(47:37; Melodic Revolution Records) With this their latest album, Ten Jinn are looking backwards as well as forwards. While John Strauss (lead and backing vocals, piano, keyboards), Mark Wickliffe (drums, percussion, bass, synth, guitar, backing vocals) and Mike Matier (electric and acoustic guitars) are still there, Ken Skoglund (who had been involved since 2003) has left, although he did master the album. Bassist Matt Overholser has returned for the first time since 1999’s ‘As On A Darkling Plain’, Keyboard player Matt Brown is now a full member after playing on one track on ‘Ziggy Blackstar’, Skoglund has been replaced by Kenneth Francis while Stan Whitaker (Happy The Man) makes a guest appearance, also for the first time since ‘As On A Darkling Plain’. The album is another concept, here loosely inspired by Jack London’s novel, ‘The Iron Heel’ (which apparently was one of Orwell’s inspirations for ‘1984’). Published in 1908, it is one of the earliest examples of dystopian fiction, t...

(47:30; Cleopatra Records) There is no doubt that Arthur Wilton Brown will always be best remembered for one song he released all the way back in 1968, but personally I have always felt that to be totally unfair as he has always been a dynamic performer while his Kingdom Come albums are as exciting today as they were when they were released in the early Seventies. In recent years he has been found working with the likes of Hawkwind and Carl Palmer, while he has also released a few Crazy World albums, but this is actually his first “solo” album in 40 years. The theme of this is the macabre, and the songs are a combination of new numbers and some covers, and each one features guests who come from a very diverse background indeed. We get a cover of “I Feel Free” with James Williamson and Rat Scabies, and I guess it would be wrong for him not to revisit “Fire”, this time with James Williamson, Brian Auger and Carmine Appice. I must confess that a large part of this album reminds me very mu...

(45:16: HC Productions) There are not many bands who can say they have been going for nearly 40 years, and even less who can say that on their twentieth studio album all four musicians also played on the debut. Gayle Ellett (acoustic & electric 6- & 12-string guitars, EBow, analogue synths, Mellotron choir, 8- & 4-string tenor ukulele, Greek bouzouki, harmonium, Rhodes, Hammond organ, vibraphone, bowed upright bass, viola, udu, ocean drum, field recordings), Mike Henderson (12-string acoustic guitar, keyboards), Chuck Oken Jr (analogue & digital keyboard sequencing & soundscapes, drums) and Henry Osborne (bass) have certainly followed a path less travelled over the years, and they show no sign of switching to the mainstream any time soon. They do also have a few guests, most notable of which is Todd Montgomery whose sitar playing on two tracks is incredibly important to the overall sound. Back in the 90’s I remember being sent a wonderful promo photo (which I still ...

(47:52; Boudicca Records) The picture may look as if this is a standard looking release, but here the CD is at the rear of a 48-page full-colour A5 landscape glossy book which provides us with the lyrics, numerous photos, and an insight of what makes this art/prog/folk/rock collective really tick. What we have here is a continuation of the 'Krystal Svava' mythos they started in their EP ‘Death & The Maiden’. It is somewhat based an old dying ex- army musician and his housekeeper cum part time sex worker they knew, mixed with that of a new friend, David, also an old soldier and ex-musician living in Scotland. The band are based around Erin Bennett (lead vocals, guitar, trumpet), and comprise Kitty Biscuits (backing vocals, percussion, spoken word poetry), Anna Fraser (drums, percussion), Bad Dog (bass), Susan Dasi (backing vocals, synths), and Nikki Francis (Hammond, piano, synths, saxophone, flute, clarinet). Yes, we have a band which are nearly all-female, which is unusual...

(41:13; Fair Wind Pleases) Here we have the latest release from the trio of  Yury Khomonenko (drums and percussion), Ivan Rozmainsky (synth piano) and AndRey Stefinoff (clarinet). As can be seen from the title, this was recorded at the last  Babooinum festival held in Saint Petersburg, on June 22nd, 2022. I have known Ivan for years due to the band Roz Vitalis, and over the years he has also been working with other musicians, taking music in different directions and here he describes the music being delivered as chamber prog - clarinet/piano/drums-based music - with the spirit of creativity, improvisational energy, unpredictable developments, unanticipated turns and twists, strange modes and chords and odd time signatures. None of the music on this album is available elsewhere, but that is probably as for the most part this sounds completely improvised. Although Ivan normally takes the melodic lead in Roz Vitalis, here his role is to set up repeated patterns which then allow Y...

