AHVAK

It held promise, but fell way short of my hopes and expectations. Israeli group Ahvak's lone self-titled effort (as of 2010) is very unique in the sound department. It's like a cross- pollenation of ''standard RIO'' (possible oxymoron here), Middle Eastern sounds, modern classical and hints of metal here-and-there. And there's absolutely no denying the technical abilities of the participants; all are very skilled players. It even has the oddity of crediting a member with ''computer''. If only I could enjoy this album...

That's the major setback here; I can't enjoy this no matter how impressed I am with the performances. AHVAK is the type of album that you play, and once you put the album away, you can't remember a thing you just heard. The themes here are not memorable at all, and the connecting of these themes sounds rather awkward and clumsy. ''Bherta'' and ''Hamef Ahakim'' have slight traces of a memorable theme, but that's stretching it.

I can't give this any lower than two stars simply because the music is original (or at least I haven't heard anything like this before). The promise of a very unique sounding album became overshadowed by the lack of anything coming together compositionally. This is sure to win over prog fans with eclectic tastes or those with a keen RIO background. Even then, approach this one cautiously.