Built For The Future - Brave New World (2020)

 

The second album from this band from USA.

The band was a trio with a line-up of bass, guitars, keyboards, synths, drums programming and vocals.

The band returned again after at ten years long album break. I reviewed their pretty good 2015 debut album Chasing Light back in October 2017, and you can read my review here. The band has later released three albums and I am reviewing them this summer. That also includes their new album.

Brave New World clocks in at seventy-five minutes.

The music is a blend of heavy prog and neo-prog.

The music is muscular, epic and monumental. It is also big, hard and muscular.

There are some good guitar harmonies and themes here. The songs are well constructed. The synths and keyboards are also good.

The music is also complex and slighly eclectic.

The vocals are really good throughout.

This is a good album and one to check out if US muscular hard prog is your thing.

3 points 

 

  

Ahoora - Ahoora (2006)

 

The debut album from this band from Iran.

The band was a quartet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars and vocals.

This is the debut album from this band who later released three more albums. The last one earlier this year. This year's album was released fifteen years after they broke up. A review will follow next week. 

Ahoora is clocking in at fifty-five minutes.

The music here is progressive thrash metal. 

Rock music, let alone metal, was and still is forbidden in Iran. Ahoora existed in spite of the religious regime in Iran. A regime that both jailed and murdered those who did not follow their adherence to a strict religious life. The local rock artists and bands did not get access to any good recording studios. Due to the threat of jail or a worse fate than that... Ahoora did not even try to get studio time when recording this album.  

The sound quality on this home-recorded album is therefore pretty poor. 

The instruments and vocals are pretty good on this album. Watchtower is a pretty good reference. Ahoora's music is slightly more progressive, though. VoiVod is another good reference.

There are some good stuff here though and some pretty dire stuff here.

This is a decent enough album but not one that I am really enjoying as the sound quality is too poor for my liking.

2 points 

  

Onségen Ensemble - A Tale (2026)

 

The fifth album from this band from Finland.

The band had expanded to a nine-pieces band on this album with a line-up of drums, percussion, bass, guitars, harmonica, flute, trumpet, programming and vocals.

The band returned again after a four years long album break. I like their first four good albums too so I was looking forward to this album.

A Tale is clocking in at three quarters of an hour. 

The music is art-rock.

There are a lot of folk rock influences in their music too. Finnish folk rock, that is. Call it prog folk too. Add in some cinematic rock too and you get the picture.

The music is elegant, melodic and warm. It is also complex and slightly epic. It is also eclectic too. A lot of things this album is...

The mix of electric and acoustic instruments is very good. The trumpet is adding spice to their music.

The sparse vocals are very good. 

There are some very good cinematic symphonic prog pieces here too which is adding a lot of quality to an otherwise good album. There is a lot to enjoy here.

This is indeed a very good album, bordering on a great album. This is one of the better albums from this year. I am certain that this album will end up high on a lot of progheads album of the year list.

3.5 points 

Quasar - Last Transmission (2017)

 

The debut album from this band from Italy.

The band was a duo with a line-up of drums, percussion, keyboards and synth.

Two guests added bass and guitars.

This album is the only sign of life so far from this band. I don't think the band will ever return with a new offering.

Last Transmission is clocking in at one hour.

The music is heavy prog.

The music is also instrumental. It is heavy throughout with a lot of dynamic structures.

There are a lot of guitars here in addition to the synths and keyboards.

The music is also pretty eclectic and complex.

This album does not bring anything new to this instrumental heavy prog scene. A pretty much overcrowded scene.

This is a decent enough album but nothing more than that.

2 points 

 

 

Quetzal - Quetzal (2024)

 

The debut album from this band from France.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

This is another new band from the French progressive rock scene. This time with some men who have lived some years and are no longer teenagers. The band has taken their name from a very colourful bird from America. At least this band has highlighted the beauty of this bird.... Running a review blog has some benefits, indeed.

Quetzal is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music is symphonic prog.

There are some hints of fusion here too. But Camel is still the best reference here.

The music is really dynamic and symphonic. The music is also retro with a great 1970s vibe.

There are a lot of good guitar harmonies and solos here. 

The vocals are wordless and used as an instrument. 

This is indeed a promising debut album and a good album in it's own right. This is an album well worth checking out.

3 points 

 

 

Ombra Della Sera. L' - Segreti Nel Nero (2026)

 

The second album from this band from Italy.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, bass, keyboards, woodwinds and vocals.

The band returned again after a fourteen years long break. Their debut album was a good album so their return is very much welcomed.

The album is clocking in at seventy minutes.

The music here is RPI.

Fabio Zuffanti is a member of this band and that is very much evident in the music of this band. It is fair to say that he has had a hand in influencing the music here. And that is a good thing. 

The music is pretty dark throughout. Most of the music is instrumental. The music is dark, brooding and slightly gothic.

The music is also melodic with some neo-classical music influences. There are some good keyboards generated moog and mellotron pieces here. 

The vocals is also good here.

The result is a good album and one to check out if RPI and symphonic prog floats your boat.

3 points  

 

Løvetann - Opus Magnum (2025)

 

All albums collected in one box from this band from Norway.

