Katatonia - Dethroned And Uncrowned (2013)

 

The 10th album from this band from Sweden.

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

Three guests added percussion, keyboards and female vocals.

The band returned again with this album one year after the Dead End Kings album. Dethroned And Uncrowned is indeed an acoustic version of the Dead End Kings album. Only the vocals are the same.

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

The music is acoustic with lots of acoustic guitars and strings. The vocals also sounds more controlled and tempered. 

I am not a fan of acoustic music. I do not like electric music stripped down to acoustic music. 

I have to admit this album has gone a long way to change my opinion... or maybe this album is an exception. Time will tell.

The music here is elegant, at times beautiful and really classy. It is also melodic. 

Frankly, I like this album better than the Dead End Kings album. I am surprising myself here. And it gets worse.... This is actually a very good album. It is also their best album up to this point. 

I need to lie down on a sofa now...

3.5 points 

Fates Warning - Darkness In A Different Light (2013)

 

The 11th album from this band from USA.

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

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

This album is clocking in at one hour.

The band has again returned to a more 1970s hard rock sound and music. The music is in this respect a bit back to the hard rock basics. That is not a bad thing when it comes to this album.  

There are no keyboards here. The twin guitars and the vocals are forging the melodies forward.  

The vocals are very good. The guitars are good.

The quality of the song writing is not on the same level. The sound is very good and is elevating this album to a good album. 

Hard rock fans should check out this album.

3 points 

 

 

 

Aci - Tiefenrausch (1982)

 

The one and only album from this band from Germany.

The band was a quintet with a lineup of drums, bass, piano, minimoog and synths.

This band was started by the future Eloy keyboard player Michael Gerlach. Some guests from Kraan and Rufus Zuphall also joined this band on this album.

This album is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music here is a blend of 1980s electronica and cinematic rock.

Take a blend of Tangerine Dream and early Eloy. That is somewhere near the music on this album.

The music is melodic and laid back. It is ambient and harmonic too.

There are some interesting pieces here inbetween some pretty pedestrian pieces of music. There is a lot of bass here... surprisingly amount of melodic bass. This of course in addition to the synths and minimoog.

I had no expectations to this album at all and was actually dreading it. This album is a bit of a positive surprise. This is indeed a decent enough album despite of it's 1980s sound and some dubious electronica. Krautrock fans should check out this album. 

2 points 

  

Aamunkoite - Aamunkoite (2022)

 

The debut album from this band from Finland.

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

This album is clocking in at thirty-five minutes. 

The music here is a mixed bag to say at least.

It starts out as a folk rock album, moves into a more symphonic prog territory, then some Uriah Heep heavy prog enter the arena and then the music moves to a more goth electronica area.

There are some great female vocals, complete with Finnish lyrics, at the start of the album. A very good start to the album, btw. 

A false dawn, as the rest of the album is nowhere near as good as the opening track.

The result is a pretty good album. I hope we will hear more from this band. Don't give up.

2.5 points 

 

 

 

 

Karcius - Black Soul Sickness (2026)

 

The seventh album from this band from Canada.

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

This band started out as a fusion/jazz band but moved towards progressive metal on their latest albums. I have reviewed most of their albums and they are good albums.

Black Soul Sickness is clocking in at three quarters of an hour.

The music is complex, bold and epic progressive metal.

There are some djent here too. The music is at the more heavier end of the progressive metal genre.

...Then again, there are also some more melodic pieces here. 

The music varies between some brutal and some more melodic pieces, in other words. The same goes for the vocals which shifts between growls and melodic clean vocals.

The quality is good throughout. This is an album fans of progressive metal should check out.

3 points 

Realisea - Scratch (2026)

 

The third album from this band from The Netherlands.

The band was a seven-pieces big band on this album with a lineup of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards, flute and vocals.

One guest added a clarinet.

The band returned again after a four years long album break. I have reviewed their first two albums. They are both good albums.

Scratch is clocking in at fifty minutes.

The music is neo-prog.

In this case, complex and pretty heavy neo-prog with a lot of symphonic prog influences. The music is also lush and colourful.

The vocals are a blend of female and male vocals.  

The music on this album is heavier and more complex than on the previous album Fairly Carefree. The music is also slightly better.

This is indeed a good album and one to check out if heavy, complex neo-prog is your thing.

3 points 

 

 

Marbin - Marbinico (2024)

 

The 12th album from this band from USA.

The band was a trio with a lineup of drums, bass, guitars and saxophone.

This album is so far their latest album. It is hopefully not their final album. I have reviewed all their albums and that has been a pleasure.

Marbinico is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music is again jazz.

Marbin has evolved from being a pretty innovative fusion band to becoming a more orthodox jazz band. 