(65:00; Fren) I am a big fan of this Polish band’s 2020 debut, ‘Where Do You Want Ghosts To Reside’, so I was certainly pleased to discover they had come back with a second offering. It is the same line-up with Oskar Cenkier (piano, organ, synthesizer, Mellotron), Michał Chalota (guitars), Andrew Shamanov (bass, synthesizers) and Oleksii Fedoriv (drums & percussion) and in many ways this is a direct continuation of what we had before. At times quite pastoral, and always influenced by the classics of the Canterbury scene, there are also plenty of jazz elements contained within while they are also not afraid to move more into a hard rock area with some dynamic guitar solos. When a progressive band call an instrumental track “Hammill” everyone is going to be looking for certain influences and styles, and that is what we get on the opening number. However, that is not the highlight as although the first five songs are of different lengths and styles, it is the final one which captures ...

(73:00; Gandalf's Fist) I missed out on the early Gandalf’s Fist albums – one day I will make the effort and get hold of them – but when I came across 2016’s ‘The Clockwork Fable’ I was just blown away, and there is no doubt it is one of the most impressive progressive albums released in the last decade – a perfect blend of storytelling and wonderful music. Since then, I have kept an eye out for their releases, and am now listening to their latest, 2022’s ‘Widdershins’. They are firmly set as a six-piece with newest recruits, keyboard player Ben Bell and singer Keri Farish who joined for 2019’s ‘The Clockwork Prologue’, both contributing to the writing, while the rest of the line-up is still multi-instrumentalist Dean Marsh, singer Luke Severn, bassist Chris Ewen and drummer Stefan Hepe.   The music is complex, bringing in elements from different areas, so one never knows where it is going to lead, but it is likely to be unexpected and always a lot of fun. Some prog seems almost li...

(43:11; Giant Electric Pea) Track list: 1. A New Beginning 6:02 2. Fierce Fear Family 4:32 3. Hope 9:03 4. K. 3:38 5. Lost in a Lullaby 5:38 6. Faintly Falling 4:41 7. Rain Over Gentle Travellers 9:37 Line-up: Nicola Pedreschi - keyboards, vocals Lorenzo Gherarducci - guitars Angelo Carmignani - drums Marco Carloni - bass Prolusion. Eveline’s Dust is a progressive rock band from Pisa, Italy, which was founded in 2012 and released their debut album in the following year. Reviewed here is their third and to date last album released in 2019. Analysis. According to the authors, this concept album tells the story of a fictional character – a girl named K, suffering from an incurable disease. Her character and life story are gradually revealed, song by song, by people she meets in course of life. The musical style is distinguished by an original blend of jazz rock Rush-like heavy prog, with interesting harmonies and a male voice leading throughout and a female one backing it here and there (...

(112:00 [DVD/Blu-Ray] / 109:34 [CD]; Melodic Revolution Records) Track list: 1. Behind the Curtain 4:08 2. Release 5:48 3. Impostor! 8:20 4. Frame by Frame 5:54 5. Climbing 5:24 6. The Missing Link 4:08 7. Gods 4:26 8. Game of Chicken 6:38 9. The Prism 5:10 10. Take Your Medicine 5:02 11. Cognitive Dissonance 4:41 12. Storm Surge 8:17 13. Spain 12:59 14. Hysteria 4:58 15. Heavy Shtettle 17:25 16. One Foot in the Next World 6:16 Line-up: Joe Deninzon - vocals, violin Michelangelo Quirinale - guitars, vocals Paul Ranieri - bass, vocals Jason Gianni - drums, vocals with: Rachel Flowers - piano, flute Alex Skolnick - guitars Prolusion. US band Joe Deninzon & Stratospheerius have been around for 20 years or thereabouts, with the band name being a nod back to Deninzon's solo album "The Adventures of Stratospheerius" from 2002. Just where the dividing line between Deninzon's early solo career stops and the chronicles of Stratospheerius begins is, I guess, a bit of an ope...

(59:59; Nauticus) Track list: 1. Constructing the Liquid Plains 8:28 2. Ascend 6:56 3. A Delayed End 7:59 4. The Route 7:42 5. Their Whereabouts 2:47 6. Bone Dams 9:05 7. As Barriers Fall 5:44 8. Kalmisto 11:18 Line-up: Tuomas Rajala  - drums Juuso Jalava  - bass Juho Matilainen  - guitars Markku Kastell  - guitars Jani Rämö  - vocals with: Antti Loponen - backing vocals, keyboards, guitars Kari Mäkiranta - piano, organ Satu Kastell - violin, viola Teemu Mastovaara - cello Tuomas Rajala - percussion, programming Prolusion. Finnish band Nauticus was formed back in 2009, and were rather active in their initial phase with their debut album appearing the same year and their second album appearing three years later. It would take the band six years to come forth with their third album however, which appeared in 2018, and that album is their most recent production to date. Their second album "The Wait" dates back to 2012, and was self released by the band. Analysis. W...

