DEFINING THE LEGACY

Flamborough head´s second CD is definitly more complex, bold and symphonic then the first. It is also a bit less melodic and accessible too. Still, the music is similar: beautiful, captivating and emotional. Tasteful arrangements and great overall musicanship round up a fine package where you enjoy the CD from start to finish. Singer Sieber-Rein Schaaf does a great job, he sings with passion and conviction. There is still hints of Marillion, notably on the keyboards, but their sound is quite their own, which is not small feat for a Neo prog act. Here is a rare case of a group that has as much talent in songwriting as they have musical skills. There are also no ego battles or pointless instrumental noodlings. It´s a team work where everything is used for the music itself.

I specially liked the guitar parts: some heavy riffing here and there, but always expressive and emotional. The group succeess in avoinding many clichês, finding some very interesting harmonic solutions without sacrifying melody or sounding too awkward. It´s the kind of CD that grows on each new listening. It seems simple at first but that impression is a bit deceptive. Again it brings in mind IQ, who has more complexity than it sounds initially. All the tracks are long but you won´t notice, since the music is so good they seem to be very short, really. Even the almost 8 minuto long instrumental last track is very good. simply saying, there are no fillers in a 68 minute CD. Artwork, as with the first, is also impressive.

If you like melodic prog in the vein of Marillion, IQ and Clepsydra (but again more complex and less melodic than those), this is a must have. Holland surely has one of the best neo/symphonic acts noawadays. Rating: 4 strong stars..Highly recommended!