(62:00; Iako Bei) It took until last year for the second album to be released by Slovakian outfit Iako Bei, which may have something to do with the fact that only Roman Jakobej (lead vocals, bass, synths) is still there from the debut, and he has now been joined by Lukáš Magoč (alto saxophone), Šimon Majerník (keyboards) and Viliam Stanek (drums), with three guest backing singers in Vanessa Laliková, Marko Hundža, and Jakub Ferenc. Mind you, if one did not look at the release one would probably not realise that, as this is very much a band based around Roman’s vocals, bass, and vision and this is an obvious follow-up to the original with a very similar thought process behind it. Yes, again there are no guitars, just because there is no room for them in an outfit where the songs have been written using a vibrant and melodic bass. Such is its importance to the overall sound that there are times when bass, keyboards and saxophone are all playing the same melody so there is quite a hole in...

(53:31; Iako Bei) One of the benefits of reviewing music for so long is that there are times when I am contacted by a band wondering if I might possibly be interested in writing about their music. Such is the case with Slovakian band Iako Bei, where bassist/singer Roman Jakobej got in touch. I was immediately intrigued to find out more as here we have a progressive rock band where one of the key instruments of the genre, the guitar, is totally absent. Also, the main melodies are often carried by a saxophone with keyboards providing more of a backdrop and the bass being far more dynamic and in your face that usual, something which immediately took me back 30 years to Mr. So & So and the playing of Shaun McGowan. As well as Roman, the line-up on their 2018 debut is Stevie Heart (keyboards), Nikola Bankov (alto saxophone), Tibor Rusnk (drums) and Karmen Pál-Baláz (backing vocals), and there is no doubt that here is something fresh and interesting, yet somehow not too far from other cr...

(85:00; InsideOut Music) 25 years on from its original release, the cover has changed in that Devin has had a new photo taken, and the album has been remastered and also now includes seven bonus tracks including the songs from the ‘Christeen’ EP. I vividly remember the impact this album had on me when it was released, as while I knew Devin from Strapping Young Lad, he had only released one album under his own name prior to this one and when I heard this I was absolutely blown away by the production and his approach to prog metal. It was recorded after Devin had checked himself into a mental hospital where he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and while he played most of the instruments himself, he also brought in SYL bandmate Gene Hoglan on drums, Fear Factory bassist Christian Olde Wolbers plus Andy Codrington (trombone). It was with this album that Devin really got to grips with his wall of sound approach to production: he later described this as "the parent project" of ‘...

(70:15; Cuneiform Records) No prizes whatsoever for guessing this is a live recording, and where and when it took place. This was the first tour after drummer Dave Kernan had decided to reform the band with Bob Drake (bass, vocals), but with keyboard player Sanjay Kumar unavailable for the tour (although he did play on the album released prior, ‘Hunger’s Teeth’), they invited Scott Brazieal to take his place, with Mike Johnson (guitar, lap steel guitar, backing vocals) making up the final element of the band. Thanks to labels such as Cuneiform and Dur et Doux I have come to realise that my musical education regarding RIO is sadly very lacking indeed, but on a positive side I get to discover new music from bands who already have an established back catalogue! 5UU’S released two albums in the Eighties, with quite different line-ups, before releasing four more when they reformed, plus another just a few years back. The constant through this has been Dave Kernan, and I can see I have quite...

(49:22; Cuneiform Records) Volapük were a somewhat unusual RIO outfit formed in 1993 by percussionist Guigou Chenevier, who was already known for being a founder of Etron Fou Leloublan, who became a charter member of the Rock in Opposition collective in 1978 along with other groups including Henry Cow, Univers Zero, Stormy Six, and Samla Mammas Manna. Bass clarinettist Michel Mandel received a master's degree in music from the Grenoble Academy of Music while cellist Guillaume Saurel studied at the Avignon Academy of Music. Yes, what we have here is an instrumental trio bringing together instruments in a very strange indeed. This recording, taken from their 1998 Polish tour finds Guigou providing drums, saxophone, vocals and electronics, Michel is on bass clarinet, clarinets, taragot, vocal and Guillame cello and vocal. If one could imagine a RIO avant prog chamber trio experimenting more than one could even expect from that description, then possibly one might be able to somewhat u...

(56:52; The Twenty Commitee) Can it really be ten years since the debut album from these guys? ‘A Lifeblood Psalm’ was released in 2013, when I gave it full marks, but this was only released at the end of 2023, so I guess it was. Mind you, Geoffrey Langley (vocals, keyboards) joined Renaissance in 2016 and he has been very busy on that front. One would not expect the band to have the same line-up given the length of time, but  Justin Carlton (guitars, keyboards), Richmond Carlton (bass) and Joe Henderson (drums, percussion) have all returned with the only change being the departure of guitarist Steve Kostas who has been replaced by Jeff Bishop. When I reviewed them last time, I said they were mixing pop sensibilities (think Coldplay) with progressive (think Gentle Giant) with rock (think John Miles and City Boy). Now we have seen them move more away from the pop area, and more into the prog and rock stylings, and they are more than happy to provide lengthy complex instrumental pass...