(39:56; Chaos and the Cosmos) Track list: 1. The Singularity 5:48 2. u Go-Go 5:34 3. Heart Flies 6:41 4. Prologue 2:41 5. Our Song 4:44 6. Floating in the Atmosphere 1:34 7. House of Love 12:54 Line-up: Paul Langer - vocals, guitars, bass, drums John Allday - keyboards, trumpet, vocals with: Rachel Nesvig - violin, backing vocals Aleida Gehrels - viola, backing vocals Phil Hirschi - cello Prolusion. US band Chaos and the Cosmos appears to have been around in one form or another for at least a decade at this point, but without ever being at the stage where recording and releasing any material was regarded as a viable option. But come 2023 and that situation has changed, and following what may have been a fairly long gestation period the band self-released their debut album "Our Song" in the spring of 2023. Analysis. As far as progressive rock is concerned, this album isn't one that touch upon any of the established contemporary traditions of this universe, as the material ...

(43:55; Karisma Records) Track list: 1. Hunter 10:33 2. Hydra 10:34 3. Ikaros 9:26 4. Sisyphos 13:22 Line-up: Benjamin Mekki Wideröe - saxophone Erlend Vottvik Olsen - guitars Fredrik Mekki Wideröe - drums, guitars, vocals Haakon Mikkelsen Vinje - keyboards, vocals Stian Ökland - guitars, vocals Tormod Fosso - bass Prolusion. Norwegian band Seven Impale have been a going concern for close to 15 years at this point, albeit without too many albums to their name at this stage. I recall enjoying their first two albums quite a bit, especially the first of them, but quite a few years have passed by since their most recent studio album saw the light of day. But after a seven year long wait the band have now returned with their third studio production. The album is called "Summit", and is out on Norwegian label Karisma Records. Analysis. As with the previous two albums by Seven Impale, challenging and expressive progressive rock is what we are served on this production. The compositi...

(59:34; Dark Essence Records) Track list: 1. Det Döde Barn 4:52 2. En Harmoni 5:13 3. Avskjed 2:34 4. Under Linden 4:31 5. Fiolen 2:22 6. Dagen Er Endt 8:32 7. Das Tote Kind 6:15 8. A Match 4:32 9. Abschied 4:21 10. Under Der Linden 4:12 11. Das Veilchen 3:46 12. The Day Is Done 8:24 Line-up: Mari Klingen - vocals Siv Lena Laugtug Saether - violin Eystein Garberg  - guitars Roar Grindheim  - guitars Espen Warankov Godö - keyboards Espen Hammer  - bass Vidar Berg  - drums with: Mathias R. Samuelsen - vocals Ketil Laugtug Saether - guitars Prolusion. Norwegian band Lumsk started out some 25 years ago, and in a handful of very active years they released a small handful of albums and EPs that to my knowledge at least were well received at the time, with the most recent of these creations being the album "Det Vilde Kor" which appeared all the way back in 2007. Following a lengthy hiatus Lumsk have now returned with their fourth studio album, "Fremmede Toner", which was r...

(49:27; Lynx Music) Here we have a Polish band who arguably are based mostly in jazz yet actually bring in funk at times, pop at others, and even some prog rock at others, which may well have something to do with the guitarist. The band comprise Karolina Teernstra (vocals), Marta Mołodyńska (keyboards),  Piotr Płonka (guitars, who is of course a member of the wonderful Millenium), Piotr “Mazur” Mazurkiewicz (bass, ex-Millenium), Tomek Drabik (saxophone) and Sławek Puka (drums). Lynx Music have a reputation of finding great artists and releasing albums worth discovering, and given Millenium are a mainstay for the label it is no surprise to find this being released on there, but to be honest this is such a delightful release any label would be pleased to have it. Many of the songs are based around the clean piano of Marta as she accompanies and provides the backdrop for Karolina who has a beautiful tone. She can provide an edge or be clear and sweet, always giving the right expressio...

(55:13; MALS Records) I came to Quorum through Elena Kanevskaya of Eternal Wanderers, who provides backing vocals on one of tracks, as her husband is Dmitry Shatnov who not only provides lead vocals in Quorum but also guitar, bass and keyboards. The other musicians are Pavel Barabanov (guitar), Vladimir Yanovsky (bass) and drummer Sergey Nikonorov. Elena told me Quorum mostly play cover versions of classic prog, but they have also released a few albums of their own, this being the most recent, from 2015. The Russian prog scene, in a very similar way to the Polish, never ceases to amaze me with the depth of talent as they have some incredible bands which rarely get the attention they deserve in Western media. Apart from performing in Russian, Quorum are one of the most Western-sounding prog bands I have come across, obviously heavily influenced by the likes of Genesis (including the early Eighties version), Pink Floyd and even some Yes, while “Motion” is full of Rush influences. Althoug...