The line-ups on the various albums here are stated in each of my reviews of the included albums.

This box consists of 5 CDs, over 390 minutes of music.

Earlier this spring and summer, I have reviewed the eight albums included in this box. I see no reasons to repeat my reviews here.

There is also a good live album included in this box and some left over songs. 

The music is a blend of progressive folk and art-rock. The overall quality of this box, who also includes an informative English language booklet, is good.

Løvetann is one of the truly original bands in the prog scene and this box is well worth the money.

You can order the box from here. 

3 points    

Dear Hunter. The - Migrant Returned (2023)

 

The 11th album from this band from USA.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, percussion, glockenspiel, bass, guitars, piano, organ, keyboards, synth and vocals.

A number of guests added violin, viola, cello, woodwinds and vocals.

This album is a follow-up to their 2013 album Migrant. The band released some other albums after Migrant, but still wanted to return to this theme ten years later.

Migrant Returned is clocking in at seventy minutes.

The music is a blend of art-rock and indie rock.

The music is slow, mid-tempo and fast. There are some vaudeville rock vibes here too.  

The music is sometimes upbeat. It is also melancholic at times.

There is a lot of soul in their music, to say at least. The vocals are really good here.

This album is long and not everything is good here. There are some sub-standard tracks here and some good tracks.

This album is not their finest effort. It is still a pretty good album, well worth checking out.

2.5 points 

Broken Springs - Hidden Door (2026)

 

The debut album from this band from Hungary.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

Three guests added violin, cello and saxophone.

This is another new band to me as I recently got this album. The album has been released through Bandcamp.

Hidden Door is clocking in at seventy minutes.

The music is a blend of neo-prog and art-rock. There are also some indie-rock influences here.

The music is mid-tempo, mellow, slightly melancholic and song-based. The music is not particularly complex.

The music is guitar-based. There are some keyboards based piano and strings here too.

The female vocals here are very good and the focal point of their songs. 

The overall quality is pretty good. The quality of the vocals elevates this album to a good rating. I hope we will hear a lot more from this band in the future.

3 points 

Lazuli - 4603 Battlements (2011)

 

The fifth album from this band from France.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, marimba, percussion, bass, leode, guitars, mandolin, keyboards and vocals.

The band returned again after a two years long album break.

4603 Battlements is clocking in at fifty minutes.

The music is a blend of art-rock and French symphonic prog.

The music is colourful, pretty epic and melodic. It is also muscular and pretty hard too. It is most of all eclectic.

The guitars are very good here.

The French vocals are very good. 

This is another good album from this band, which I rate highly.

3 points 

 

 

 

Nilssen. Ole G - Immortal Fire (2016)

 

The fourth album from this artist from Norway.

Ole G. Nilssen did the guitars and vocals here.

He got help from a dozen of guests who provided drums, bass, guitars, cello, cajon, keyboards, recorder, trumpet, saxophone, choir and vocals.

I really like his debut album from 1976. The following two albums were half-decent. Hence, I did not have any hopes for Immortal Fire.

Immortal Fire clocks in at one hour.

The music is mostly pop-rock.  

Retro pop-rock, it has to be said.

There is a lot of Americana in the sound and music here. The Travelling Wilburys and Roy Orbison are good references here.

Ole G. Nilssen's vocals is very good. The songs are slightly better here than on the two previous albums. This is therefore a decent enough album. I am still not won over...

2 points  

 

Juniors. The - The Juniors Story (1971)

 

The one and only album from this band from Italy.

The band was a sextet with a line-up of percussion, drums, bass, guitars, piano, organ, clavinet, moog, woodwinds and vocals.

This album is the full story, all songs, released by this band throughout their history. This extended version of this album was released by Mellow Records in 2007. The true release date year of this album is therefore 2007. 

This album is clocking in at eighty-three minutes.  

The music is a blend of 1960s beat, Italian pop and some psych and RPI. 

The music can be labelled proto-RPI. 

The album starts with a very Whiter Shade Of Pale'ish (Procol Harum) theme. It is no less a rip-off of that theme. 

The rest of the album is more Italian beat and pop orientated. 

The (male) vocals are in Italian.

The music is simple and songs based. There is a lot of cheesy woodwinds here. The clavinets are also a bit cheesy.

The music is very much outdated and this album is a bit of a museum piece. This is a half-decent album without much merit.

1.5 points 

 

  

 

Juke - Chimeras' Tale (2014)

 

The one and only album from this band from France.

The band was a quartet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

This is another obscure band who released one album through Bandcamp and then disappeared. 

Chimeras' Tale is clocking in at seventy-two minutes.

The music here is a blend of psych rock and space rock.

Both Eloy and Pink Floyd are good references here. Fans of both bands will find a lot to like on this album.

The music is melodic, spacey, epic and slightly symphonic.

The first half of the album is dominated by the Eloy references before the Pink Floyd references takes over on the final half of this album.

The music still stands on it's own two feet and is original enough. Nothing has been copied. 

The music has a good retro 1970s ambience and sound. The vocals are good. There is a lot to like here. 

The music is good. This is an album that screams out for more attention and a proper release. Hopefully, that will happen one day.