The music is mid-tempo to slow jazz. The saxophones is again the dominating solo instrument. There are also some interesting half-acoustic guitars and guitar solos here.

The music is softly-spoken and gentle. 

The music is mostly good. So much that I am really enjoying this album. I still think their first albums are their best albums. Nevertheless, this is a good album.

3 points 

 

Legacy Pilots - Camera Obscura Vol I (2026)

 

The sixth album from this band from Germany.

Legacy Pilot is Frank Us on guitars and keyboards. A one-man-band.

He had help from a number of guests who added drums, bass, guitars and vocals.

I have reviewed the first Legacy Pilots albums in this series of blogs and you will find them in # 1, # 2 and # 3.   

Frank Us has released two albums this year under the Legacy Pilots name. Part II of the Camera Obscura series will be reviewed later this month.

Camera Obscura Vol I is clocking in at three quarters of an hour.

The music is neo-prog.

The music is mid-tempo and very melodic. There are some programmed strings and gentle guitars here.  

The vocals, male and female, are also gentle and elegant.

There are still a lot of interesting complex harmonies and pieces of music here. Despite of the music being a bit on the sugary fluffy side of the spectrum, the music is still good. Hence....

3 points 

  

Moloken - Our Astral Circle (2009)

 

The debut album from this band from Sweden.

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

The band has so far released four albums. The last one in 2020. I am reviewing all four albums in the next couple of weeks. 

Our Astral Circle is clocking in at fifty-five minutes.

The music is alternative extreme metal. 

The music is dissonant and disharmonic. There is a lot of death metal influences in their music. The music is very heavy throughout this album.

The vocals are of the screaming extreme metal type of vocals.

The sound is good throughout.

There a couple of good pieces here. There are also some pretty poor pieces of music here. This is therefore a decent album and an acceptable debut album. 

2 points 

 

Jazz Q - Talisman (2016)

 

The tenth album from this band from Hungary.

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

The band returned again after the very disappointing Temne Slunce album from 2014. See my review and my reviews of their other albums somewhere else in this blog.

Talisman is clocking in at one hour.

The music is jazz. 

In this case, the music is middle-of-the-road jazz with some keyboards and guitar solos.

The rhythm section is very tight. The solos are pretty good. The music is mid-tempo and pretty melodic.

The music is cosy but still pretty workmanlike. 

I am not won over by this album. That said, it is still a pretty good album.

2.5 points 

Dot.Organ - The Gumshoe Chronicles (2014)

 

The debut album from this band from Australia.

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

A number of guests added drums, vocals and spoken words.

This band has released around thirteen EPs and albums through Bandcamp. Their last EP/album was released back in 2024. I am only going to review this album. An album which has been hanging around in my collection for the last ten years.

The Gumshot Chronicles is clocking in at fifty minutes.

The music here is nowhere near what they say on the Bandcamp site. I believe the band must have developed a lot during their ten years. Taking the music on this album into account, that is a good thing.

The music here is quirky, chaotic blend of post-punk and indie rock. 

The music is minimalistic with sparse instrumentation. The vocals are both male and female. The vocals are pretty decent.

There are some decent songs here. The rest of the music is pretty poor. I am not tempted to review their remaining albums. 

1.5 points 

 

 

Din Within - Awaken The Man (2007)

 

The one and only album from this band from USA.

The band was a duo with a lineup of bass, guitars, keyboards, programming and vocals.

A number of guests added drums, guitars and backing vocals.

This band came, released this album, got some deserved attention and then split up. Based on this album, their disbandment is a loss to the scene.

This album is clocking in at one hour.

The music is broadly speaking melodic US symphonic prog. 

Good references are Neal Morse and, to a lesser extent, Spock's Beard. Add in some AOR too and you get the picture. There are also some Supertramp influences in their music.

The music is mid-tempo and melodic. There is a lot of pianos, organs and guitars here. 

The vocals are really good and the vocal harmonies are very good.

The music is very good and there is no doubt this album is a hidden gem that really deserves a lot more attention. Check out this album.

3.5 points 

 

 

Perevod - Souper (2026)

 

The third album from this one-man-band from Ukraine.

Oleksii Perevodchyk played the drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and also added programming to this album.

His first two albums were pretty good and I therefore jumped on the chance to review his new album. Oleksii Perevodchyk is very talented and I am supporting all music and most things from this war-torn country. 

Souper is clocking in at thirty-four minutes.  

The music is again a blend of heavy prog, fusion and symphonic prog. 

The music is instrumental.

There are a lot of keyboards and guitars here. There are some good guitars solos and some good piano harmonies.  

The music is dynamic and pretty fast. The music is also pretty melodic too.