(49:17; Moonjune Records) As you may have guessed from the title and the artwork, this is indeed a jazz version of one of the truly great albums of all time. This is not the first time I have come across a treatment like this, as 2003’s ‘Dub Side of the Moon’ by Easy Star All-Stars is nothing short of a masterpiece, but it is the first jazz version. Recorded in just two days in 2013, but not released until three years later, this album features Boris Savoldelli (all vocals, vocal noises and electronics), Raffaele Casarano (saxes and electronics) and Marco Bardoscia (double bass and electronics) plus a few guests, including the wonderful Dewa Budjana who plays guitar on “Us and Them”. I sent this album to a mate of mine to gauge his reaction and it is true to say he was horrified, but I don’t think there is any need to be quite that harsh. Although there are some electronics and treated sound in the background, there are no actual keyboards per se, and with guitar on just one track it m...

(72:00; Moonjune Records) Here we have the sixth album by Serbian keyboard player and bandleader Vasil Hadžimanov, although it was his first international release. Recorded in front of a very appreciative audience in Belgrade in 2014, he and his band Branko Trijic (guitar), Miroslav Tovirac (bass), Bojan Ivkovic (percussion, vocals) and Pedja Milutinovic (drums) were joined by American guest saxophonist David Binney. I must confess I don’t know if much of this is scored, but only three of the songs are credited to the band with the rest against individuals, so it is quite possible that the rest was rehearsed. The result is complex jazz and fusion with progressive elements and plenty of excursions into the avant garde, pushing the boundaries and providing the support to each other which is required when music is as complex as this. With both a drummer and percussionist one might expect it to be driven more fully from the back, but even though they are working hard, they tie in with bass...

(43:04; Progressive Promotion Records) Sammary are a new German band, although at the time of this album it was a studio project with Sammy Wahlandt not only composing the material but also playing every instrument (apart from a kunan, a type of zither) while the vocals were by Stella Inderwiesen, Larissa Pipertzis and Marie Stenger. In the new setting Sammy provides drums, Stella the vocals, and there are another five musicians to fill out the live sound. Released last year, this certainly does not feel like a multi-instrumentalist solo project but is very much that of a band working in a modern prog style, bringing in influences from Metal and Wave when the time is right. It is also highly focussed on the performances of the three singers, with the music really a vehicle for them. However, one of the potential issues of any project where it is dominated by just one person is the lack of quality control, and the issue here are the actual songs themselves. Sammy is working in an area t...

(44:42; Inside Out Music) Although Virgil Howe was a musician with his own bands, he will always be remembered mostly for the work he did with his father Steve, and together they released the album ‘Nexus’ not long before his death from a heart attack in 2017. With any project there is always material which is recorded and then discarded for whatever reason, and at the beginning of 2021 Steve collated that all together to see if he would be able to use any of it as the foundation for a new release and the result is what we have here with Virgil credited with keyboards, piano, synths, bass and drums while Steve provides all manner of guitars. I cannot imagine how hard it must be for a parent to lose a child, and undertaking this album must have been both emotionally exhausting and fulfilling for Steve as he attempted to ensure the world knew a little but more about his son. However, there is no way of moving past the fact that these snippets were originally not good enough for the album...

 (71:55, Jam Recordings) The Lemon Clocks were formed by multi-instrumentalists and singers Jeremy Morris, Steffan Johansson and Todd Borsch, with this 2015 album being their second release. While some think of Jeremy for his work in the prog field, and others for his Christian albums, he is also adept in the world of power pop and psychedelia and with his like-minded compadrés they have taken The Byrds as a starting point, thrown in plenty of The Hollies and more from the beat and psych scene to create something which really does sound as if it was released in the late Sixties as opposed to recently (they are very active, and have released another four albums since this one, even though the guys are on different sides of the Atlantic). This is not an album which is attempting to copy what has been done previously, but instead is taking influences from many different bands and then put them together to create music, which is vibrant, poppy, jangly and just plain fun with wonderful ...

(65:00; Lynx Music) Art of Illusion are a Polish prog metal quartet who are primarily instrumental, although they do work with singers at times. Comprised of Filip Wiśniewski (guitars), Paweł Łapuć (piano, keyboards), Kamil Kluczyński (drums), and Mateusz Wiśniewski (bass), this 2016 album had Marcin Walczak as a guest singer on three tracks although he joined as a full member in time for 2018’s excellent ‘Cold War of Solipsism’. I was very impressed with that album, and I am glad to report that this earlier release finds me very much in the same vein. The rhythm section provides melodic structure and foundation, but keep moving as they drive through different time signatures and patterns, never staying too long in one spot, while the two main melodic leads are both masters in their own right. Wiśniewski can shred when he wants to, but he also understands the need for harmony and contrast, while also being more than happy to use discord at the optimal moment, generally swapping lead ro...