(49:44; Generation Prog Records) I generally think of myself as being quite clued up with what is going on in the prog scene, but even someone as prolific as myself cannot review everything out there. However, it is something of a surprise to come across an artist who has already released five albums in the last two decades, with this being the sixth, yet I have never heard of them. Although this may seem to be a band, it is actually mostly the work of multi-instrumentalist Chris Hathcock, who is also active as guitarist and singer in symphonic death metal act Xael, and has also drummed in Knightmare and Wehrwolfe. On this album he provides all instrumentation and vocals apart from James Nelson (lead guitar, acoustic guitar), Brian Kingsland (vocals on one track, Nile) and narrator Vienna Gloom. This is a concept album which works through the complex terrain of mental illness, with each song shedding light on a unique psychological struggle, from the disorientation of panic attacks and...

(50:36; Ôresund Space Collective) Here we have what has been lovingly described as jam #17 from the Stockholm Sessions, Dec 10th, 2024. That day in the studio there was Mattias (drums), Jonathan (guitar, violin), Christian (guitar), Jiri (bass), Mogens (synths), Dr. Space (Moog Spectravox), Love (congas, percussion) and KG (Mellotron, Mini- Moog), all looking to each other for inspiration. I admit to having long been a fan of this band, having reviewed their debut when it was released in 2006, and after more than 40 albums containing assorted improvised jams, they keep producing the goods, and this is possibly their strongest yet. As well as the rhythm section and a percussionist we have two guitarists (including one who switches to violin when the time is right) and three keyboard players, and it is down to the latter to provide the atmosphere and the backdrop, the rhythm section to provide some sort of foundation and melody, while all the time we have the guitarists turning up the am...

(39:43; Cuneiform) Not only is this a fascinating album musically, but the performances must be insane, as what we have here is the latest album by Gilles Laval who has been inspired by Arthur Rimbaud’s 1871 poem, ‘Le Bateau ivre’. But Laval has taken this to the next level as not only has he written seven instrumental pieces inspired by the poem, but then he has worked with 20 core guitarists who appear on this album. When it is performed those 20 are spread among four groups of 25 guitarists of varying different ability levels, with the audience sat in the centre of the four stages. Laval has long been an advocate for this type of mass participation, but what is intriguing to me is that even if the listener knew nothing about the background and just listened to the music, they would come away understanding there was something quite special going on even if they did not know what it was. Rimbaud may have felt he was on a drunken boat, but to the listener the sounds being produced make...

(41:00; Iapetus) On May 23rd, 2025, Frankie Cofone went to Berlin to record his second ambient guitar album at the Hansa Studios with Markus Reuter acting as producer. When they had finished there was still an hour of studio time left, at which point Markus spotted a vintage ARP Solina String Ensemble and he asked the engineer to patch it in. Markus and Frankie started playing together, with the result being this album. There has been very little done to the recording since that night when two musicians just sat and created something special, and the result is New Age, Ambient, and simply beautiful.   Markus uses the synthesizer to create a wonderful, lush backdrop for Francis to play against, both following the other’s lead as to what needs to come next, being transported by the music as they go on a journey which is enthralling, enlightening, and incredibly buoyant. There is a steely strength within the fragility, as while there is a gossamer lightness there is also the feel...

(79:32 x 2; Flaming Row) There is no doubt that German Progressive Metal act Flaming Row do not believe in doing anything by halves but instead go full out and can be massively over the top, and that is what has happened with this, their latest album. Although I enjoyed 2019’s ‘The Pure Shine’, I said that using as its concept the story of Stephen King’s ‘The Dark Tower’ was wrong, and they could not possibly do it justice as the story was far too large to condense into an album. I have no idea if that caused a rethink in their approach, but they decided that for their next release they were going to again undertake a concept based on a story, but this time asked a friend of the band to write one they could use. Christian Dolle happily obliged, and provided them with “Hüterin Der Schriften”, a fantasy story about heroines attempting to save humanity as they battle against The Mesh. If one gets the standard version then you get the album twice, once in English and once in German, and th...

(53:00; Progrock.com's Essentials) Suzi James (guitars, bass, keyboards, flute, violin, oud, mandolin), Yael Shotts (vocals) and Sharon Petrover (drums) are back with their third album, following on from 2022’s ‘The Difficult Second’. Yet again Suzi has taken on a huge amount of work, providing all the instruments (apart from drums) herself, except for the input of Mark Cook on Warr Guitar on one track. Yet again I must say this never sounds like a project but instead feels like a full band as Suzi truly is a master of many instruments so one never realises it is just one person doing the work. Yet again the arrangements are key, and Suzi maintains interest by using both different instrumentation and approaches to ensure one is never sure what is going to happen from one song to the next.  I must admit to not really enjoying much of the drum sound, and I wonder if Sharon is using an electronic kit this time as while the playing is great the sound is quite muted and somewhat dead at...