The quality is good throughout. This album is not as good as the debut album but it is still a good album.

3 points 

Realisea - Fairly Carefree (2022)

 

The second album from this band from The Netherlands.

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

A number of guests added bass, violin, harp, keyboards, minotaur and clarinet.

I reviewed their 2020 debut album Mantelpeace back in August the same year and that was a pretty good album. My review is here.

Fairly Carefree is clocking in at one hour.

The music is neo-prog.

In this case, neo-prog with female vocals. 

The music is lush and colourful. It is also pretty commercial with lots of hooks and choruses. The music is still pretty complex with some symphonic prog influences. There are also a lot of folk rock influences in their music.

The music is really good throughout this album. There is no outstanding great tracks here. That said, this is a good album.

3 points 

 

 

 

Marbin - Dirty Horse (2022)

 

The 11th album from this band from USA.

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

One guest added percussion.

The band returned as a quartet one year after the pretty good trio based Fernweh album. You can read my reviews of their albums in both # 1 this blog and this edition of the blog.

Dirty Horse is clocking in at seventy-four minutes. 

The music is again jazz. Pure jazz.

The saxophone is the most dominant instrument here with several solos. Lots of solos, in fact.

There are also a lot of rhythm and solo guitars here.

The music is hardcore, dense jazz and not particularly melodic.  

The quality is pretty good throughout. There are also some decent stuff here. Hence....

2.5 points 

Unicorn Umbrellas - Every Picture Tells a Story (2026)

 

The debut album from this multi-national project.

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

Three guests added guitars and backing vocals.

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

This project, where the members has never been in the same room at the same time, was set up by the Swiss keyboardist and composer Beat Zimmerman. He recruited members from Gola, Tangerine Dream, Styx and Saga. The individual members recorded their bits and we got a full album out of it.

This is how a modern supergroup is working.

The vocalist is Michael Sadler from Saga. The music is somewhere between neo-prog and pomp rock.

..And yes, the vocals will gain this album a lot of Saga and Styx comparisons. Not only the vocals, but also the music.

The music is mid-tempo and melodic. The music is also pretty complex and pomp rock like. The music is also pretty catchy.

The vocals are great. The vocals are indeed the highlights of this album... which tells you how good Saga was/is.

The result is a good album. It is an album all pomp rock, Styx and Saga fans should check out.

3 points 

 

 

 

Uriah Heep - Different World (1991)

 

The 17th album from this band from Great Britain.

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

A number of guests added drums, accordion, harmonica, keyboards, electronic and a children's choir.

The band returned again after a two years long break. A break spent on trying to find a new record label as the band was by now rather unfashionable in the record industry. 

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

Their 1989 album Raging Silence was a big improvement on their previous albums and I had some big hopes for their following albums.

The music here is a return to the heavy metal music the band was doing before Raging Silence. The US heavy metal scene and sound, that is.

That means poppy heavy metal with lots of choruses. There is even a children choir. That song is cheap and nasty. There are thankfully some better music here. This album is still a disappointment. It is a half decent album.

1.5 points  

 

 

Løvetann - Ansikt Til Ansikt (2000)

 

The third album from this band from Norway.

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

As I wrote in my review of their first album, this band was formed by Odd "Fezza" Ellingsen, the guitarist in St. Helena, Akasha and Høst. Odd Ellingsen was indeed the main force in the best Høst album Hardt Mot Hardt, a masterpiece in the great Norwegian progressive rock scene.

As with their other albums, Ansikt Til Ansikt was released as a CD-R album in a limited run of 100 x. Their eight albums were compiled and re-released in the widely available Opus Magnum box last year. I am reviewing their albums and this box this summer.

Ansikt Til Ansikt is clocking in at thirty minutes.

The music is again pretty special. The music is a blend of dark art-rock and dark symphonic prog. Thule is again a good reference. There are some more dark psych rock this time around. 

Arctic Prog is what I would label their (and Thule's) music as I did in my reviews of their first two albums. That does not really give any meaning.. 

The vocals are again dark operatic male vocals.

This album is not as good as their first two albums. This is still a pretty good album.. but still a bit of a disappointment. More reviews of their albums will be added next month.

2.5 points 

  

 

Dante Roberto - The Circle (2017)

 

The debut album from this artist from Italy.

Dante Roberto played piano, keyboards and synths here. 

He had help from two guests who added drums, bass and guitars.

This is the only thing I know about this artist and album. This is also the only album Dante Roberto has released. I believe he is a music professor in Italy. My language skills do not include Italian so this is only a guess based on some Italian text on his Facebook site.

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

The music is a blend of symphonic prog, neo-classical music and fusion.

The music is wholly instrumental with a lot of piano and synths. It is also dynamic and at times, fast. 

