(40:36; Psychoyogi) Here we have the ninth album from PsychoYogi, the fifth I have heard, and I am somewhat amazed to see that to date I am the only person who has reviewed those releases on PA which is nothing short of a crime. PsychoYogi are one of those bands who in some ways really fit the old art rock definition as they are definitely quite different to most of the prog scene, as while they are very English they also incorporate Zappa and Canterbury among some jazz and theatrics, while at all times also channelling plenty of Cardiacs. It seems very strange to me that fans of that band have yet to investigate these guys who are wonderfully active. There has been a slight line-up change from the last album in that Toby Nowell is not involved this time around, with the rest of the guys still here, Chris Ramsing (guitar, vocals), Izzy Stylish (bass), Justin Casey (drums), Ben Woodbine-Craft (violin) and Tim Smart (trombone – Tim joined The Specials in 2008 and stayed there until the b

(160 Pages; Sonicbond Publishing) In recent years Andrew has been making quite a name for himself in the progressive rock scene with his books on Galahad and Twelfth Night (as well as his view on the Eighties scene, ‘A Mirror of Dreams’), and here we have another in the same vein, this time providing the official biography of the one and only Edmund Geoffrey Mann. There is no doubt that while Geoff only lived to the age of 36 that he crammed way more into those years than anyone would have believed possible. He started his career as an artist, exhibiting his paintings at ten galleries, but was also a musician, performing hundreds of concerts and releasing fifteen albums. If that was not enough, he was a poet and a playwright before becoming a Church of England vicar and continued to perform while also having a family with his wife Jane. As with all of Andrew’s books this has been meticulously researched and provides us with details of his childhood in Manchester through becoming a stud

(41:14; Black Widow Records) I must be honest and say I was quite confused when I started listening to this, as this is not a style of music I normally associate with BWR as this is way more modern, far less gothic and proggy, and much more into the pop rock funk style with some progressive overtones here and here. The band was originally a trio comprising Elena ‘Hellen’ Villa (ex-Malcondita) on bass, mandolin and lead vocals, Claudio ‘Clode’ Cinquegrana (ex-New Trolls), on guitars, keyboards and backing vocals along with Silvano ‘Syl’ Bottari (ex-Vanexa) on drums. Originally the idea was to be a type of covers band reinterpreting classic material, but after a while they decided to go into the studio and work on new material. They also felt the need for a full-time keyboard player and invited Stefano Genti (also ex-New Trolls) to come onboard, and this album is the result. While New Trolls may never gained the heights of other bands from the Italian prog scene there is no doubt that th

(36:49; Black Widow Records [2024 Edition] ) Antonio Bartoccetti formed Jacula in 1969, who released two albums before changing their name to Antonius Rex in 1974 and releasing ‘Neque Semper Arcum Tendit Rex’. Apparently, there were issues with the cover and lyrics, so it never really got the full release, which took place with the second album under this name (or the fourth with Bartoccetti at the helm) in 1977, again with complaints about the cover. Apparently, this is a highly collectable album and Black Widow have again made it available, with the original cover (which was replaced after a year) and can be purchased with a 7” etched disc of the song “Gnome” which has appeared on a 1978 version. One of the four songs on the main set, “Morte al Potere” is a reworking of the first track on the debut Jacula album, “U.F.D.E.M.” but one must wonder why bother as much of this release gives the impression of style over substance. It is obvious they were influenced by horror but this is Ham

(35:13; Amanda Chaudhary) I was kindly sent this album by Jerry King, who guests on one of the tracks, and ever since I started playing it I have been trying to work out how to describe it and now here I am writing the review and I don’t think I am quite there yet. Yes, there’s jazz, funk, a Seventies vibe here, Eighties electronic there, some old-school mixed with very modern, but it ends up with part of me wanting to say “experimental” while another part thinks the most apt description might just be “weird”. Apparently, the title was taken from an episode of the original series of Mission Impossible where it was a codeword, and I am sure Leonard Nimoy would have struggled with describing what is a fascinating release. Amanda provides keyboards, synthesizers, electronics, and assorted Instruments, and she has pulled together a group of musicians to come in for just one track or a few, all coming in for a specific purpose. I have already mentioned Jerry, who is involved in many project

