(141:02; Roxx Records) A while back I was contacted by Thomas McKeown, who had a new project called Undoubting Thomas and he was asking if I would be interested in reviewing it. I thoroughly enjoyed that album, and Tom and I started talking about the band he used to be in, Damascus. It transpired that this progressive band had released two EP’s (‘Damascus’ and ‘Demo ‘91’), three cassette albums (‘Will I Find You There?’, ‘Timeless’ and ‘Soon… The Doors Will Open’) and there was also an unreleased album called ‘The Turning Tide’, all of which had been compiled into one double CD set. Needless to say, I wanted to hear that as well, and this is what I am now listening to. The line-up was Tom McKeown (lead & background vocals, keyboards, guitars), Cliff Zweibruck (bass, background vocals), Marc Reich (lead & background vocals, guitars) and David Coy (drums & percussion), and this set includes an interview with Tom, loads of background information, all lyrics, plenty of photos, ...

(73:00; Freia Music) Here we have a “new” band which has been created by musicians who one way or another have known each other for a very long time indeed. Singer Ruud Stoker, keyboard player Julian Driessen and drummer Mike Boekhout have all been in Timelock for decades, while they were also all in Dreamcarnation, and Ruud and Julian were both in The Last Detail (while Julian is also known for being in the renowned Ywis and For Absent Friends). So where does guitarist/bassist Ron Koel fit in? Apparently, he was at school with Julian, and when they caught up at a reunion decided to record some music together and he ended up playing on the bonus tracks on the 2023 reissue of Timelock’s 2008 album, ‘Buildings’. It all seems very incestuous indeed if you ask me… The guys started working on this album during Covid, and it is based on a science fiction story written by Ruud, set in the year 5930, regarding signals originally heard on Earth in 3953. The album has been released in a 64-page ...

(69:00, Generation Prog) It has been way too long since the last Cea Serin album, 2014’s ‘The Vibrant Sound of Bliss and Decay’, which in itself took 10 years from the debut, but at long last they are back with the third. Founder Jay Lamm (vocals, rhythm guitars, bass, keyboards, piano) and drummer Rory Faciane, who was also on the last album, are both here but I note co-founder  guitarist Keith Warman is not. Instead we have a host of guest musicians in the guise of Andy Gillion (solo, ex-Mors Principium Est), Dann Hoyos (Rise to Fall), Vick LeCar (solo artist), Steve Blaze (Lillian Axe), Steffi Cannelli (Cirque du Soleil), João Miguel (solo, Enblood, Adamantine), Manuel Acevedo (SAUDA), Cecillia Cuccolini, and Coen Strouken (Circus of Fools, Eluveitie), while the album was mixed and mastered by Tom MacLean (Haken, To-Mera). Historically the band have discussed their love of Carcass and Cradle of Filth, and there is no doubt that their style of prog metal is at the more extreme en...

(99:13; Esoteric Recordings) This double CD captures the original line-up of Andrew Latimer (guitars, flute, vocals), Peter Bardens (organ, piano, Minimoog, Mellotron, vocals), Doug Ferguson (bass) and Andy Ward (drums & percussion) at The Marquee on October 30th, 1974. They were touring in support of their second album, ‘Mirage’, and the set was recorded on 16-track by Decca to promote their forthcoming American tour as well as getting more publicity for the album in Europe. Stephen W Tayler has mixed this from the original tapes, and for any fan of the band, this is absolutely essential. The guys are incredibly tight, having been working through the rigour which was the early Seventies rock scene of recording quickly and then spending most of the time on the road, and they had been hard at it since the album release in March 1974. Not only that, but they were already looking forward to their third album, the classic ‘Music Inspired by the Snow Goose’ and we get some of that mater...

