FROM IGNORANCE TO ECSTASY

Without doubt Tracy Hitchings is the ultimate diva of British Neo Prog.She became known in mid-80's, when she replaced Susan Robinson as the frontwoman of Quasar and the following decade she became the lead singer of veteran progsters Landmarq.When she left Quasar and upon meeting Clive Nolan for the running project Strangers on a Train, she decided to record her first and only solo album ''From ignorance to ecstasy'', supported by Nolan's composing skills and the talents of Neo movement's veterans bassist Ian Salmon, guitarist Karl Groom and drummer Dave Wagstaffe.The album came out in 1991 on SI and was reissued some years later by Verglas.

I think when you unite the forces of a voice like the one of Hitchings and the keyboard talents of Clive Nolan you sure know what to expect: Pompous, lyrical rock material with certain Neo Prog tendencies and ''From ignorance to ecstasy'' won't dissapoint all those you bet how this one would sound like.It's very British-styled and melodramatic Prog/Art Rock music with plenty of atmospheric parts, rhythmic lines, grandiose keyboards but also some superb guitar melodies.Hitchings' voice is in great shape and the performance here belongs among the best of her career, her distinctive style of singing is a trademark for the whole Neo Prog scene.You would guess that Nolan would dominate the album with his synthesizers, but I found this work to be pretty balanced instrumentally speaking, while it often sounds like what the future held for Hitchings, being overall very close to the sound of LANDMARQ.Lyrical moments, melodious themes, seminal symphonic-flavored keyboards and a generally accesible style for those who love a break between more adventurous listenings.Mood changes are a basic characteristic of this album, Hitchings and Nolan collaboration offers passages of a romantic flavor but also some darker themes with a FISH-era MARILLION-like atmosphere, great work as a whole with vocal-dominated material, I would like some more room for instrumental madness, but even so this one is pretty cool of a listening experience.

A work of sheer pomposity and lyrical melodrama, set strictly within the principles of British Neo Prog.Much better than the other project of Nolan and Hitchings, Strangers on a Train, pretty consistent and fairly enjoyable.Recommended.