FLY AWAY

If you like Camel and early Eloy (Power and the Passion), Ramses, or Novalis (Banished Bridge), you might want to check out this superb one-shot. Great symphonic prog with a variety of shades makes for a pleasant listen with plenty to go back to and grow with on subsequent airings.

The album starts very strongly with "7117"...at first it sounds like we are getting a Hawkwind-ish sci fi piece as the intro grabs your attention before the song morphs into a less in your face and more subtle work, including inspired organ and vocal melodies. Nonetheless, some of this album, such as parts of the title cut, with its mellotron and rhythm guitars swirling about, returns to a sort of Hawkwind-lite approach, and is not diminished for it. "Your Dream" is definitely one of the highlights, a masterful song with a VERY catchy chorus driven by a clean guitar riff. Peter Scheu's vocals are worth highlighting. They are totally sympathetic to the music, like a rough cut gem that suits the amateurish prog fan feel of the whole album.

The rest of the album is of a similar high standard, except for the Jane III-style "Highway", just a boring rocker. The beautiful "The Day the Earth will die" closed out the original disk to which a bonus track was added in later releases, that I have not heard.

Minotaurus is one of many singletons from the thriving German symphonic prog scene of the 1970s, and it is definitely one of the better ones.