(64:47; Discus Music) I believe that what we have here is a recording of the second-ever gig by the short-lived trio of drummer/vocalist Charles Hayward (Quiet Sun, This Heat, Massacre), Japanese guitarist Makoto Kawabata (Acid Mothers Temple, Acid Mothers Gong) and Belgian bassist Guy Segers (Univers Zero). The previous night had been their first ever gig, which was also recorded, and released in 2015 as ‘Live at Café Oto’. Tonight, 25th May 2013, saw the trio at Sticky Mike's Frog Bar in Brighton and we get three tracks, with “Knead The Bread” clocking in at 21 minutes, “Limpid Intone (Psalmodie Limpide)” more than 32, with “Mineral Knot” feeling quite tame at just 11. This is all about collective improvisation, living on the edge, but what makes this so enthralling is that it is impossible to pick who is the most important contributor. Each of the players are key to what is going on, from the frenetic drumming to the melodic bass or the over-the-top guitar sounds, which all drag...

(49:00; 7d Media) I have long been a fan of Trey Gunn  and his 10-string touch guitar, as he been challenging the boundaries of what is possible with the likes of Fripp, Reuter and others in bands such as King Crimson and Tu-Ner. His inventiveness appears to know no bounds, and he is always looking for new people to work with and assist him in his quest and here we find him with David Forlano who provides electronics, EWI, alto saxophone, wood flute and bells. Forlano is a new name to me, but apparently he used to often team up with percussionist Toshi Makihara for improvisational performances, but in 2005 he took a 10-year sabbatical from all performance and sound work, coming back to it with renewed enthusiasm. Recorded live in Santa Fe in two sessions towards the end of 2024, there is definitely a coming together of two very different minds, each taking the lead when the time is right, but given the way they are composing live, and then adding additional layers, one never knows ...

(61:00; Madfish) I have been a fan of Spock’s Beard ever since Martin Orford sent me a copy of the American version of ‘The Light’, informing me that GEP were going to be releasing it in Europe. I saw the original line-up play a few times when they came to the UK, interviewed Neal, Nick and Alan at different times, and also saw the Nick-fronted version with Jimmy on drums. That night they were supported by CGT and Enchant, and I cannot have been the only one who was surprised when Ted Leonard later became the new frontman. It is seven years since ‘Noise Floor’, and I honestly thought the band was over given that Ted, Dave Meros and Jimmy had formed Pattern-Seeking Animals with John Boegehold and released five albums in the same period. But no, Ted and Dave have joined together again with Alan and Ryo and new drummer Nick Potter to provide us with ‘The Archaeoptimist’. Nick is a very special find, as one would expect given whose shoes he has had to fill, and he fits in seamlessly, as if...

(16:30; Tracy Hitchings) I first came across Tracy back in 1992 when I was sent a copy of Quasar’s ‘The Loreli’ to review, and for a while afterwards she seemed to be everywhere as she was Clive Nolan’s female singer of choice for multiple projects while she was an in-demand session singer both for live work and studio. The first time I saw her sing was when she and Clive supported Landmarq at The Standard when Damian Wilson was lead singer and they had just released ‘Solitary Witness’. She joined that band in time for 1998’s ‘Science of Coincidence’ and toured with them before announcing she was fighting cancer. She fought that terrible disease and won the battle and appeared on all three of their live albums as well as their last studio release, ‘Entertaining Angels’, in 2012. She decided to move to Australia to be with Peter Yaxley, who she had met on a cruise, and after a while started her very successful podcast ,‘Tracy’s Prog World’, as well as going back into the recording studi...

(40:52; Transglobal) This is the follow-up to 2023’s debut and contains the same line-up of Steve Bonino (lyrics, bass, vocals), Tony Romero (synth, spoken word), Eric Confer (guitars) and Robeone (keyboards, synthesizers) although this time they also have guest Jimmy Keegan (drums). Jimmy has worked quite a bit with Steve in the past, so they know each other well, while I noticed this was mastered by none other than Peter Matuchniak. Now, if Vince Gloster had been involved, I would have said that in many ways this could be considered a second Bomber Goggles album due to the way the lyrics concentrate on the environment and what man has done to the planet, as the solo 2018 was Vince, Peter, Steve and Jimmy. Mind you, this concept story is about leaving the planet, so could it be considered a follow-on from the ‘Stargazer’ albums by The Steve Bonino Project which also included Peter and Jimmy? All messing about aside, this quintet  has created a wonderful album which is crossover pr...