(52:11; Lynx Music) Here we have the fourth album from Polish act Wave. Until now they have been a stable quintet, but since 2020’s ‘Dream’ they have lost their second guitarist, Grzesiek Opałko, so the line-up is now Marcin Wrona (vocals, electric & acoustic guitars, percussion), Wojciech Lisowicz (grand piano, piano, electric piano, keyboards, harmonica , bass, acoustic guitar, backing vocals), Artur Ramiączek (drums, percussion) and Wiktor Moderau (bass) along with two guests in Rafał Gęborek (trumpet) and Roch Dobrowolski (cello). The band have treated driving at night as being an allegory for understanding our own existence in that we are somewhat cocooned while also wanting to see what lies ahead in the dark. There is a sadness in this music, as the band build a soundscape of layers which compress into each other with little in the way of space. It is not ominous, but there is definitely an absence of light and joy, with the result being something which needs to be played on

(38:09; Wasaya) I am not sure if I have ever come across any musical project from Syria, but that is what we have here with the second album from Wasaya, which features Tarek Shehabi (guitars, piano, keyboards, synth, backing vocals) Aram Kalousdian (drums). This five-track album features five different bassists and eight different singers, and while Marco Gluhmann (Sylvan) is probably the most recognised name, everyone is up to the task of working with a multi-instrumentalist who is as adept on keyboards as he is on guitar. This is a prog metal release, with less Arabian influences than one might expect from a musician living in Damacus, but enough that it stays interesting. This is music based on complex time signatures and interplay between different instruments, Apparently the 2014 debut, ‘Garden of Doubts’ was a solo affair, but by bringing in a drummer who provides the foundation as well as assisting in driving the music in new directions there is no doubt he has upped the game.

(41:35; Metal Blade Records) According to Wikipedia, the Faroe or Faeroe Islands are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They consist of 18 major islands (and a total of 779 islands, islets, and skerries) about 655 kilometres off the coast of Northern Europe, about halfway between Iceland and Norway, the closest neighbours being the Northern Isles and the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. Given the size of their population, which is roughly 55,000 people, it is somewhat surprising they have managed to produce a metal band who hit the scene almost as soon as they were formed in 1998 and are now back with their ninth studio album. Heri Joensen (vocals, guitar) and Gunnar Helmer "Gunz" Thomsen (bass) have been constants since the beginning while drummer Tadeusz "Tad" Rieckmann joined in 2016, so played on their last album, 2019’s ‘Hel’, with guitarist Hans Hammer coming onboard in 2021. Although there are still so

(47:16; Lynx Music) The most recent album by TRK project is another which is inspired by a classic literary tale. This time it is Homer’s ‘Odyssey’ although it has been transformed in time and place, as after having conquered Planet Troy, Captain Odysseus sets out on a long journey to his native planet Ithaca to see Penelope, his beloved wife, and the eight tracks depict that journey. Ryszard continues to blur the musical lines between TRK Project, Framauro and Millenium as while he (keyboards, acoustic & electric guitars) is again joined by Marcin Kruczek (guitars, also Framauro) and Krzysztof Wyrwa (bass, fretless, Millenium, Framauro), drummer Grzegorz Fieber (Framauro) only plays on half the tracks, with his place on the other four taken by Grzegorz Bauer (Millenium). If that was not enough,  Piotr Płonka (Millenium) provides guitar solos on two songs,  while newest Millenium member Łukasz Płatek (saxophone) also contributes to two songs. This time around we have four singers,

(55:23; Lynx Music) In 2021 TRK Project released their fourth album, a double CD featuring songs inspired by four classic pieces of literature, namely ‘Lord Of The Flies’ (William Golding), ‘The Trial’ (Franz Kafka) and two by George Orwell, ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ and  ‘Animal Farm’. The first CD had vocals by Karolina Leszko and the second by David Lewandowski, with the same four songs on each, played by Marcin Kruczek (guitar), Krzysztof Wyrwa (bass), Grzegorz Fieber (drums) and Ryszard Kramarski (keyboards, acoustic guitar). The following year they returned with this special edition which features both singers performing as duets along with an additional track, ‘The Little Match Girl’ (Hans Christian Anderson). Unfortunately, I have not heard the 2021 album so it is not possible to compare the two. This means I do not know if anything has been re-recorded, and it is quite possible the vocals have just been lifted and edited from the previous release to make it seem as if the two sin

(41:44; Deko Entertainment) I first came across Tenk Van Dool when I reviewed the albums by Temple of Switches, and here he is with Paul Sears from one of my favourite bands, The Muffins. Together they have combined to create an instrumental album which contains the enthusiasm and off-piste style of improvised freeform jazz yet has somehow been contained and brought to heel with multiple layers. Paul provides drums and percussion, with some beautiful touches (some of his triplets are to die for), showing just now much a great drummer can add to proceedings both in how he/she approaches the music and what they play/don’t play. Tenk provides everything else, from a range of different guitars (acoustic, electric, nylon, 12-string, fretless bass, mandolin) and keyboards (Hammond Organ, piano, clavinet, Solina, Mini-Moog, Mellotron) so the sounds are really quite rooted in the Seventies at times. Sometimes the music is approached from the guitar, sometimes from the keyboards, and while prog