(60:00; Melodic Revolution Records) Here we have the debut album from T.A.P., a multinational group of musicians who have known each other for years in one way or another, yet only recently decided to work together to create their own music. Mike Jobborn (keyboards, synth, soundscapes, drum programming), Mark Cook (Warr guitar, guitars, basses, drums, soundscapes, synths, samples, strings) and Suzi James (guitars, bass, oud, flute, percussion) play on all eight tracks while Gayle Ellett (Hammond, Moog, Mellotron) is on five and then Paul Sears and Bill Bachman add drums to one song each (although I must say the drum programming on the other tracks is much better than is often the case). I reviewed Gayle and Mark only recently (Gayle Ellett and the Electromags), plus have known the music of Djam Karet for decades, while The Muffins (Paul Sears) is never too far away from my playlists and I reviewed the debut Fearful Symmetry (Suzi James) album a while back and Mike Jobborn and I have be...

(55:38; Melodic Revolution Records) Over the course of self and state-ordered quarantine during the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, multi-instrumentalist Juan R Leõn found time to write a short parable inspired by an article on faith and the “new normal”. Not being confident in his own singing abilities, Juan reached out to friend and poet Corey Stano to provide the vocal performance on “The Rhino And The Oxpecker”, which is the opening track on this release. I noticed this album was indicated as being a deluxe edition, so wondered what else was available and I note that SATL independently released an album of the same name in 2020, but that is all I know about it, so cannot state if this contains the same recordings/songs or if it has been dramatically altered. What I do know is that I am incredibly pleased that Nick Katona has seen fit to sign the band to MRR as this is an intriguing release from beginning to end. I have long been a fan of Hibernal and the way that Mark seamlessly b...

(56:43; Talking Elephant Records) David Jackson surely needs no introduction whatsoever, having been at the top of the musical tree for more than 50 years, with his work with VDGG cementing his importance in the progressive rock scene, and who these days can be found in the wonderful Kaprekar’s Constant. This album started life as a purely solo collection, as David found himself stuck at home during the pandemic and started working through pieces he had started but never finished. He was laying down track after tracks, adding horn after horn, and was discussing it with René one day and he immediately asked to become involved, adding not only percussion but his ideas and production skills. Soon there were some other guests as well, including Colin Edwin (Porcupine Tree) on bass, John Ellis (Peter Gabriel & The Stranglers), Andrew Keeling (Composer & Gong Farmers) and Dorie Jackson. This album has been gaining a lot of attention, as while Jackson is known for often moving well in...

(57:29; Frontiers Music) When I came across 2020’s ‘Tragic Separation’ from this Italian prog metal act I said I could not believe it had taken ten albums for me to come across them, as here was a band approaching the genre from AOR and with a heavy appreciation of Stratovarius. I wrote that review and put it on PA years ago, but somewhat incredibly there have been no others added to the site, and as I write about their most recent release, ‘Life’, that is currently sat with zero, so if ever a band was hitting well above their weight but also staying massively under the radar, then it is DGM. They released their debut all the way back in 1997, and although they do not have any original members still in the band, everyone involved has been there since at least 2008, while drummer Fabio Costantino actually joined in time for the second album, ‘Wings of Time’, from 1999. They never sound Italian, as they have a hugely American outlook to their music, and while it is highly polished they s...

(39:57; Diratz) Over the last few years I have become friends with Dave Newhouse (The Muffins) and Jerry King, both of whom are members of Moon X among others. They thought I might be interested in some of their older releases so put together a package and sent it down to NZ, which is why I am now listening to the 2017 album by Diratz. The bandname is new to me, but I had previously come across the singer Carla Diratz as she has appeared on some Manna/Mirage releases, and in many ways, this is the missing link between 2015’s ‘Blue Dogs’ and 2018’s ‘Rest of the World’. Named after The Muffins’ 1978 debut album, Manna/Mirage was formed by woodwind and keyboard player Dave Newhouse, and he was soon joined by fellow Muffins Billy Swann and Paul Sears, as well as Newhouse's son George, along with Mark Stanley and Steve Pastena. This was the only time there was a full band, and it was after the debut album that Diratz came into being with Dave and George joining forces with Bret Hart and...