(81:00; Nichelodeon) What I am listening to is the complete version of the latest release by Claudio Milano, aka NichelOdeon, which is the same album in two different versions which provides us with a combined running time of three hours. He provides all vocals from C -1 to F# 9, piano, keyboards, field recordings, electronics, virtual orchestra while the other main protagonist is Teo Ravelli aka borda (Aether, I Sincopatici, NichelOdeon) with drones, electronics, drums and percussions, and there are then countless others working together to produce something which is undoubtedly progressive and pushing musical boundaries while sounding like no-one else around. The first album contains six songs, and the second seven, but to be honest these are in many ways just meaningless concepts as what is happening here is that Claudio is combining pieces of more than 50 songs (dating from approximately 27 BC to 2025) which have no relationship to each other together with new and different themes ...

(61:27; Jadis) The first time I saw Jadis was on the ‘Lurve Ambassdors’ tour in 1992, I also saw the duo of Gary Chandler and Martin Orford play in the Nineties a few times, ‘More Than Meets The Eye’ is (in my opinion), one of the greatest prog albums ever, and my ringtone is “Wonderful World”. It is safe to say it is unlikely I will ever give these guys a poor review, not because I am biased (although that could be debated), but because I honestly think they are incredible and sound like no-one else around. The band is built around the voice and guitar of Gary Chandler, who has been there since the very beginning, some 40 years ago. At one point he was the only person left and it would have been easy to give up, but instead he recruited Martin Orford, Steve Christey and John Jowitt at the end of the Eighties and the band were revitalised.  Over the years there have been a few line-up changes, but Gary and Steve have now been together consistently for more than 35 years, Martin is ...

(Box set 7xCD + 1xBD; Kscope) Back in 1993 I was told about this amazing new prog band from Yeovil called Vulgar Unicorn, and I eventually managed to get a phone number to call them, which is how I got their debut demo tape, ‘The History of the World’. The band was based around two main musicians, Neil Randle and Bruce Soord, and after another demo (‘Under The Umbrella’) they signed with Cyclops, who at the time were grabbing every prog band they could lay their hands on, releasing their debut CD in 1995. I liked them right from the beginning, but Bruce decided he also needed to release a different style of music, and formed a side project, Pineapple Thief (the “The” was not added until ’12 Stories Down’ in 2004), who released ‘Abducting the Unicorn’ (see the play on the title here?) in 1999. Both bands existed for a while, with Vulgar Unicorn releasing their final album in 2005, but The Pineapple Thief have gone from strength to strength, and this new 8-disc compilation provides a rem...

(221:00; Esoteric Recordings [2025 Edition] ) I know I am not the only person who thinks that Nektar’s second album, 1972’s ‘A Tab In The Ocean”, was their finest hour and now it has been reissued as a much-expanded set by Esoteric it is great to have the opportunity to revisit it again. Nektar have always been somewhat of an oddity in that they were a band who lived, recorded and toured in Germany, yet were actually British. The quartet of Roye Albrighton (guitar, lead vocals), Allan “Taff” Freeman (keyboards, vocals), Derek “Mo” Moore (bass guitar, vocals) and Ron Howden (drums and percussion), came together after they met in the music clubs of the Reeperbahn in Hamburg, while they also had a fifth member in lighting guru Mick Brockett who was often credited even though he was not a musician. The original album contained just four tracks and was 35 minutes in length, but it had a huge impact on many, including a certain Steve Harris who loved it so much that Maiden covered “King of T...