(39:55; Lynx Music) Here we have the third album from Michał Dziadosz (vocals, bass, rhythms, analogue synthesizers, electric piano, guitars) along with guitarists Kovy Jagliński and Pablo Si who provide contributions on three tracks each. This is his third album in three years, with Jagliński also helping out on last year’s ‘1979-1982’, which also featured a keyboard solo from label boss Ryszard Kramarski (Millenium, TRK, Framauro). Here we have an album which was conceived in the prog world but was then mixed with urban soul and dance to create something which in many ways is out of time but also belongs to both the modern dance scene and classic disco. One only has to look at his influences to understand this will probably be a little different as there cannot be many prog bands who cite Daft Punk, David Sylvian, David Bowie, Paul Weller, Sade, Robert Glasper and Frank Sinatra. It is a very clean sounding release but due to the heavy dance and soul elements is not something I can wa

(23:58; Lynx Music) This four-track release is not by the American prog metal band who released a few albums a while back but instead is the first release since this Polish group’s debut album ‘Synæsthesia Deluxe’ which was released 10 years ago. Now featuring Krzysztof Siryk (guitar), Przemysław Zubowicz (vocals), Mariusz Bieniasz (drums) and Tomasz Marmol (bass). Their debut release was viewed by many as progressive death metal, but there has been quite a change here, with a direction which is now way more polished in style and approach. I know Siryk was on the debut, while the singer was Krzysztof Dybaś who had a few gruffer approach, so am not sure if it is the inclusion of Zubowicz which has seen the change, or if the band had made the decision which is why they got him. This four-track 24-minute-long release finds band which has been influenced by Muse, Porcupine Tree, Anathema, Leprous and even Coldplay with a style which is very polished and crossover prog to the core. The voca

(71:35; Progressive Promotion Records) It has taken more than a decade to get here, but finally we have the conclusion of the trilogy which started in 2011 with ‘The ? Book’ and was followed up with 2019’s ‘The ? Lie’ where we could see the cover of the book getting slightly ripped, now fully revealed as ‘The ? Truth’. It is the band’s sixth album, and of the band’s four musicians only two have returned, who have both been there since the beginnings in 2004, in Marek Arnold (keyboards, saxophones, Seaboard) and Ulf Reinhardt (drums & percussion) and they have been joined by Robert Brenner (bass) and Martin Fankhänel (electric & acoustic guitars). This is a story of religious fanaticism and to bring it to life they have used 15 singers, many of whom are returning to roles they played last time such as Lars Köhler (Samuel), Peter Jones (Father), Anne Trautmann (Evangeline) and Jana-Christina Pöche (Mother). I have been a fan of Marek’s music for many years, not only in SSTTGD but

(45:36; Karisma Records) I cannot be the only proghead who was surprised when Ritual made their presence known in 2020 with the release of an EP, ‘Glimpses From The Story of Mr. Bogd’ featuring songs from the next two albums. They had been so inspired by working to a narrative with ‘A Dangerous Journey’ that they decided to take it to the next level, writing music and lyrics based on a story written by band's bassist and main lyricist Fredrik Lindqvist, which totalled 90 minutes and will be released over two albums, of which this is the first. Even though they may have been out of the public view for many years, the band are still the same quartet of Patrik Lundström (vocals, guitar), Jon Gamble (keyboards, harmonium, harmonica, vocals), Fredrik Lindqvist (bass, bouzouki, mandolin, flutes) and Johan Nordgren (drums, percussion). I am very glad indeed that I listened to this after playing their 2007 album, ‘A Dangerous Journey’ (which was the previous release) as here they have take

(53:04; Tempus Fugit) It was about 20 years ago when I first came across Swedish quartet Ritual when I was sent a reissue of their debut album, which was originally released on Musea in 1996. I was very impressed with it, even though I noted that Patrik Lundström (here providing lead & backing vocals, electric & acoustic guitars) had also fronted the pop trio Blond at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1997. I was also fortunate enough to hear their 2006 live release, which I thoroughly enjoyed, and this was the next studio album, released in 2007. The band had kept the same line-up between the debut and this their fourth, with Patrick joined by Jon Gamble (grand piano, Rhodes, clavinet, harmonium, backing vocals), Fredrik Lindqvist (bass, Irish bouzouki, dulcimer, whistles, recorders, backing vocals) and Johan Nordgren (drums & percussion, nyckelharpa, backing vocals), while violinist Lovisa Hallstedt joins them on their epic, “Dangerous Journey”. When I reviewed them previous

