LAVORO D'AMORE

As I write this review i'm listening to the latest from ANEKDOTEN as I drink my Tim Horton's coffee on this beautiful sunny morning. Yeah i'm in a very good mood. This is the latest from Russian band ROZ VITALIS called "Lavoro D'Amore"(Labour Of Love) a 2015 release. Once again Ivan the band's leader gives a very big thanks to THE UNAPPROACHABLE LIGHT. I reviewed an earlier album by this band last weekend called "Patience Of Hope" that I felt was really good, often reminding me of Mike Oldfield. This one is more to my tastes as we get a much more dynamic work that has more of a "Rock" feel to it but it continues in that Eclectic vein with that Avant vibe pretty much non-existent.

"The Acknowledgement Day" is a top three for me. Flute, drums and bass lead the way early on until the flute stops around a minute in as piano, guitar and more replace it. It settles back 2 minutes in with piano leading then it turns fuller. A powerful soundscape before 4 minutes with the guitar lighting it up. Nice. "Lavoro D'Amore" opens with a beautiful guitar melody as other sounds join in including flute and later piano. A gorgeous tune. "Unanticipated" is dark with piano notes and a heavy undercurrent. A horn comes in after a minute. Love the mood here and the trumpet is a nice touch on this one. It turns powerful 4 1/2 minutes in. "Il Vento Ritorna" is a bright and uptempo song with the flute playing over top. Catchy stuff with so much going on. It turns more dynamic at times especially during the second half of this tune. "There Are The Workers Of Iniquity Fallen" is led by harpsichord and trumpet early on then piano and what sounds like vibes standout. The trumpet is back after 2 minutes then the piano leads once again. It changes 3 1/2 minutes in to a bass heavy groove that is so good! I'm reminded of LE ORME here. Fantastic!

"Need For Someone Else" is uptempo with intricate sounds coming and going. It's heavier a minute in and they are just killing it. Some angular guitar too around 3 minutes in. It settles with piano out front 5 minutes in, flute too. "Invisible Animals" is another top three for me. It's FLOYD-like to start as we get this heavy atmospheric soundscape before settling back to a calm 4 minutes in. "Every Branch That Beareth Fruit" opens with piano only as cymbals join in. Low whistle and more arrive 2 minutes in but it's still very laid back. Mellotron-like sounds too then trumpet 3 1/2 minutes in. "Ascension Dream(Peak Version)" starts out with flute and piano as it begins to build some. It picks up 1 1/2 minutes in with trumpet and piano taking turns leading. It's more powerful late. "What Are You Thinking About?" is my final top three and the longest song at 8 1/2 minutes. Atmosphere early on with guitar expressions and drums that come and go. What a great intro! It starts to pick up after 2 minutes then it settles into a groove at 3 minutes. It sounds like electronics that are added before the guitar starts to solo over top before 6 minutes. "Ending" features trumpet a minute in with acoustic guitar and an urgent rhythm. Harpsichord before 2 minutes then keyboards and flute.

For my tastes this is a definite improvement over their earlier albums and this instrumental recording is well worth a solid 4 stars.