SHOWING PACES

The Scarab story ended sharply in the 80's after the release of the self-titled album,but vocalist/keyboardist Tommy Eriksson wasn't done yet.The high school teenager became a mature adult and revived his music ability in 1991, forming Ageness.The next year a vinyl 7'' single appeared entitled ''Misunderstanding After Mistake/Broken Heart" and this was the precursor of the upcoming Ageness debut.''Showing Paces'' finally came out as an indepedent release.

And what a great comeback this is by Eriksson and his new bandmates.''Showing paces'' is extremely clever Neo Prog with plenty of catchy tunes, memorable melodies, interesting instrumental parts and a heavy GENESIS atmosphere,though in its modern version.The overall style holds similarities with bands such as IQ, PALLAS and FINAL CONFLICT,that means Ageness switch from melodic vintage Symphonic Rock to powerful heavier Neo Prog with good riffs and bombastic atmospheres.Eriksson is the undoubtful leader of the effort, both with his flashy performance on synths and his GABRIEL-esque voice tone, supported by a second keyboard player named Jari Laasanen.The rest of the band supports in a fantastic way as well,with the great guitarist Vesa Auvinen filling the sound with nice riffs and melodic solos and the rhythm section being very solid.The way the band offers these GENESIS-inspired delightful retro tunes with the good use of even acoustic parts and then heads for some fiery rockier moments is simply outstanding and a great proof og Ageness' talent.Still the average production and some cheesy synths parts could have been treated some improvement.Notice also the smart auto-biographical ''Revelation'' song, composed by Eriksson and borrowing the GENESIS tune from ''I know what I like'', of how he came in touch with Progressive Rock with even references to Marillion,Twelfth Night and Rush.

An amazing comeback from the old Scarab leader and his new outfit.''Showing Paces'' is a must-have for any Neo Prog fan out there,but also a great addition for fans of Melodic Rock,Retro Prog and Symphonic Rock.This is propably how Genesis would have sounded if trying to carry their sound through the 80's.Highly recommended.