The music is also melodic.

The music is a bit too run-of-the-mill and does not really offer anything new or unique. This is a pretty good album and one for, mostly, the fusion fans.

2.5 points 

 

 

Da Capo - Da Capo (1972)

 

The one and only album from this band from Germany.

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

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

This album was a collector's item and very hard to find until someone re-released it on CD twenty years ago. This is how it came to my attention. 

The music is krautrock.

In this case, the album starts with some acoustic songs complete with vocals. All vocals are in English. Amon Duul springs to mind on the first half of this album.

The music becomes a lot harder on the second half with some long space rock guitars solos and bluesy hard rock songs.

The final half of the album is pretty good while the first half is pretty decent.

The result is therefore a decent enough album. Krautrock fans should check out this obscure album from this short-lived band.

 2 points

 

 

Wish - The Endless Winter (2026)

 

The second album from this band from Italy.

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

I reviewed their 2019 debut album Stay Here My Friends back in November the same year and that was a pretty good album. See my review here.

The Endless Winter is clocking in at fifty minutes.

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

The music is mid-tempo and sometimes pretty melancholic. The music is in the Polish neo-prog tradition and sound, although the band is from Italy.

The music is also melodic. The English vocals are notably accented. They are still decent enough.

The quality is somewhere between decent and good. I am yet to be won over by this band.

2.5 points 

 

 

Halter and Skeie - More Than I Believe (2025)

 

The second album from this band from USA.

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

I reviewed their 2022 debut album Words some days ago and that was a pretty good album. I was hoping for much of the same on this album.

More Than I Believe is clocking in at forty minutes. 

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

There are some Marillion and Pink Floyd influences here. 

The music is therefore melodic and mid-tempo. There are still some subtle Depeche Mode influences here.

The keyboards and the guitars are good. Ditto for the vocals.

The quality is an upgrade on their debut. Not by much but still an upgrade. This is an album art-rock fans should check out.

3 points 

 

 

240bpm & Flavour - In No Man's Land (2024)

 

The fourth or so album from this artist from Italy.

Vincenzo Lardo did the guitars, keyboards, programming, samples and vocals here.

Vincenzo Lardo has released numerous albums through the 240 Bpm Bandcamp site. I reviewed one of the last ones earlier this week and that album was a turkey. Hence I had no expectations to In No Man's Land.

This album is clocking in at fifty-four minutes.

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

The music is pretty laid back with some good keyboards. The music is mellow and melodic.

There are some Pink Floyd influences throughout this album.

The music is pretty good throughout. There is some good songs here and some substandard songs. This album is a massive improvement on the album I reviewed some days ago. It is an album well worth checking out.

2.5 points 

 

Green Desert Tree - Fighting Dragons (2026)

 

The second album from this band from Germany.

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

I reviewed their 2019 debut album Progressive Work back in April 2019 and that was a pretty good album. You can read my review here.

Fighting Dragons is clocking in at three quarters of an hour.

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

Take a blend of Argos, Believe and Genesis. You will end up somewhere near this album.

The music is both dynamic and melodic. It is also mid-tempo. There are some subtle folk rock influences in their music.

The vocals are good and the band makes the most of their instrumentations.

The music is a bit workman like. Nevertheless, this is a good album and one to check out if neo-prog is your thing.   

3 points 

Klone - Le Grand Voyage (2019)

 

The seventh album from this band from France.

The band was a sextet with a lineup of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards, electronics, saxophones and vocals.

The band returned again two years after their acoustic album Unplugged and four years after their more serious band album Here Comes The Sun. Both albums reviewed in this blog.

This album is clocking in at fifty minutes.

The band started out as an alternative extreme metal band. Their music was extreme and eclectic. The last albums has seen them move closer to the alternative rock scene.

That journey is mostly complete on this album. The music is still a bit hard at times. Most of the music here is mid-tempo alternative rock. Katatonia and Anathema is a good reference.

Klone's music is still a bit more esoteric and edgy than the two above mentioned bands' music.   

The music is melancholic, airy and melodic too. The vocals are very good throughout this album.

This is their best album up to this point and an album for alternative rock fans. This is indeed a good album.

3 points 

Lunear - Many Miles Away (2018)

 

The debut album from this band from France.

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

This band has so far released five albums and they are all up for review this summer. That includes their new album too.

Many Miles Away is clocking in at fifty-two minutes.

I have heard a lot of good things about this band in ProgArchives and other places. So I jumped on the chance to review their albums. 

The music here is melodic neo-prog with a lot of pop/rock influences.

The music is mid-tempo with a lot of piano and keyboards. There are also some guitars here.

The vocals are very good. The vocals are in good English too although the vocalist is French. 

