CRY OF DERELICTION VOL. I

It's strange that an album like this, added months ago is still without reviews. I didn't expect to be the first. This debut album, which is expected to be the first in a series based on an uneasy concept, is a very good one, well played, arranged and produced, but also well composed. Without fillers and unneeded parts, it's in the vein of what I would call "modern melodic prog": Phideaux, just to mention a name.

In particular, what have impressed me is the short, radio-friendly track "Julia" which is of the optimal length for radios and has a catchy melody of the kind which can play in your brain for hours.In brief, a potential hit-single.

Apart of this, the whole album is catchy and the fact that at least one track can be considered "commercial" doesn't subtract anything from its goodness. Also the fact that nobody has reviewed this album before seems to demonstrate that I'm overestimating its commercial potential.

I haven't read the lyrics carefully, to be honest, but the concept seems to be based on ordinary life, things like life, death, love and so on. Not too far from The Dark Side of the Moon, apparently. This maybe justifies the sadness and the darkness which emerge from the songs. They are often catchy and melodic, but the basic layer is everything but happy. Also some psychedelic oriented sounds, often in the background, make it more interesting.

It's a very promising debut and I'm effectively curious to hear what will come next and to read more about the concept as it's likely that knowing it better can enhance the listening pleasure. This is one of the albums I'm currently listening to more often and I suggest it as excellent addition to likers of this kind of melodic things.

A project coming from the city of Asker in Norway, started in 2002 by singer/guitarist Dino Steffens and ending up to be a multi-national ensemble.And that's because he was joined by ex-White Willow Tirill Mohn on violin/percussion/guitar and Malayisian keyboardist Liew Ceng Teng to complete the original crew of Autumn Whispers.Their debut ''Cry of dereliction vol. I'' from 2012 shows an even more expanded line-up with Greeks Theodoros Kouelis and Vangelis Kalamaras on bass and drums respectively, Nils Einar Vinjor on guitar, Nick Jones on drums, Sigrun Eng on cello and Aleksander Koefoed on bass.It was released independently both on CD and digital format.

Autumn Whispers is actually the perfect name for the group.The melancholic and dreamy mood throughout this effort recalls the most depressive season of the year, while the sound is very whispering indeed: Mellow, laid-back and ethereal.With clean and expressive vocals and soft instrumentation, ''Cry of dereliction vol. I'' is pretty close to WHITE WILLOW's smoother musicianship, while Steffens cites British 70's Prog among his influences.And yes, touches from early KING CRIMSON and more Folk-centered acts such as PENTANGLE or FAIRPORT CONVENTION are particularly present in each track.What this album lacks is sufficient compentency and sheer dynamics, as it is mostly built around soft keyboard lines and pastoral acoustic guitars with strong psychedelic nuances and little similarity with the originality of the genuine Prog movement.Folky violins, traditional percussion and lots of acoustic textures are colored with light organ and Mellotron flourishes to offer soundscapes, which are pleasant to the ear and will satisfy fans of light Art Rock with a strong 60's influence.The long title-track contains a nice combination of Acid/Folk with jamming Prog/Psych and interesting electric guitars/keyboards along with a very spacey atmosphere towards the end.The rest of the album is dominated by acoustic instrumentation, swirling between melodic vocal tunes and rural, instrumental landscapes with scarce exceptions.

Decent album, that has nothing new to add to the scene of retro-inspired Art Rock.Pleasant, very relaxing listening with rare exceptional parts.Recommended mainly to fans of early-70's Psych/Folk Rock groups...2.5 stars.