SOLITAIRE

Fully Five Stars! Solitaire by new band, Alcantara, is one of the finds of the year. I have a bad habit of collecting far too may prog albums and often a lot just meld into a pool of, 'Nice to listen to'' but with nothing to catch me enough for repeated listens. This one however, keeps insisting on being played over and over. This is beautifully constructed prog where every instrument is given space to breathe, the antithesis of much Prog, especially from America, where the idea seems to be that every instrument should be more forward than every other instrument. The guitar here is particularly notable, where every note is perfectly chosen and clearly heard. Very reminiscent of David Gilmour. The vocals at times, especially on Bad Bones, remind me of Jan-Henrik Ohme from Gazpacho or Bruce Soord from Pineapple Thief. Overall, this should appeal to fans of Pink Floyd, Airbag, Riverside, Satellite, etc. It is very similar to another band I really loved but only made on album, and that was Grendel with The Helpless. I do hope these guys keep this up