The music is a bit too much pop/rock. That said, most parts of this album are good. I understand why this band has such a good reputation.

3 points 

 

  

Id. The - Ido Book 2 (2019)

 

The sixth album from this multi-national band.

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

I have to admit that my reviews of their albums is a bit of a mess. I should have reviewed their Ido Book 1 album before I reviewed this album. But I do not have a copy of this album at this moment. I will get this and their other four albums too and put them up for review sometime later this year/next year.

I reviewed their 2015 debut album Idiocrazy back in September 2015 and liked it a lot. Classic neo-prog. You can read my review here. 

Ido Book 2 is clocking in at fifty-three minutes.

The music is again classic British neo-prog. Pendragon, IQ and Jadis are three good references here. 

The sound is contemporary and an upgraded version of the 1980-'90s British neo-prog sound.

The music is pretty symphonic at times too. The guitars are very good. Ditto for the vocals.

The music is good throughout. I really need to check out the rest of their albums and review them. There is a long list of unreviewed albums, though...

Neo-prog fans should have this album in their album collection.

3 points  

 

 

 

   

Id - Where Are We Going (1977)

 

The one and only album from this band from USA.

The band was a sextet with a lineup of drums, bass, guitars, slide guitars, mellotron and vocals.

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

This album was released on a tiny record label that pressed this album in a small number and gave the album no promotion. The album still got a cult-status during the last four decades. RidingEasy Records, a record label specialising in re-releasing old out-of-print psych and prog rock classics then re-released this album on CD and on Bandcamp two years ago.

The album is hard psych rock with a lot of hard rock and some flower power influences. The music sounds like it was written in the late 1960s. 

The guitars solos are both long and wild. They sounds improvised too. 

The vocals and the mellotrons are pretty good.

The sound is good. The music is decent enough but not particular interesting. Psych and space rock fans may find this album interesting. I am not won over. 

2 points 

 

 

 

Code 18 - Two Places (2026)

 

The second album from this band from Canada.

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

Two guests added drums and bass.

I reviewed their 2020 debut album Human Error back in January 2022 and was not impressed. My review is here. 

Two Places is clocking in at seventy minutes.

The music here is a blend of cinematic rock and symphonic prog.

The music is mostly long symphonic cinematic rock themes.

Most of the music is instrumental. The music is mostly driven by keyboards.

The music is both elegant and dynamic. The music is also good throughout.

This is an album fans of keyboards driven cinematic rock should check out.

3 points 

 

 

Halter And Skeie - Words (2022)

 

The debut album from this band from USA.

The band was a duo on this album with a lineup of bass, keyboards, computers, vocoder and vocals. 

This duo has so far released two albums and three EPs. A review of their second album will be posted at the end of this week.

Words are clocking in at fifty minutes.

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

References are A-Ha, Marillion, Van Der Graaf Generator and Depeche Mode.

The music is mid-tempo. There is a lot of electronic pop here including the use of vocoders. The music feels very sterile and cold at most of this album.

There are also some pretty elegant, melodic pieces of art-rock here inbetween the cold electronic pop.

The vocals are pretty good.

The quality of the music is somewhere between decent and good. Those into art-rock may want to check out this album.

2.5 points 

 

 

 

240bpm - Again (2025)

 

The fifth (?) album from this artist from Italy.

Vincenzo Lardo did the guitars, synths, programming and vocals on this album.

 Vincenzo Lardo has released numerous albums through his Bandcamp site. Some of them as solo artist and some albums in cooperation with other musicians. I have two of his albums and I will post a review of the other album at the end of this week.

Again is clocking in at twenty minutes.

The music is Vincenzo's take on some new-romantics songs from the 1980s. Songs he likes. Songs I rather want to forget. The same goes for the 1980s. It was a lost decade in the music and the fashion world. The music was mostly horrible.

Vincenzo's versions is a bit more electronica influenced than the original versions. That makes the result even worse than the orginals.

This is a name-your-price Bandcamp album. Which means zero risk for the buyers. This album is though a turkey and one I want to forget as much as I want to forget the music from the 1980s.

1 point  

 

Argos - Doctor Wilde`s Twilight Adventure (2026)

 

The eighth album from this band from Germany.

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

Three guests added drums, violin and woodwinds.

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

This album is inspired by a project the Northern Irish band Fruupp worked on before they split up. Fruupp's drummer is indeed a guest on this album. The other two surviving Fruupp members were also involved in this project in another capacity. The album is dedicated to the memory of the recently passed on two other Fruupp members.

This album is also a concept album about a mad doctor in Dublin, Ireland. 

There are indeed some Fruupp influences here. But Argos has their own take on neo-prog. 