(62:00; White Knight Records) Having recently reviewed the second album from The Mighty Ra, 2025’s ‘Now In A Minute’, I am now listening to the debut which was released in 2022. Apparently, drummer Rob Griffiths was the instigator behind the band being formed, and I am grateful he decided it was worth doing, as this is a load of fun which takes me back thirty years. Back then I was enthusing over Welsh proggers Ezra, who had a very close link to Robert Reed (then of Cyan, now most well-known for Magenta), who was even a member of the band for a while. Their frontman was guitarist and singer Andy Edwards, who also appeared in The Fyreworks (also with Rob Reed), and he is now the main songwriter in The Mighty Ra with the line-up being completed by bassist Dave Rowe and keyboard player Rob Wilsher. Rob was a founder member of Multi-Story and played on their first two albums in the Eighties as well as since they reformed and released two more in 2016 and 2020. So, the expectation is that w...

(67:00; OOB Records) Mark Trueack is well-known for being co-founder of both Unitopia and United Progressive Fraternity (UPF), and I have enjoyed their albums, so was looking forward to hearing his new solo album. Apparently, he has signed with OOB for three albums, and this is the first. As one may be able to tell from the title, this is a fairly autobiographical work which commences with Mark providing some narration, and then we hear about the go-kart made from an ironing board for him by his father, “Go Kart”. We get a clip from the moon landing in “One Small Step for Man”, as anyone who was old enough to understand what was going on in 1969 was glued to the TV or radio, I know I was, and I was only six! Lyrically Mark covers many aspects which were important in his life, which makes this album very personal, and that is not always a good thing. Also, while I have enjoyed his work with Unitopia and UPF, this is very much not a progressive album and instead is focussed on jazz, funk...

(06:01; Windsailor Music [2021 Edition] ) The second single from Mormos was also released prior to the next album and again features two songs which are not available elsewhere. The ‘A’ side marks the first appearance of flautist Ernie Mansfield as composer, while the ‘B’ side is by Ernie and guitarist Elliott Delman along with their friend Dan Fogelberg (who later had Top 10 hits in America with “Longer”, “Same Old Lang Syne”, “Hard to Say” and “Leader of the Band”). “Magic Stone” commences with the melody being played on flute, Annie the Hat then repeating this, while in the background there is dramatic percussion. Sandy is plucking the cello, and with the introduction of harmony vocals it feels like a very different style for Mormos, as with this number they are definitely moving in much more of a pop direction, and at under three minutes it again seems very much a song of its time which should have gained much wider credit at the time. Any song which includes harmony whistling need...

(04:53; Windsailor Music [2021 Edition] ) I generally don’t review singles as I never have the time, but given this was released 45 years ago and contains two songs not available on album I thought I would make an exception. After the debut had been released, record label CBS France requested something more commercial, so Jim Cuomo (saxophone, clarinet, domra, keyboards, vocals) came up with the ‘A’ side which is much more piano based, bright and up-tempo. Annie the Hat (vocals) delivers a performance which surely should have got the band in the charts back when it was recorded (1971), but sadly that was not to be the case. Ernie Mansfield’s flute provides a wonderfully otherworldly feel, while both Elliott Delman (guitar) and Sandy Spencer (vocals) take much more of a back seat here, only really coming to life when Jim drives along with sax. There is a lot to take in on just 2:30. The ‘B’ side is even shorter at 2:25 but seems much longer as the band settle down into material which wo...

(115:00; Moonjune Records) This double CD set is a walk through Gary’s personal archives and contains previously unreleased tracks from 1978 to 2021. He is very unusual within the music scene as not only is he revered in rock, jazz and fusion settings, drumming with the likes of Allan Holdsworth, Level 42, Gary Moore and Jack Bruce, but he is also highly regarded as a pianist, playing with John McLaughlin & The 4th Dimension Band, Billy Cobham’s Spectrum 50 and Time Machine bands and Bill Evans & the Vansband All-Stars. This collection looks back to his early experimental improv jams with guitarist Steve Topping and bassist Paul Carmichael, a demo he had made in 1979 with Allan Holdsworth (with whom he will always be closely linked), and DAT board tapes from live performances with his jazz quartet at Ronnie Scott’s in London and his Force Majeure septet at Turner Sims Concert Hall in Southampton. We even get him playing nylon and steel string guitar at times. Husband has always...

