My lesser known and unknown new prog bands thread

NEVERNESS – Horizonte De Susesos (****)

Neverness their sound is powerful and dynamic melodic rock delivering fiery and propulsive guitar work by the two guitarplayers (including the singer). But the frequent, very flowing shifting moods and the varied vitnage keyboard sound give Neverness their music on this CD a strong progressive touch. A few examples: a hypnotizing rhythm with Fender Rhodes piano and fiery guitar in Hasta El Final, strong Spanish vocals (expressive and slightly theatrical), wonderful Mellotron and a biting wah-wah guitar solo in Finjo Y Miento, a break with blistereing wah-wah guitar and fluent drums in the titletrack and warm, a bit melancholical vocals in the psychedelic inspired (mainly because of the organ sound) in Todo Acabará.

But the two highlights are the ‘epic’ compositions (both almost 20 minutes) that start and close this album. First 10 años Y Un Dia : the first part shifts between fiery wah-wah and mellow Hammond organ waves (like Procol Harum), then an accellaration with a synthesizer solo and tight drums, culminating in a dreamy part with twanging guitars and warm vocals. The song continues with a powerful rhythm including a compelling, very strongly build-up guitar solo with howling runs, supported by lush Hammond organ. Gradually the atmosphere becomes more propulsive featuring swirling Hammond organ, powerful guitar riffs and a fiery guitar solo with piano. Then lots of changing climates with great work on guitar and keyboards and in the end sparkling piano, emotional vocals and captivating interplay between guitar, organ and rums, what a splendid composition! The final track is Malahierva : a mid-tempo with fluent synthesizer runs between parts with twanging guitars, then a long, quite experimental interlude (that sounds different from the rest of the CD) featuring varied work on the piano and electric guitar, accompanied by acoustic rhythm guitar. Neverness returns to their dynamic and powerful sound with a mid-tempo that delivers a strong duel between synthesizer and wah-wah guitar. The atmosphere changes into heavy with a biting wah-wah guitar solo but suddenly a dreamy part with Grand piano, slowly changing into a grand finale with swinging piano and a fiery guitar solo, meanwhile I have turned into a Neverness aficionado!

NEVERNESS - Cuentos De Otros Mundos Posibles (****)

- This Spanish formation was founded in the late Nineties and in 2002 they released their debut album entitled Horizonte De Sucesos. The it took five years until Neverness produced a successor but if you listen to it, you can conclude that the time was worth waiting, the band has made a huge progress, what a wonderful and often exciting CD!

- The sound of Neverness has no obvious references, every track (between 5 and 13 minutes) on the album contains lots of flowing shifting moods with many interesting musical ideas and a dynamic rhythm-section. A very captivating element is the contrast between the rock-oriented guitar work and the varied ‘vitnage keyboard’ sound, from Mellotron and Moog synthesizer to Fender Rhodes piano, Farfisa organ and Solina string-ensemble. I was carried away during the strongly build-up and often very compelling guitar soli like in Muro De Cristal - Maldita Esperanza (from sensitive to fiery) and Sin Horizonte (long and bluesy with great support on strings and organ). Other great moments are the pyschedelic sounding intro during Desde El Silencio (the guitar and organ sound evoke Pink Floyd At Pompeii), the variety and wonderful vintage keyboards (Mellotron, organ and piano) in Mi Mundo Al Reves and the many goodmusical ideas in the captivating final song Mundo De Locos (4 parts).

I am impressed by this second effort by this new Spanish band, what a good musicians and what a wonderful and often compelling compositions, a big hand for Neverness!

OBSCURA – Le Citta Invisibili (***1/5)

- This is a new Italian sextet, their music sounds as a pleasant and alternating blend of several styles in which the contrast between the sparkling Grand piano and heavy guitar riffs like Black Sabbath are very remarkable! It give an extra dimension like in the varied compositions Limbo Cosmico Part I (from mellow flute to heavy guitar and a wonderful, very sensitive guitar solo, supported by huge Mellotron waves, Progheaven!), La Citta Del Sole (sparkling piano and heavy guitar riffs, an accellaration with organ and guitar and finally Fender Rhodes and again heavy riffs), Limbo Cosmico Part II (beautiful interplay between piano and flute, a moving guitar solo with lush organ  and a great final part with good vocals, flute and choir-Mellotron)) and the excellent final composition Guernica (alternating with Fender Rhodes piano/flute and neo-prog with fluent synthesizer flights, organ and propulsive drums and a compelling part with wah-wah guitar, first supported by organ and then by majestic choir-Mellotron, goose bumps!). This CD delivers two short pieces: Bersebea featuring Grand piano arpeggio’s and mellow flute and Ipazia with a flute/acoustic guitar duet, wonderful.