(39:51; Silver Label) Track list: 1. You Are 4:50 2. Fear 2:25 3. Original Sin 3:03 4. 12 Days 3:15 5. Honestly 4:13 6. In Hell You Are 5:28 7. I Wonder 3:27 8. Unreality 4:05 9. Star 3:42 10. Bird 5:23 Line-up: Tonje Ettesvoll - vocals, keyboards, saxophones, clarinet Andre Storeng - keyboards, hammond B3, grand piano Dan Johnsen - guitars Kristian Edvardsen - bass Marco Minneman - drums, guitars with: Kelly Daoust - guitars Jan Tariq Rui-Rahman - guitars, accordion, backing vocals Marte Eberson - keyboards Sidsel Walstad - harp Sigrun Eng - cello Sunniva Oftedahl - violins Finn Harrisson - backing vocals Robyn Stone Ettesvoll - backing vocals Prolusion. Norwegian project Unicorn is the creative vehicle of composer and musician Tonje Ettesvoll. The Unicorn project dates back to 1998, making it's debut with a live performance, and with an album following in 2003. Some 20 years later Unicorn returned with the album "You Are", released on the Silver Label. A label that I su...

(48:09; Fruits de Mer Records) Track list: 1. In the Woods 5:01 2. Cold River 4:26 3. Home 4:00 4. Little Light 4:26 5. Murderers of a Dying God 6:11 6. Humans 4:52 7. Solanin 5:23 8. Frozen Roses 4:21 9. Abysses 5:12 10. At the Gates of Dawn 4:17 Line-up: Cecilia Miradoli - vocals Max Tarenzi - instruments Prolusion. Italian band Pinhdar has been around ever since 2014, with their first foray into the world of recording artists taking place in 2019. Since then a further two albums have seen the light of day from this band. The most recent of these was released in late March of 2024. This album is called "A Sparkle on the Dark Water", and was released through UK label Fruits de Mer Records. Analysis. Strictly speaking, this isn't a band that have any strong or direct ties to progressive rock as such. This is an album that comes with a liberal array of psychedelic rock details though, but that being said these are more subservient elements rather than defining and dominant...

(64:08; Spheric Music) Track list: 1. New Horizon 6:38 2. Dream Glide 7:39 3. Cave World 5:27 4. Fantasy Plays 5:07 5. Towards Truth 2:04 6. Runguar 2:28 7. Secret Call 5:25 8. Chain of Images 8:29 9. Deep Cloud 2:37 10. Fading Memories 7:57 11. Candle 1:49 12. Bon Courage 8:28 Line-up: Lambert Ringlage - all instruments Prolusion. German composer and musician Lambert Ringlage have been an active creator of electronic music for several decades at this point, with the majority of his material released through his own label Spheric Music. His latest studio effort is called "Bon Courage", and was released in the fall of 2023. Analysis. I see that Tangerine Dream is cited as a major inspiration for Lambert's ventures into the realm of progressive electronic music, and while I do hear those tendencies throughout - especially in terms of using vintage sounding instruments and keyboards - I do find that comparisons for the total impression and associations I get from listening t...

(58:18; Spheric Music) Track list: 1. Radio Active 7:54 2. Lovely Guitar 6:32 3. Smooth Relax 5:10 4. Moments of Love 5:44 5. Session-1 with Daniel 3:46 6. Session-2 with Daniel 5:28 7. Between Day and Night 7:42 8. Harmony of Emotion 6:29 9. Optional Space 9:33 Line-up: Robert Schroder - all instruments with: Daniel Deutschle - guitars Gerdi Rudolf - guitars Prolusion. German artist Robert Schroeder has been a feature in the German and progressive electronic music scene ever since the tail end of the 1970's, and while it appears that he has had phases without a creative output he does have more than a dozen studio productions to his name as of 2024. At the start of 2024 he released his latest studio album "D.MO Vol. 5" through the German label Spheric Music. Analysis. I see that on the Progarchives website that Schroeder is described as being one of the musicians that are regarded as following in the footsteps of the late and legendary Klaus Schulze. I don't know eno...

(31:42; Neil Campbell) Track list: 1. Setting Sail 4:45 2. Franz Josef Land 3:04 3. Fresh Water Streams 2:57 4. The Opening 3:50 5. Anthem of the Giants 1:51 6. The Smoky God 5:45 7. Returning 6:12 8. Recollection 3:18 Line-up: Neil Campbell - guitars, bass, synthesizers, keyboards, electronics, programming Marty Snape - electronics Viktor Nordberg - drums Jon Lawton - electronics, programming with: Roger Gardiner - bass Stephen Cole - electronics Prolusion. For the past couple of decades UK composer and musician Neil Campbell have made a name for himself in the world of progressive rock as well as the world of music in general, with his use of the guitar as an instrument and the acoustic guitar in particular as the element most often singled out by fans and critics for specific praise. Campbell is now out with the studio album "The Smoky God", which was self released in the early spring of 2024. Analysis. I first came across Campbell back in 2008, when he released the splend...