3 points 

 

Hummings - A Place Where They Bloom (2026)

 

The debut album from this band from Greece.

The band was a nine-pieces big band with a line-up of drums, djembe, bass, double bass, guitars, flute, saxophone, piccolo, effects, narrations and vocals.  

This is a new band to me. They have released some singles, EPs and live albums before they finally released this album last month. I learnt about them through ProgArchives.

This album is clocking in at three quarters of an hour.

The music is a blend of folk-rock, jazz and art-rock.

The music here is lush, melodic and folk-rock orientated.

The music is mostly acoustic with some electric guitars used to amplify some aspects of their music. There are a lot of flutes here. 

The female vocals here, in English, are superb. Vasiliki Asimakopoulou is a great vocalist. She is also a big asset to this band.

The music is good to very good. A couple of better songs are the only missing ingredient here on this very promising debut album. We need to hear some more from this band.

3 points 

 

 

Løvetann - The Times (2013)

 

The eight album from this band from Norway.

The band was a quintet with a lineup of drums, bass, guitars, lute, mandolin, banjo, keyboards and vocals.

This is the so far final album from this band. It is very probably their final album ever too. Their albums has now been compiled and sold as a six CDs box. I will review that box sometime before the end of this month.

The Times is clocking in at three quarters of an hour.

The music is again a blend of folk-rock and art-rock. There are also a lot of eclectic prog here.

Their albums has become more and more eclectic on each album. This album is pretty close to being an eclectic prog album. I would still label their music as Arctic Prog.

There is some very good guitars here. Mostly guitar solos and harmonies. 

The operatic vocals is also very good here. These vocals is giving Lovetann's music it's own identity.

The vocals are entirely in English and this makes this album more accessible for the English speaking prog rock fans.

The quality is good throughout and this album offer some good value for money. This is perhaps their best album ever.

3 points  

 

 

Dear Hunter. The - The Fox & The Hunt (2020)

 

The ninth album from this band from USA.

This album is their leader Casey Crescendo on percussion, guitars, piano, organ and vocals.

He is supported by a full symphonic orchestra. 

I reviewed their first eight albums plus their tenth album Animai in # 3 of this blog. Then I heard this album and decided not to review it as I dislike this type of music. I have now got three leftover Dear Hunter albums and will review the two remaining albums in the coming one or two weeks.

The Fox & The Hunt is clocking in at one hour.

The music here is classical music. Light and fluffy classical music.

I am not sure where Casey Crescendo is hiding on this album. There is no traces or even hints of his instruments and his vocals here. This album could have been released on one of those specialist classical music record labels... and nobody would have batted an eyelid. The music here is unworthy of the The Dear Hunter name.

I don't like classical music at all. It is music I cannot connect with whatsoever. I despise and abhor the snobbery surrounding classical music. The music and the scene around it is everything I abhor about life and the world. I cannot understand why any rock musicians would even contemplate releasing a classical music album.

The music here is irrelevant, bad and a waste of time. This album is a turkey. Avoid !

1 point  

Echorec - Dreamstate (2026)

 

The second album from this band from Great Britain.

The band was a quartet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

This is the follow up album to the good 2020 debut album The Island. An album reviewed earlier this month.

Dreamstate is clocking in at three quarters of an hour.

The music here is a blend of neo-prog and art-rock.

The music is mid-tempo, elegant and melodic. The music is still pretty complex too. It is also at times both hard and muscular. 

There is a lot of varied themes and melodies here. The guitars are really good throughout. 

The vocals remind me a lot of Robert Wyatt. The vocals is also very good.

This band is a new star in the British prog rock scene and in particular in the neo-prog scene. This band deserves a lot more attention based on their two albums.

This is indeed a very good album and one to check out. It is also a candidate for the best 20 albums of the year. 

3.5 points 

 

 

Procol Harum - Broken Barricades (1971)

 

The fifth album from this band from Great Britain.

The band was a quartet with a lineup of drums, bass, guitars, piano, organ, synths and vocals.

The band returned again after only a year-long album break.

Broken Barricades is clocking in at thirty-five minutes.

The music is a blend of art-rock, symphonic prog and rhythm'n'blues.

The music is very much rooted in the rhythm'n'blues scene from the 1960s. There are also some strong Beatles influences in their music. The music has been refined by adding a touch of art-rock and symphonic prog to the songs and the music.

The music is both warm and elegant throughout. There are a lot of good details here. 

Gary Brooker and Robin Thrower were in fine form on this album. 

The vocals are very good. The other musicians also do a good job here.

The music is surprisingly good. I thought the band was finished when it came to good music after the A Salty Dog album. This album is proving me wrong.

This is, to my surprise, a good album indeed. It more than justify a revisit of their albums and a complete review of all their albums. Check out this album.

3 points 

 

 

 

Relayer - A Grander Vision (1994)

 

The debut album from this band from USA.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, percussion, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

I have reviewed three of their eight albums in this blog. But not in the right order. I got the remaining five unreviewed albums and they are all up for review in the coming weeks. 

A Grander Vision is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music here is a blend of neo-prog and symphonic prog.

The sound is the 1990s neo-prog sound. No surprise there, then. The music is pretty epic with some good guitar solos and harmonies.