(60:00; Erewän) Erewän is a singer-songwriter from Nice in France, and here he has returned with his second album, following from 2021’s ‘How Will All This End’. In many ways this is prog folk with influences here and there from Celtic, film scores, New Age, Ambient etc. Opening track “Greetings From Slumberland” reminds me somewhat of Iona, and I was really enjoying this instrumental as while it does somewhat meander along it is definitely pleasant with flute, mandolin and other instruments combining with the electric guitar to provide plenty of layers and support. I thought this was setting the scene for the rest of the album, but sadly this was the highlight, and it went downhill from there with far less emphasis on Celtic and more of prog folk with little direction. The main reason for my lack of enjoyment is that while Erewän is obviously a good musician who can write enjoyable material, he is not a very good singer, or at least his voice is an acquired taste which I do not apprec...

(44:41; Wild Thing Records) This is the first time I have come across Adelaide’s Dyssidia, who have been releasing material for more than a decade, and here have returned with their second album, five years after their debut, ‘Costly Signals’. The band are a quartet, Corey Davis (guitars), Neil Palmer (bass), Mitch Brackman (vocals) and Liam Weedall (drums): there are also keyboards on this release which are important to the overall sound, but I have no idea who provides these. What we have is hard-hitting technical progressive metal which is bringing in a great deal of influences and extremes and there is no doubt they have been listening a great deal to TessaracT, while one can only wonder how much impact co-producer Sam Vallen (Caligula’s Horse) had on the final sound. There is also no doubt to my ears that they have also been paying close attention to Protest the Hero, as Mitch has the ability to sing or growl with a huge range, similar in many ways to Rody Walker, while they have ...

(39:50; Astronomy Recording Music) Following on from 2022’s debut EP, ‘Consecuencias’, here we have the debut album from Spanish quintet Demo Rumudo, who comprise Álvaro Fernández ( alto sax, soprano sax, tenor sax, flute, EWI), Gabriel Visinel (guitars), Ángel Rodríguez (drums), Andrés Real (fretless bass, double bass) and Hugo Martsan (keyboards, programming). According to the band, “’Second Nature’ is an entirely instrumental album where progressive structures and jazz-driven freedom coexist naturally. The music moves with precision and intent, balancing technical depth with a strong emotional core.” While I think this is a great summary of what I am listening to, I would actually argue that this is less JRF and way more “straight” jazz, whatever that is. This is one of those albums which is hugely complex and complicated, wonderfully layered and arranged, where everyone has a huge role in the overall proceedings yet at the same time is somehow relaxing and incredibly easy to listen...

(66:00; Ma.Ra.Cash Records) This album has been creating quite a few waves in the prog scene, so I thought I ought to check it out. Daal are an Italian duo formed by DAvide Guidoni and ALfio Costa, and since their debut in 2009 have been fairly active releasing both this, their eighth album, and ‘Live: Waves from the Underground’, their ninth, in 2025. The line-up is the same as it has been for the last few releases with Alfio Costa (piano, Rhodes piano, Hammond organ, Mellotron, Minimoog, Moog Sub-37, Roli Seaboard and other synths) and Davide Guidoni (drums, acoustic percussions, noises and samplers) joined by Ettore Salati (guitars) and Bobo Aiolfi (basses). They are often an instrumental act, but this time there are two songs which have vocals, care of Joe Sal and Alphabeard. According to ProgArchives, reviewers/raters have their other 2025 album at #24 in the top albums of 2025, with this being at #36, but to be honest I just don’t get it at all. There are some reviewers who say h...

(139:00; Crime Records) SPOILER ALERT: In this review I will be discussing some of the storyline and participants, so if you want to listen to the album without this information then just be aware this is the third in the ‘Professor King’ trilogy but in many ways should more accurately be thought of as a sequel to ‘Alchemy’ and if you enjoyed those then this is essential.  Clive and I have known each other for more than 30 years and I have always followed his musical path with interest as he has never been content with staying in just one area, but has spread his talents wide, as a composer, librettist, musician, singer and producer. He has been involved in numerous projects, and I consider myself lucky that I saw him front Shadowland on the infamous ‘Lurve Ambassadors’ tour a million years ago, but I am always honest with my opinions so if I didn’t enjoy this then I would say so. However, this is a wonderful continuation of the story which commenced with 2013’s ‘Alchemy’, and was ...