Although they still have to mature a bit in composing, to me this debut album by new Italian band Obscura sounds as a very pleasant blend of symphonic (tasteful vintage keyboards), classical and hardrock

 

PHIDEAUX – Doomsday Afternoon (****)

- Last year I listened to Phideaux their previous effort entitled The Great Leap, I was quite disappointed and even decided not to review it, in general I cannot motivate myself to write about music I don’t like. But this album is another story: because of the many positive, often sheer euphoric reviews here on Prog Archives I asked a good friend to borrow me Doomsday Afternoon and from the first listening session I was pleased with their ‘new’ sound.

- The CD Doomsday Afternoon is a concept album with the subtitle An Eco Terro Tale, in a great way supported by mindblowing paintings that look like a blend of Hieronymus Bosch (madness and fear), Vincent Van Gogh (expressive colours) and Gerald Scarfe (venomous look on mankind). The music sounds as a pleasant blend of Art-rock, progressive pop and symphonic rock, on one hand melodic and accessible but on the other hand also very alternating featuring lots of good musical ideas and interesting shifting moods, from dreamy and atmospheric to compelling, a tight mid-tempo or bombastic. I am delighted about the omnipresent ‘vintage’ keyboard sound like in The Doctrine Of Eternal Ice (Part One with fat Minimoog flights and warm ARP string-ensemble and Part Two with Minimoog, ARP string-ensemble, Fender Rhodes electric piano and the distinctive swinging clavinet sound) and Candybran featuring a acoustic rhythm guitar with Hammond organ. We can also enjoy an orchestra with woodwind instruments (French horn, clarinet and trumpet) and violins and the the both male as female vocals are strong and varied, including Matthew Parmenter who performed in 2005 on the USA Nearfest festival along Le Orme and IQ. My highlight on this nw album is the final composition (at about 15 minutes): first soaring Hammond organ waves, then a tight mid-tempo with tasteful keyboard colouring and strong vocals. During the sparkling violin soli I am in Seventies Kansas Heaven! After a fiery guitar solo the final part contains a melancholical atmosphere (that matches perfectly with the subtitle and concpet of Doomsday Afternoon) delivering dreamy paino work and wailing violin play, is this a musical prologue that warnes we are on the brink of polluting ourselves to a slow death?

- I am surprised by this varied and tasteful new Phideaux album, I can understand the positive words in other reviews but this is not mainstream progrock or Classic Prog, this is ..... the new Phideaux!

 

PULSAR – Memory Ashes (***)

- Yes, this is the legendary French progrock band that made wonderful albums in the Seventies and Eighties, I still love Halloween (1977), what a mindblowing Mellotron sound!

Pulsar performed on the annual Mexican progrock festival Baja Prog in 2002, perhaps this has lead to a new album. The line-up features four members of the original line-up and the guest musician Louis Paralis joined Pulsar on their latest album entitled Gorlitz  in 1988.

So what about the new Pulsar sound? Well, that is a different story, it sounds more modern and quite atmospheric, let’s say ambient! Especially the first composition Memory Ashes (four parts) sounds as ambient delivering dreamy music with warm French vocals, some sound collages, sensitive electric guitar work (obviously inspired by Gilmour and Latimer) and a pleasant colouring by tin-whistle, clarinet and acoustic guitar. Only part III sound smore heavy with powerful electric guitar play. Then the song Monks, you can divide it into 3 sections: first Gregorian choir, blended with several instruments, then a compelling rhythm with Floydian slide guitar runs and finally a mellow part with flute, piano and cello. Don’t expect a Pulsar that sounds like their Seventies and Eighties albums, beautiful but for me a bit too laidback.

 

RITUAL - The Hemulic Voluntary Band (***1/5)

- In the mid-Nineties this Swedish band was very popular in Holland and I have seen Ritual a few times, they turned into a kind of ‘cult-band’ in those days because of their fresh blend of Classic Prog and folk and their enthousiastic approach on stage. And I remember that was on my friends had taken his 12 years old son to a Ritual concert, he was delighted with a signed t-shirt by the band a at that moment the youngest Ritual fan!

So I was very curious to this new effort, I haven’t heard a Ritual album for many years. But during my first listening session it was like “meeting an old friend’, very warm and familiar. To me Ritual still sounds as a blend of Classic Prog (Gentle Giant and Yes) and folk in which singer Patrik Lundström plays an important role with his distinctive voice. A captivating element on this CD is the swinging sound of the clavinet (Kerry Minnear from Gentle Giant is one of the few keyboard players who used it frequently), often in strong interplay with the guitar.

I am pleasantly surprised by this new Ritual album, let’s say they are still ‘alive and Eclectic Progging’!

 

                                I hope you like it