The music is mostly mid-tempo with some faster and slower pieces in between. 

The vocals are pretty good.

The quality is somewhere between decent and good. This is an acceptable debut album and one to check out if the 1990s neo-prog sound and scene is your cup of tea.

2.5 points   

Jug Bundish - Quimeroide (2016)

 

The one and only album from this band from Costa Rica.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, synths and vocals.

This band comes from San Jose, Costa Rica's capital. They gigged there extensive and even got interviewed by Prog Magazine in 2017. Then.. silence.

Quimeroide is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music is psych rock.

The music also got some garage rock influences. There is also some very strong Latin-Rock elements here'

The music is rough and pretty raw. The psych part is all over the album. The music is song-oriented.

The guitars and the synths are pretty raw too. 

The vocals are in Spanish and they are good.

There are some good themes here and some decent themes. This is a pretty good album and well worth checking out. It is a name-your-price Bandcamp album and well worth the download.

2.5 points 

. 

 

 

  

 

Jesdat - The City Lights (2005)

 

The one and only album from this band from Spain.

The band was a sextet with a line-up of drums, percussion, bass, guitars, violin, keyboards, effects and vocals.

One guest added vocals to one song.

This album was released as a private CD-R album in 100 copies and it got no attention. The band then broke up. I got an electronic copy of this album years ago and put it on my to-review list this summer.

The album clocks in at three quarters of an hour.

The music is electronic, ambient prog.

There are a lot of Tangerine Dream and some Eloy influences here. 

There are some hints of krautrock too here. Most of the music is instrumental. There are some vocals at the end.

The music is pretty melodic and somewhat epic. 

I am no fan of electronic prog. I was a bit horrified when I found out that this was an electronic prog album. The music here is far better than I expected and I really like the epic parts here.

This is a decent album. An album who deserve a re-release.

2 points 

 

 

 

Ok Goodnight - StopGo (2026)

 

The third album from this band from USA.

The band was a quartet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards, effects and vocals.

Three guests added guitars and woodwinds.

The band returned again after a three years long album break. I reviewed their first two albums in # 3 of this blog and liked them a lot. A very promising band was my conclusion.

StopGo is clocking in at fifty minutes.

The music here is heavy prog.

The music is mid-tempo to fast. The music is flowery and colourful. There is some vaudeville rock here too as David Bowie has been an inspiration. There are also some heavy djent themes here too.

There are a lot of guitars here. The guitars are working on all ranges. From harmonies to solos to harsh guitars.

The female vocals is pretty dominant here and they are adding the spice and colours this album so full of.

The music can rightly be labelled as modern progressive rock in addition to the heavy prog label I have put on them. 

The overall quality is good and this band is very talented. I hope to hear a lot more from them in the future.

3 points 

 

 

Hourglass - Voids And Visions (2024)

 

The fifth album from this band from USA.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, synths and vocals.

The band returned again after a fifteen minutes long album break.

Voids And Visions is clocking in at seventy-eight minutes.

The music is a blend of heavy prog and progressive metal. There are also a lot of alternative rock here. 

This is a long album and there is a lot to take in here. This is not a traditional blend of prog metal and heavy prog. 

The music here is indeed a bit left-field and alternative. A bit eclectic too.

There are a lot of guitars here on this mid-tempo music. There are some strange rhythms here too.

The vocals are all good. 

The music is.... a bit unremarkable. I am not really getting it. The music is really not going anywhere. This is a decent enough album but so far their weakest album.

2 points 

 

 

Moundrag - Deux (2025)

 

The second album from this band from France.

The band was a duo with a line-up of drums, percussion, piano, keyboards, mellotron and vocals. 

I really liked their 2022 debut album and awarded it a Good rating. Hence I had some expectations for Deux.

This album is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music is best described as heavy prog.

The Atomic Rooster, ELP and Deep Purple influences are again shining through here. The organ is a reminder of both Jon Lord and Keith Emerson.

The music is both mid-tempo and fast.

There is a very nice 1970s vibe on this album.

The musicians does a good job and the vocals are very good.

This is another good album from this band. An album that should put the band on the prog rock map.

3 points 

Solberg. Einar - Vox Occulta (2026)

 

The second album from this artist from Norway.

Einar Solberg did the piano, keyboards and vocals here.

He had help from a symphony orchestra and some other guests who delivered drums, bass, guitars and violin.

This is the follow up album to 16 from 2023. A good album, indeed.

Vox Occulta is clocking in at fifty-five minutes.

The music is a blend of pomp-pop and art-rock.

The music is mostly vocals supported by the symphonic orchestra. Theatrical pop-rock is a good label. 

The music is therefore epic, majestic and bold. It is not symphonic prog, though. 

The vocals are superb. There are some good guitar solos here and the symphonic orchestra does their job.

There are some decent and some good songs here. I am not won over by this album.

2.5 points   

Parsons Project. The Alan - I Robot (1977)

 

The second album from this project from Great Britain.

Alan Parsons did the organs, synths electronics and vocoder here.

Numerous guests added drums, percussion, bass, mandolin, guitars, harpsichord, piano, harps, organ, keyboards, synths, woodwinds, narration and vocals.