The music is indeed neo-prog with some art-rock and Canterbury scene influences.

Van Der Graaf Generator also pops up here loud and clear as a reference. The same also goes for the vocals which are very Peter Hammill at times.

The music is melancholic and a bit dark. The music is mid-tempo. Thevocals are very good.

The music is also very good and I am very glad that Argos has honoured Fruupp by taking over the project the band abandoned fifty years ago. Check out this album from one of the best neo-prog bands in the world.

3.5 points 

 

 

Katatonia - Dead End Kings (2012)

 

The ninth album from this band from Sweden.

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

Three guests added percussion, keyboards and female vocals.

The band returned again after a three years long break.

Dead End Kings is clocking in at one hour.

During their first eight albums, the band has migrated from the death & doom metal genre to the alternative rock genre. A journey they share with the likes of Anathema and a few other bands.

The music is hard alternative rock.

This album was also their most melodic album. To that date, that is. The music is also melancholic.

The vocals are good and there are some good programmed strings here too.  

The quality of the music is not that impressive. It is a bit too run-of-the-mill. That said, this is still a pretty good album.

2.5 points 

 

Fates Warning - FWX (2004)

 

The tenth album from this band from USA.

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

The band returned again after a four years long break.

FWX is clocking in at fifty-two minutes.

The band started out as heavy metal band. Then they released a power metal album before they moved to and indeed, together with Dream Theater, formed the progressive metal genre. 

The band has again evolved on FWX. The music is now a blend of hard rock and progressive metal.  

The music is guitars based. The sound is both earthy and organic. The music is also very dynamic and hard. Hard but not particularly heavy.

Some of the music is also commercial and pretty elegant. The sound is contemporary.

The vocals are very good.

The overall quality is pretty good.. but the vocals and a couple of very good pieces of music is elevating this album to a good rating. This is one of their better albums. 

3 points 

 

 

Cinématique - Life In An Infinite Loop (2011)

 

The debut album from this band from Austria.

This was a one-man-band on this album with Alex Mallory doing the guitars, synths and vocals here.

Two guests added drums and bass on some tracks.

Their two albums are name-your-price Bandcamp albums. I will review Limbo, their second album, sometime later this summer. 

Life in an Indefinite Loop is clocking in at one hour.

The music is post-rock. Mogwai and Sigur Ros is two very good references here.

The music is.... ehh.... cinematic and laid back. Very relaxing music with some programmed strings and woodwinds on the top of some piano. The music is also very elegant and melancholic.

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

This album is a timely reminder how good the post-rock genre can be. I am going to review the Sigur Ros albums later this year. This album serves as an appetiser.  

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

3.5 points 

 

 

Cangaceiro - El Gusano del Pipeño (2003)

 

The debut album from this band from Brazil.

The band was a sextet with a lineup of drums, saxophones, bass, guitars, congas, bongos, quenacho, quena, charango, pan flutes, flutes, thin whistles and vocals.

The band released two albums before they gave up the ghost. I reviewed their second album back in May 2020 where I described it as their one and only album. I am evidently wrong.. The review is here. 

El Gusano Del Pipeno is clocking in at forty minutes.

The music can best be described as a blend of South American folk rock and progressive rock. Or to be more precise... heavy prog.

There is some really heavy guitars here in the Lynyrd Skynyrd vein. This in addition to the lush folk music and folk rock.

Most of the music here is really melodic, colourful and lush. This album is very much an album from the South America with all this continent's sound and ambience. It makes me want to visit this part of the world. 

The vocals are good. The flutes and the guitars are good too.

Not everything here is good. That said, this is a pretty good album who deserve a lot more attention. I am minded to give this a good rating...

3 points 

 

 

Posh Toboggan - Crunch Potential (2026)

 

The debut album from this band from Canada.

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

This album was released through Bandcamp back in April this year and I discovered them through ProgArchives. The album is a name-your-price Bandcamp album.

This album is clocking in at thirty-seven minutes.

Describing the music here is a bit of a head-scratcher. Take garage rock, eclectic prog, add in some avant-garde rock, krautrock, freeform jazz and post-punk. That is pretty close, but close enough, description of the music here.

This album is a riot, in other words.

Too much of a riot in my opinion. Their attitude is to be applauded. The result is some pretty hard and wild music with some good vocals. The music has a dirty garage rock sound. 

There are some good pieces here and some rather not so interesting pieces here.

The result is therefore a pretty good album which should appeal to those who likes eclectic esoteric rock.

2.5 points 

   

Lindh Project. Per - Nagelfar (2025)

 

The seventh album from this artist from Sweden.

 Per Lindh played drums, percussion, grand piano, keyboards, church organ and harpsichord.