(63:12; Progressive Promotion Records) Pete Mush (synths, bass, flutes, percussion), Tom Tee (guitars) and Jaro (bass) have three different drummers on this album, while Charles Sla has returned to guest on flute and they have another guest in the mighty Ed Wynne, which given their musical style makes total sense as there is no doubt that Ozrics have been the major influence on their style. Pete and Jaro have been a constant since the debut album in 2005 while Charles Sla was a full member at that time and this is their ninth studio album, the fourth I have come across, and yet again shows a band who present music in a very fluid style with no need for the interruption on vocals as the music takes us and them on a journey. They describe their music as space trance fusion dub progrock and that is as good a description as any I guess, but it might just be easier to think of a band which has Ozrics at its core, then adds Gong and Steve Hillage, sometimes with more of a rock guitar focus,

(44:07; Wild Thing Records) I was quite intrigued when I saw this, as while I have not previously come across Melbourne-based trio The Omnific before, any band with two bassist (plus some guest bassists) are certainly worth hearing, especially when they say their musical style is prog metal. Matt Fack (bass, programming), Toby Peterson-Stewart (bass) and Jerome Lematua (drums) have returned with this their second album after touring with The Hu, and all I can say is I need to hear a lot more from these guys. Mind you, I was quite confused at the beginning as it commences with a barbershop quartet by Tim Waurick, and excerpts from Luke Taylor of Australian alt-metalcore upstarts Heartline. There is obviously not enough bass on the album so they invited both British YouTube sensation Charles Berthoud, and exhilarating Australian newcomer Kai den Hertog to guest on the title track, as why not? Keyboard player Rohan Sharma (I Built The Sky) appears throughout the album, but for the most pa

(54:58; Lynx Music) Over the years the band has experimented with bringing in a saxophonist on various albums, and here the quintet of David Lewandowski (vocals), Piotr Płonka (guitars), Krzysztof Wyrwa (bass), Grzegorz Bauer (drums) and Ryszard Kramarski (keyboards, acoustic guitars) have been joined by Łukasz Płatek (flute, tenor saxophone) to add nuances here and there. This is the second album with David on vocals and it sounds like he is starting to settle in and understand his role in the band as he certainly has much more confidence. Of course, the rest of the guys have been playing together for years, and it shows. Ryszard has allowed himself to bring in some nice old-style organ sounds here and there which definitely add to the ambience, while Piotr continues to demonstrate his love of providing proper rock guitar when the time is right with solos and styles which would to be out of place in a much heavier setting, but somehow are also quite right here. One of the highlight is

(75:00; Lynx Music) Easter 2023 saw the ‘Progdreams X’ festival, held at  De Boerderij, Zoetermeer, Netherlands. One of the highlights on the second day, which was headlined by Solstice, were Millenium who have now made their set available in different formats. I only have the music, so cannot gauge how good or otherwise the visual aspects were, but have heard various complaints aimed at singer David Lewandowski (who was obviously having problems hearing himself from what I have read) and the statuesque pose of bassist Krzysztof Wyrwa, but if that is all people could find to complain about then it shows what a great set they were playing. The rest of the line-up of course was Piotr Płonka (guitar), Grzegorz Bauer (drums) and  Ryszard Kramarski (keyboards). Any band who has been as active as Millenium will always find it difficult to please everyone in terms of song choice for the set, and out of the 12 songs five are from the latest release, but given that is the only one which feature

(49:05; Lynx Music) I am very fortunate in that I have heard a great deal of Millenium over the years, and see I have 12 of their releases on my shelves. For the vast majority of their history their singer was Łukasz "Gall" Gałęziowsk, but he left after their 2017 album ’44 Minutes’ and was replaced by Marek Smelkowski for ‘MMXVIII’, which prior to this was the last album I have heard. I am not sure what happened then, as Łukasz returned to sing on a Millenium album in both 2019 and 2020, Marek sang on another Milennium album in 2020, before come to this 2022 release which features a new singer in David Lewandowski. At least the rest of the line-up was stable, with Piotr Płonka (electric & acoustic guitars), Krzysztof Wyrwa (bass), Grzegorz Bauer (drums & percussion) and Ryszard Kramarski (keyboards, acoustic guitars). Poland has long been a hotbed of progressive music, with Millenium being at the forefront since Ryszard formed the band more than 20 years ago. Unlike