4:50) another well-constructed, sophisticated and up-tempo NeoProg song that consists of an impressive weave of typical NeoProg sounds and instruments that is, of course, keyboard dominant. The ABABCAB construct is highlighted by some nice Hammond and synth work over solid bass and drum play. (Luiz is an impressive bass player!) The melodies and arrangements sound more like something from the modern RPI bands. (8.875/10)

3. "Parallel Dimensions" (7:31) opens with Alan Parsons Project I Robot melodies over more modern-RPI-like motifs. Jorge Mathias' bass playing is nice and Rodrigo Martinho's drumming quite solid as Luiz switches back and forth from synths to piano for the solos and main melody-playing. "Nervous" organ chord play at the end of the third minute is so Italian! Luiz definitely does a great job with switching palettes, tempos, motifs, and instrumental choices for the leads. The many short and often changing motif and tempo changes makes me wonder if we are in fact trying to convey the soundtrack to a cinematic "scene" or short-story. There is nothing wrong with this well-composed and rendered piece, it just seems . . . meaningless. (13.5/15)

4. "The Mind" (6:22) more of the same complex RPI-like NeoProg with some acrobatic synth soloing over Jorge chunky bass and Alex Curi's drum play. A couple of almost corny bridges are balanced out by some rather impressive drumming and synth work. I wonder what this piece would sound like if performed on acoustic "classical" instruments--like a piano and string quintet or small orchestra. This is definitely the song on the album that has the most setups for the display of individual instrumental prowess. (8.875/10)

5. "Future Dreaminess" (7:31) more of the same modern RPI instrumental sound palette, drummer Rodrigo Martinho's second appearance is well-featured as is the bass presence of Brazilian veteran Francisco Falcon (Vôo). The song presents a much heavier, almost cinematic-portentous mood from the get-go--kind of a sci-fi motif. I love the short-lived heavy saw-synth sound up front in the end of the second minute, but then Luiz switches directions for a dynamic bit. But then he returns to all of the previous motifs, each in the same order of first exposition, using slightly different expressions with each recapitulations. (The composer has definitely been well-steeped in classical music composition!) The rondo of rotating themes does start wear thin (they're not quite as dynamic, melodic, or intriguing as some of those from other songs). Impressive synth soloing from Luiz in the sixth minute, followed by some impressive drum-and-bass interplay in the seventh, and then it ends! (13.375/15)

6. "Astral Zenith" (10:20) long swirling organ intro bursts into full bombast at the one-minute mark with a great NeoProg motif that is diminished a bit by the arrival of a soloing synth over the top. A new piano-based, organ- and Chris Squire-like bass-backed motif takes over at the end of the third minute. I like the interweave of the piano, organ, and chunky bass. Another saw-like synth takes the lead around the four-minute mark but then organ and bass play around with each other a bit in the second half of the fifth minute before an IQ-like bridge takes us into a gentle ambient "after hours" carnival theme--which last s until 5:49 when a NEXUS-like organ-led theme takes over. The engineering, mix, and sound selections are all excellent (not unlike those of the afore-mentioned Argentine band). Great showy bass play in the eighth minute! Then there is a pause for the start of a bird-nature-like organ theme that sounds like something from GENESIS as the rhythm track turns into a syncopated Phil Collins-Genesis-like race across the sky. Mellotrons enter at 9:07 to exert an air-brake on the rest of the instruments for the song's plaintive electric piano closing. Nicely constructed, performed, and engineered fare that, unfortunately, sounds like so much NeoProg material that we've been subject to since the late 1970s. (18/20)

7. "The End" (3:37) soloing piano accompanied by layers of synth and Mellotron washes. This is the kind of stuff that Mozart might have been playing with in his spare time had he been a progressive rock artist. (8.75/10)

Total Time 44:33

The dominance of keyboards on this album is no joke: at times that's all you hear! And the music is much more sophisticated that I expected--even broaching the edges of Jazz-Rock Fusion at times--but the palettes of overly-familiar, over-used NeoProg sounds and instrumentation are wearing thin for me: I mean, come on! It's been 49-years since A Trick of the Tail! Let's move on!

B/four stars; an excellent display of complex keyboard-centric NeoProg compositions rendered to NeoProg perfection. Any lover of NeoProg will absolutely love this album!