WHEEL OF LIFE

Second release by this interesting side project of Jonas Reingold (The Flower Kings, The Tangent). Clearly this is a transitional album. And this means good and bad news, at least for me. The good news: they were finding their own sound and straying away from The Flower Kings (although not too much). The bad news is that they were also too much driven this time by Reigngold´s bass, to the point of almost self indulgence. In the end Wheel Of Life is quite enjoyable and well crafted, although a bit overshadowed by both their previous and next efforts.

While on their first, the excellent Entering The Specter, it was hard to find a band in there (actually it sounded too much like a TFK album, sometimes even better than the latter´s releases at the period), this time they made it clear it was a group, even if, among its many guests, some members of TFK do participate. Now with singer extraordinaire Göran Edman taking charge of all the vocals, they manage to create a unique sound. And the addition of brilliant guitarrist Krister Jonzon did help matters even more. The guy is simply fantastic and you won´t miss Roine Stolt´s style at all.

The tracks, for the most part, are quite good although I really don´t like some of Reingold excesses in tracks like Do You Tango. Fortunately those moments do not happen very often. In fact Reingold proved to be almost as much a good prog songwriter as he is proficient on his instrument of choice. Production is top notch, enhancing every little detail and nuance. As you should expect from such seasoned and talented musicians, they playing is utterly superb.

Conclusion: this is probably their less melodic and more jazzy CD. But it is also inspired and very well done, so it all depends on your personal taste. For me it is still pleasant and powerful, although not as strong and accessible as their other works. If you´re into the Flower Kings (or symphonic prog in general), then you can´t miss it. 3,5 stars.