(48:48; Discus Music) Before we get into the haunting beauty of the fourth album by Frostlake, it is only right to talk a little bit about those involved and who plays on what. Although the band is now a trio with Andy Peake joining Jan Todd and Terry Todd, there are only two of the eleven songs where all three involved as we have three where it is Jan solo, two where she plays with Andy, and four where she is with Terry. Jan wrote four of the songs on her own, four with Terry, two with Andy and only one where it is the three of them, so in many ways this feels more like a Jan solo album than a true band.  Mind you, when one looks at the instrumentation one can see why that appears to be the case, as she provides vocals, melodies and lyrics, guitar-electric/acoustic, cello, electric Harp.E, baritone psaltery, waterphones, guzheng, Hulusi flute, kalimba, Theremin, Korg wavedrum, Noisebox metal percussion, midi keys, software instruments, drum creations/samples, electronics, field re...

(59:49; Alan Morse) I have long been a fan of Alan Morse and feel his guitar playing is often underappreciated and his talents not recognised nearly enough. He has a very distinct style, and when I saw Spock’s Beard back in the Nineties I thought he was remarkable, while the image of him and Neal sharing a guitar with each playing on three strings is something I will always remember. Not long after Neal left the band, I also had the opportunity to interview Alan, and he came across as a warm and genuinely interesting person, so I was definitely looking forward to hearing this album. This is Alan’s second solo release, the first being an instrumental in 2007, and this time around we have an album of songs with assistance from plenty of guests. Alan wrote or co-wrote all the material, while there is room for performances from nearly the whole of Spock’s Beard, current and past, with just Nick Potters missing from proceedings (but given there are already four drummers involved there proba...

(42:42; Apollon Records / Gymnocal Industries) What we have here is the second in a trilogy of releases from multi-instrumentalist Râhoola, who also provides vocals for different characters, alongside multiple guests providing additional instrumentation or vocals. This is meant to be a very deep piece of work, as Râhoola states, this is, “An artistic syncretism inspired by Christian & Buddhist texts through a Jungian approach of multicultural interweaving”. There are various words in that sentence which are somewhat unusual within a music review, and given what is trying to be achieved it is perhaps not surprising that recording for this release started in 2014. The first album in this series was released in 2023, but I don’t know when the next one is due. Although the album is in English, there is so much going on with so many characters, and little in the way of linking dialogue, that it is very hard indeed to work out what is taking place and what the story actually relates to. ...

(60:58; Discus Music) Following on from my review of their latest album, 2025’s ‘Cosmic Light Clusters’, EMB band leader Guy Segers (most well-known for Univers Zero) asked me if I would like to review their previous one as well, which is why I am now listening to 2023’s ‘Bars Without Measures’, which was their fourth studio release. The group is much less of a band and more of a collective, where Guy brings together lots of different musicians and singers (here we have 30), some of which have played with EMB previously, some not, and some who will play with the band again in the future, or not. There is then a combination of full improvisation and/or Guy providing a composition which is worked on collectively, with Guy later taking the results and bringing the music together, like an artist choosing colours from his palette as to what works, and what does not, for the final piece. In this way it is similar to both Dr. Space (Øresund Space Collective) and the wonderful Robin Taylor, wh...

(36:50; Iapetus) I am always intrigued by anything released on Iapetus as the music is always interesting and challenging, but it is also generally instrumental, so I was rather intrigued with this as on first appearance it is more like a “normal” rock album, and it is only on closer investigation that one discovers what is going on. The line-up comprises Andy Toomey (bass, vocals), Markus Reuter (touch guitar, electric piano, piano, sampled vocals, Mellotron, bass synth, synthesizer, organ) and his Centrozoon bandmate Bernhard Wöstheinrich (samples, sounds, synthesizer) plus  Shawn Crowder (acoustic drums, electronic percussion). Apparently, the recording process comprised the musicians creating the songs on the first day, then Andy providing lyrics and vocals the next, so everything was written and recorded in just two days with no pre-work, which is an amazing accomplishment.  I do wonder if the Jason Statham movie, ‘Crank’, had anything to do with the concept as those two ...