The debut album was a good album and raised my expectations for the rest of their albums.

I Robot is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music here is pomp rock.

There are still some symphonic prog elements in the music. The music is songs based. It is also mid-tempo. Some of the music is pretty complex. 

There are also a lot of 1970s pop music here. Pomp pop is a label worthy of this take on pop music as the music is a lot more developed than teenybopper pop.

The music is most of all gentle with some gentle vocals, strings and choir.

The quality is pretty good too. There are a handful of good songs and themes here. It is an album worth checking out.

2.5 points 

 

 

Rainbow - Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow (1975)

 

The debut album from this band from Great Britain.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, percussion, bass, guitars, piano, clavinet, organ, mellotron and vocals.

One guest added backing vocals.

Rainbow, the band set up by Ritchie Blackmore after he left Deep Purple (twice), released eight albums before they gave up the ghost. I will review these eight albums in the coming weeks. 

This album clocks in at thirty-seven minutes.

The music is a blend of hard rock and mainstream rock.

Ritchie set up this band with Ronny James Dio. He was later replaced by some other vocalists as the band had an unstable line-up throughout their history.

The album, and indeed the Rainbow discography, starts with one of their best ever and most loved songs... The Man On The Silver Mountain. A true epic and worthy the whole album itself. Ronny James Dio delivers some brilliant vocals on this song.

The rest of the album has some rather bad rock'n'roll songs and some decent songs. This is a decent enough debut album but not their best album. It is well worth checking out.

2 points 

 

 

 

Cinématique - Limbo (2013)

 

The second and final album from this band from Austria.

The band was a quartet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, electronics and vocals.

I very much liked their debut album as I wrote in my review. That album is a mini-classic album. Hence I was looking forward to review Limbo, a Bandcamp name-your-price album.

Limbo is clocking in at fifty-three minutes.

The music here is post rock.

Sigur Ros looms large in their music. The music here is very much in the vein of these masters from Iceland.

The music is also pretty ambient. There is no explosions of sound here. The music is really softly spoken throughout.

There is a good ambience throughout this album. The electronics and the guitars are good. The vocals are without words, used as instruments.

This album is not as good as their debut album. It is still a pretty good album and worth checking out if post rock and Sigur Ros is your thing.

2.5 points 

Echorec - The Island (2020)

 

The debut album from this band from Great Britain.

The band was a trio with a lineup of drums, percussion, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

Two guests added keyboard solos on two tracks.

This is another new band to me. Earlier this year, they released their second album and a review of that album will be posted later this week.

The Island is clocking in at one hour.

The music here is neo-prog.

The music is in the Dutch and German neo-prog tradition with a lot of art-rock and melancholic rock influences. There are also some early Radiohead and Van Der Graaf Generator influences here.

The music is pretty mellow mid-tempo throughout.

The vocals are good.

This is indeed a good album and a more than acceptable debut album. I am really looking forward to sink my ears and brain into their new album.

3 points 

 

 

 

 

Cabezas De Cera - Metaensamble (2026)

 

The sixth album from this band from Mexico.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of percussion, kalimba and acoustic guitars.

The band returned again after an eleven-year-long album break. I believe I have reviewed a couple of their first albums in earlier editions of this blog. I am not sure, though.

This album is clocking in at fifty minutes.

The music is eclectic prog. Instrumental acoustic eclectic prog.

Aranis is a pretty good reference. Nevertheless, Cabezas De Cera stakes out their own path on this album.

Yes, eclectic is the word. Add esoteric too and you get the picture...And a third word is also essential to understand this album. The word is organic.

The music is wholly acoustic. There are some melodies here too as the album is not too avant-garde.

The music is mid-tempo to fast. There are some strings like instruments here too and they add some melancholy to this album.

The quality is pretty good throughout. I am not entirely won over as the music is too esoteric for my liking. If eclectic esoteric prog is your cup of tea...

2.5 points 

  

Hourglass - Oblivious to the Obvious (2009)

 

The fourth album from this band from USA.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

The band returned again after a five years long album break.

Oblivious to the Obvious is a double CD clocking in at two hours and twenty minutes.  

The music here is a blend of progressive metal and heavy prog. That is the direction Hourglass has taken on their last couple of albums. A path also followed on this album.

There are still a lot of Dream Theater influences in their music. But the band has branched out this album has indeed got a lot of symphonic prog influences too. But don't despair. This is not a symphonic prog album. 

The music is complex and epic at times. There are also some more melodic pieces here in addition to the more heavy rocking pieces. 

The band does a good job. The vocals is also good. 

Two hours and twenty minutes is a lot of music. Not everything here is good. There are some very good pieces here and some decent pieces here. 

This is indeed a good album and one to check out. 

3 points 

 

Moundrag - Hic Sunt Moundrages (2022)

 

The debut album from this band from France.

The band was a duo with a line-up of drums, percussion, piano, keyboards, mellotron and vocals.

This is another band that has recently come to my attention. The band just released their second album. An album I will review later this week.

Hic Sunt Moundrages is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music is best described as heavy prog.

The music and the band are influenced by the likes of Atomic Rooster, ELP and Deep Purple. 