A number of guests added drums, percussion, tubular bells, bass, guitars, ebow and vocals.

In my reviews of all his albums, I have bypassed his two classical music albums and have jumped straight to this album, his latest album so far.  

Nagelfar is clocking in at three quarters of an hour.

Per Lindh has moved his music towards ELP and Keith Emerson on the last couple of albums. Keith Emerson's passing... gosh, it is really ten years ago ?.... has left a big empty space in the progressive rock scene. A space Per Lindh has now moved into and is occupying a small corner of this empty space. That is to be applauded. 

The music is both ELP like and cover versions of some ELP standards. That includes ELPs version of the traditional hymn Jerusalem. 

There is a lot to like on this album. The whole album to be more precise. Yes, it is an ELP-copycat album. There are also some very good ELP like original music here.

The result is a very good album. An album ELP fans should lap up and get.

3.5 points 

 

 

Bruin. Christiaan - The Black Codex Episodes 40-52 (2015)

 

The final album of four albums in this series of albums from this artist from The Netherlands.

Christiaan Bruin did the percussion, drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals here.

A handful of guests added guitar, violin, cello, trumpet and flute.

One month ago, I reviewed the first two albums in this series. Then I took a small break from this series and reviewed the third album in this series some days ago. 

The first three albums are all good albums.

This album is clocking in at one hour and fifty minutes.

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

The music is very dark on this album and that sets it apart from the first three albums in this series of albums. There are some female operatic vocals here too which is adding to the dark ambience on this album.

This album is more like an opera or a Wagnerian piece of classical music than a rock album. 

The music is also monumental and epic.

The quality is good throughout. The whole The Black Codex Episodes series is available as a box and is recommended for those of you into symphonic prog and neo-classical music.

3 points 

 

Nova Cascade - Box Man (2025)

 

The fifth album from this band from Great Britain.

The band was a quartet with a lineup of bass, guitars, violin, keyboards, electronic percussion and vocals.

This is sadly the final Nova Cascade. The band owner David Hilborne passed away just after this album was recorded. I reviewed their third and fourth album some years ago and really liked them a lot. Two very good albums, indeed.

This album is clocking in at one hour. 

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

The music is very classy and elegant. It is melodic and has some great vocals too.

The main piece of music here is the half an hour long suite The Choice. This is a very good track/piece of music.

The rest of the album is also very good. David Hilborne left us with five Nova Cascade albums and they should be checked out. 

3.5 points 

 

Marbin - Fernweh (2021)

 

The tenth album from this band from USA.

The band was a trio with a lineup of bass, acoustic guitar and saxophone.

The band returned again after the good Russian Dolls album from the year before. 

Fernweh is clocking in at three quarters of an hour. 

The music is trio based jazz. Django Reinhardt is a good reference here. I would be surprised if this album is not some kind of tribute to Django Reinhardt, an excellent jazz guitarist who has influenced so many guitarists.

The bass is the only rhythm instrument here as there are no drums on this album. The saxophone and the guitars are sharing the melody duties.

There are a lot of guitar and saxophone themes here. 

I cannot really say this is my type of jazz. There are some good stuff here and some decent stuff. This album is not one of their better albums.

2.5 points 

  

 

Jazz Q - Temné Slunce (2014)

 

The ninth album from this band from Hungary.

The band was a thirty members plus plus big project on this album with a lineup of drums, percussion, bass, guitars, violin, keyboards, synths, harmonica, vocals, choir and pieces of a symphonic orchestra.

I have reviewed their first eight albums and I have really liked these albums. Hence some good ratings.

Temne Slunce is clocking in at fifty-five minutes. 

There is a songs based bonus CD here too which is very different in style from the main album. I am therefore not taking this bonus CD into consideration in this review.

The music here is a blend of electronica pieces and some slow jazz pieces.

The music is pedestrian throughout. The jazz pieces are pretty good. The electronica bits are poor, very poor at times. 

This is by far their weakest album so far. The jazz pieces elevate this album to a decent status. Check out their other albums instead of this album.

2 points 

 

  

Cabinets of Curiosity - The Chaos Game (2019)

 

The one and only album from this band from USA.

The band was a seven pieces big band with a lineup of drums, percussion, bass, guitars, keyboards, saxophones, flute and vocals.

This band released an EP in 2016 and this album three years later. Both are still available through Bandcamp.

The Chaos Game is clocking in at exactly one hour.

The music can best be described as Eclectic Prog.

Take some art-rock, fusion and eclectic prog and you get the picture.... sort of. 

Nat Hornyak's (female) vocals are in the front of the mix. Her vocals are great and one of the better vocals I have heard for a long time. They are both powerful and gentle. Her vocals cover a wide range of styles. 