There are no guitars and no bass here. Everything is based on the keyboards and the vocals. The keyboards has the organ sound from the 1970s. They also sound like Jon Lord's keyboards and organ in Deep Purple. The mellotrons here are also great.

The vocals are good too.

This is a very enticing album with a couple of flaws but with a lot of positives. This is indeed a good album and well worth checking out.

3 points 

 

 

 

  

  

Yes - Aurora (2026)

 

The 19th album from this band from Great Britain.

The band was a quintet with a lineup of drums, percussion, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

Czech National Symphony Orchestra added their instruments to some of the pieces of music here.

The band returned three years after their last studio album. Three years were spent touring and refining their music. 

Aurora is clocking in at one hour.

The music is symphonic prog.

Yes is, stature and reputation wise, the biggest band in progressive rock and a new album from these veterans will always be of great interest. It will also be met with a mixed bag of derision and praise. The latter days Yes has caused a lot of debate, pro and against a Yes without Jon Anderson. The other Jon in their history, Jon Davison, has taken over the vocals duties and his vocals are very similar to the original Jon.

The band members are old and I did expect a nice pop/rock album. The music is anything but nice pop/rock. The music here is more symphonic than on most of their albums. I take my hat off to their attitude here. 

The music is indeed very complex throughout this album. It is still pretty melodic at times.

This is an album that requires a lot from the listener. The band has been very brave to release an album as ambitious as this. The band has therefore risen considerably in my estimation and that already from an elevated status.

The quality is good to very good throughout this album. This is their best album this century and a very good album in it's own right. Get this album.

3.5 points 

  

 

Løvetann - Fugl Føniks (2003)

 

The seventh album from this band from Norway.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards, programming and vocals.

The band returned again after a two-year-long album break. Their previous couple of albums had been pretty good and I was looking forward to sink my ears and brain into this album.

Fugl Føniks is clocking in at half an hour.

The music is a blend of folk rock, art-rock and heavy prog. There are also some symphonic prog influences here.

This type of prog both this band and Thule 1000 km further north in Norway was doing deserves it's own label... Arctic Prog. The reason is that the music is pretty unique and very much rooted in the life and landscape beyond the Arctic Circle.

The lyrics are now entirely in English this time around and a departure from the Norwegian lyrics on their first albums. 

The music is pretty hard with some raw guitars. The vocals are both operatic and good. 

The music is pretty good. This is not one of their best albums. Nevertheless, this is an album well worth checking out.

2.5 points 

 

 

 

Uriah Heep - Celebration 40 Years (2009)

 

The 21st album from this band from Great Britain.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

The band returned again after a one year long album break. 

Celebration 40 Years is clocking in at one hour.

This album is two new songs and twelve re-recordings of old classics from this band's forty years long history.

It is therefore not a true new studio album.

I am not sure if this album is needed at all. Well, it is not. The re-recorded versions of the old classics do not bring anything new to the party/band/the fans. 

This is a pretty good best-of album. And that is what it is. A best-of album. And not particularly good value for money. 

2 points 

 

Itzamna - Chascade (2016)

 

The debut album from this band from France.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars and piano.

This is my first ever meeting with this and and their music. Their 2014 debut, the EP Metnal was released back in 2014 and bypassed me totally. Both albums are available through Bandcamp.

Chascade is clocking in at one hour.

The music here is eclectic prog. Although that label is not the full story here. The music is wandering around in all directions. Crossover Prog is perhaps a more suitable label. It is a fifty/fifty (head)case, the music here.

The band has also crammed in math rock, neo-classical music and some art-rock into this one hour long album.

There are also some vocals here and they are really good.

The result is a bit of a headcase of an album. The music is also pretty good. I am not entirely won over. But most of this album is good fun and the scene needs more genre-defying albums like this.

2.5 points 

 

 

 

Invernalia - Invernalia (2015)

 

The debut album from this one-man-band from Argentina.

Aldo Pinelli did the percussion, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals here.

He had help from a handful of guests who provided drums, violin, piano and flute.

Aldo Pinelli released some albums through Habitat, a good band from Argentina, before he went his own ways and released, so far, two albums under the Invernalia moniker. The second album, Tenebras, was released in 2021. I don't have this album at present. Maybe I will get it and review it next year or so.

Invernalia is clocking in at three quarters of an hour.

The music is a blend of art-rock and psych rock.

The music has this Latin-American symphonic prog soundscape too and is different from the normal Anglo-US prog soundscape.

The music is mid-tempo to slow. Some parts is pretty pastoral too.

Most of the music is performed by keyboards with some supporting guitars. The Spanish vocals are pretty good. 

Most of the music is pretty anonymous and pedestrian. There is not much to like here. Nevertheless, this is a decent enough album.

2 points 

 

  

Android Superstation - Continuum (2026)

 

The second album from this band from USA.

The band was a quartet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

This is the follow up album to their 2020 debut album. I reviewed that album some days ago. That was a good heavy prog album.

Continuum is clocking in at one hour.

The music is a blend of heavy prog and neo-prog.

The band has moved away from the mainstream US rock influences on the debut album and fully embraced some neo-prog influences in their take on heavy prog.

The music ranges from slow, mid-tempo and fast music. The music is sometimes hard, but never really heavy as in heavy metal influenced.

The music is full of life, colourful, complex and slightly epic. The vocals are very good, both the male and the female vocals. 

The result is a good album. My only gripe is the lack of any killer tunes here, the songs that elevates an album to a great album. There is none of that here. Nevertheless, this is a good album.

3 points 

 

 

  

ML Bongers - Crossing The Bar (2018)

 

The third album from this band/project from Germany.

The band/project was a sextet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards, saxophones, flute and vocals.

I reviewed their very good debut album earlier this year (released under the band name ML Bongers Project) and then their decent enough follow up album some days ago. I am now reviewing their third and final (?) album.

Crossing The Bar is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music is a blend of krautrock and old style symphonic prog.

The music here is songs based with lots of vocals. The music is also mid-tempo. The sound is only pretty good.

The musicians does a good job. The vocals are pretty bad. Mostly when the vocalist tries to hit the high notes. Tries but fails. 

The quality of the music varies between abysmal to good. On balance, this is a decent album but still their worst album. 

ML Bongers should be remembered for their very good album released under the ML Bongers Project. The two following albums are not particularly interesting.  

2 points 

 

Old Castle. The - Wistful (2022)

 

The third album from this band from Italy.

The band was a quartet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards, flute and vocals.

I have had the joy of reviewing their first two albums this summer. Their debut album is an ELP like symphonic prog album. Their second album is an RPI album. I was therefore wondering where the band was on Wistful. A true mystery, only solved by listening to the album and reviewing it.

This album is clocking in at thirty-six minutes. 

The music here is a blend of RPI and Anglo-US symphonic prog.

The music is more symphonic prog than RPI. But the band has nicely combined these two genres, very related genres, on this album.

The music is mid-tempo and pretty melodic. There are a lot of ELP inspired music here too.

The music is pretty quirky throughout. The quirkiness comes from the RPI influences.

The vocals is good and the musicians does a good job.

This is their best album so far and their most interesting album. An album which heralds their arrival as one of the more interesting bands in Italy right now. 

RPI and symphonic prog fans should and must check out this album.

3 points 

 

 

Drift Lab - Sunlight (2026)

 

The second album from this band from Italy.

The band was a quartet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, piano and synths.

One guest added sax.

I really liked their 2023 debut album Moonlight as I noted in my review some days ago. I was therefore looking forward to review this album.

Sunlight is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music is fusion.

The music is slick and a bit like the music Jan Hammer did for Miami Vice in the 1980s. But Drift Lab's take on fusion is more substantial than that and a lot more muscular and meaty.

The music is still elegant and melodic. There are some really good solos here and the guitars are great.

A bit more inspired and better pieces of music are missing here. That aside, this is still a good album from a band which may become one of Italy's best fusion/jazz exports in the years to come.

3 points 

 

Lazuli - Réponse incongrue à l'inéluctable (2009)

 

The fourth album from this band from France.

The band was a sextet with a lineup of drums, percussion, marimba, metalphone, vibes, guitars, warr guitar, chapman stick, leode and vocals.

The band returned again after a three years long album break. Their previous album was a good album, indeed. Hence my expectations for this album.

This album is clocking in at fifty minutes.

The music on this album is eclectic heavy prog.

The music is pretty heavy and hard throughout. The reason is more like it is so complex and dense than on purpose hard and heavy. There is a lot of instruments in the sound here, claiming their own space in the sound.

The music also has this French symphonic prog ethos and sound. A bit of an exotic sound in the ears of those of us used to the Anglo-US soundscape.

The vocals is very good as usual. The band does a good job.

There is no great tracks here. Nevertheless, this is a good album and another proof that Lazuli is one of the best bands coming out of France.

3 points 

  

 

Nilssen. Ole G - The Human Syndrome (2004)

 

The third album from this artist from Norway.

Ole G Nilssen did the guitars and vocals here.

He had help from numerous guests who added bass, guitars, steel guitars, cello, piano, keyboards, drum programming and backing vocals.

I was not impressed at all by his second album and was starting to fear the worst as I am reviewing a handful of his albums.

The Human Syndrome is clocking in at one hour.

The music is again old style pop-rock music. Roy Orbison is again a good reference here.

The music is mostly slow to mid-tempo. There are some country'n'western influences here throughout. There are also some Latin Pop influences here.

The vocals are both crooning and normal vocals. The vocals are mainly male vocals. There are also some female vocals here.

The quality is pretty poor throughout. But if old style pop-rock is your cup of tea....

1.5 points 

 

 

 

 

Inquire - Melancholia (2003)

 

The third and final album from this band from Germany.

The band was a trio with a line-up of drums, bass pedals, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

A handful of guests added accordion, narration and vocals.

I reviewed their first two albums in August and September 2015 for # 1 of this blog and were not impressed at all by them. So I put this, their third album, aside for a future review until I added it to my to-review list earlier this year.

Melancholia is clocking in at ninety-five minutes.

The music is symphonic prog. It is also a concept album based on Jean Paul Sartre's novel La Nausee. 

The music is also pretty influenced by krautrock too. There is a lot of narrations here and some weird vocals.

The music is pretty pedestrian throughout. The music also moves in all directions, based on the scattergun method. 

This is a decent enough album. I have yet to be impressed by this band. An obscure band and barely a footnote in our history.

2 points 

 

In Abstrackto - An Inevitable Momentum (2016)

 

The one and only album from this band from Mexico.

The band was a trio with a line-up of drums, bass and guitars. There are some vocals at the end of this album. 

This band is a new band to me. I got this album around five years ago and it has been hanging around unnoticed in my collection until I added it to my to-review list earlier this year.

An Inevitable Momentum is clocking in at one hour.

The music is an eclectic blend of heavy prog, eclectic prog and fusion.

The music is heavy throughout this one hour worth of music.

The music is guitar riffs based as the power trio format is a bit on the restrictive side of the music spectrum.

The sound is a bit dry and math rock like.

The band does not bring anything new to this power trio genre. The quality is decent enough. 

If instrumental power trio heavy prog is your thing...

2 points  

Cellar Noise - Panic Loves Telling Lies (2026)

 

The third album from this band from Italy.

The band was a quintet with a line-up of drums, percussion, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

I reviewed their first two albums in # 2 of this blog nine years ago and they are two very good albums. That explains my joy when I discovered their new album. 

Panic Loves Telling Lies is clocking in at three quarters of an hour.

The music here is neo-prog. 

The music is really muscular too and has some heavy parts and themes.

The music is also pretty symphonic and complex too. The music is still melodic with some very good guitars and keyboards harmonies and solos.

The music is mostly classic neo-prog, very influenced by both the German and the British neo-prog scene. Cellar Noise has though carved out their own niche in the neo-prog scene.

The very good vocals also adds a lot of quality to this album.

This is therefore another very good album from this band. A band who are surely one of the best neo-prog bands in the scene.  

3.5 points 

 

ML Bongers - Void Refuge (2016)

 

The second album from this band from Germany.

The band was a duo with a line-up of percussion, bass, guitars, keyboards, mellotron, synths, drum machine, voices and vocals.

Three guests added guitar, organ and narration.

The band returned again after a thirty-eight years long break. This time as a duo. Earlier this year, I reviewed their very good debut album and you will find the review here. The band has released two albums between 2016 and 2018. I will review their third album in a few days.

Void Refuge is clocking in at one hour.

The music is a blend of electronica, krautrock and neo-classical music.

The music is dreamy and floating throughout. It is like a dreamy piece of music from Eloy. Krautrock is still the genre I would label the music here as.  

There are a lot of synths, narrations and voices in the music. The music also has this 1970s krautrock ethos.

The music is a bit messy at times. Some of the music is sub-standard. There are also some pretty good music here. The overall quality is decent. This album is nowhere near as good as the debut album. Krautrock fans should check out this album.

2 points 

 

 

  

Old Castle. The - Storie Nascoste (2001)

 

The second album from this band from Italy.

The band was a quartet with a line-up of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards, flute and vocals.

One guest added female vocals. 

I reviewed their 1995 debut album some days ago and that was a pretty good album. It was an ELP-influenced album.

Storie Nascoste is clocking in at forty minutes. 

The first thirty minutes are a studio recording with a very good sound quality. The final ten minutes are recorded live from a concert and the sound quality is decent enough.

The music is RPI with a lot of folk music and some jazz influences. This album is different from their 1995 debut album, in other words.  

The music is lush and colourful. The vocals are in Italian. The music is also pretty pastoral at times. 

The quality is pretty good throughout. This album showcases a band with a lot of potential. Potential not fully unleashed on this album.

2.5 points  

 

 

 

 

Hadal Sherpa - Mountains (2026)

 

The fourth album from this band from Finland.

The band was a quartet with a line-up of drums, percussion, bass, guitars, oud, saz, synths, flute and vocals.

A handful of guests added backing vocals/choir.

I have reviewed their first three albums in # 2 and this edition of this blog and I have liked them. Good albums. I therefore jumped on the chance to review this album too.

Mountains are clocking in at forty minutes.

The music here is space rock.

There is a lot of Eastern Asia and Middle-East influences in their music. Music which is mostly instrumental with some vocals-free voices acting as instruments in addition to the other instruments.

Oud and saz are in the front of the mix and these exotic instruments are adding a lot of spice to the mid-tempo space rock. The same goes for the flute.

There is a lot to like on this album. A good album indeed. I really like this band.  

3 points 

  

Procol Harum - Home (1970)

 

The fourth album from this band from Great Britain.

The band was a quartet with a lineup of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals.

One guest added harmonica.

It is now almost fourteen years since I started to review their albums. See # 1 of this blog. I posted a review of A Salty Dog in July 2017 (see here) and then I dropped the band from my review list. I am now going to complete the reviews of their albums, starting with a review of this album.

Home is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music is a blend of early symphonic prog and art-rock.

The tempo is mid-tempo. The music is songs based. The music has some Americana influences. 

The late Gary Brooker's keyboards and vocals are in the foreground of the music. The guitars are also pretty good.

The music is very much in the 1970s art-rock vein.

The music is also pretty good. I am not entirely won over but this album is worth checking out.

2.5 points