There are also some cool flutes and piano here. The songs are very intricate and not particular melodic. 

This is therefore true eclectic, esoteric music. 

The music is pretty good too. It is a tad too esoteric and a bit lacking in quality. That said, this is an album you should check out from their Bandcamp site.

2.5 points 

 

  

 

Conventum - Le Bureau Central Des Utopies (1979)

 

The second and final album from this band from Canada.

The band was a quartet with a lineup of percussion, bass, guitars, violin, dulcimer and vocals.

One guest added a flute on this album. 

I reviewed their first album A L'affut D'un Complot (1977) for ProgArchives back in November 2011. The review can be found here. It is a good album. It has taken me almost fifteen years to follow up this review with this review of their second album. That is far too long.

Le Bureau Central Des Utopies is clocking in at three quarters of an hour.

In my review of their first album, I compared the band to the Dutch band/masters Flairck. I was also reviewing their album around the same time and the comparison was made. It is a comparison which is pretty correct on both their albums... but still not entirely correct. 

Aranis too is a good reference here as the music is acoustic chamber-orchestra folk rock and neo-classical music. 

There are some sparse electric guitars, dulcimer and French vocals here. Most of the music is violin dominated mid-tempo music.

The music is both very esoteric and very eclectic. It is the type of music I am not entirely familiar with and the type of music I encounter once every second year. The quality is decent enough though.

If esoteric folk rock is your thing....

2 points 

 

 

 

Different Light - Binary Suns Part 2 (2026)

 

The fifth album from this band from the Czech Republic.

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

One guest added female vocals on this album.

I have reviewed their previous two albums and you can find the reviews here and here. I have also now got their first two albums and they will be reviewed later this year.  

The album is clocking in at sixty-five minutes.

The music here is neo-prog.

Their take on neo-prog is in the British neo-prog tradition from the 1980s and 1990s. There is also some pretty strong Dutch neo-prog scene influences here.

The music is therefore more straight forward melodic than intricate bold symphonic.

The vocals are very good.

The music is good throughout. This is another good album from this band. It is an album neo-prog and melodic prog fans will love.

3 points 

 

Lindh Project. Per - Time Mirror (2011)

 

The fourth album from this band from Sweden.

The band was a trio with a lineup of drums, percussion, bass, piano, organ, celesta, clavinet, harpsicord, mellotron, church organ, synths and vocals.

A handful of guests added drums, violin, trumpet and vocals.

The band returned after a ten-year break. I have reviewed their first five albums and they can be found somewhere else in this blog.

Time Mirror is clocking in at just over forty minutes.

The music is again symphonic prog with a lot of neo-classical music influences. The album also has some baroque classical music here.

The band is very influenced by ELP and some of Keith Emerson's solo albums here. They have copied his and ELP's sound and added it to their music.

The music here is original music and all songs was composed by Par Lindh.

There are some really good celesta, clavinet, harpsicord and church organs here. Ditto for the vocals.

This album wins big on the ELP comparison and that makes this a good album. One album ELP fans should lap up and enjoy. 

3 points 

 

 

 

Bruin. Christiaan - The Black Codex Episodes 27-39 (2015)

 

The third of four albums in this series of albums from this artist from The Netherlands.

Christiaan Bruin did the percussion, drums, bass, guitars, keyboards and vocals here.

A handful of guests added guitar, violin, cello and clarinet.

Four weeks ago, I reviewed the first two albums in this series. Then I took a small break from them. I will review the fourth and final album in this series sometime in the next days. 

The first two albums are two good symphonic prog albums. 

The Black Codex Episodes 27-39 is clocking in at one hundred minutes. That is almost one hour and three-quarters worth of music.   

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

The vocals are really good and the clarinets are adding a lot of colours here. 

There are no great pieces of music here. Neither is there any sub-standard pieces of music here. This is another quality album in this series of albums and this underrated artist. 

3 points 

 

Argos - Halfway Between Heaven and Mirth (2024)

 

The seventh album from this band from Germany.

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

Three guests added keyboards, violin, electric violin and saxophones.

I have always rated Argos as one of the best neo-prog and indeed one of the best progressive rock acts in today's world. So I was happy to get a copy of their latest album.... just to disover that their 2024 album, the one I am reviewing now, fell down the cracks in my office and has not been reviewed... until now.

Halfway Between Heaven And Mirth is clocking in at fifty minutes.

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

The music is mid-tempo, lush and pretty groovy.

The vocals are good and the saxophones are adding a lot of colours to the music.  

The result is another good album from this band. This is not one of their better albums. It is still an album well worth checking out.

3 points 

 

Uriah Heep - Raging Silence (1989)

 

The 16th album from this band from Great Britain.

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

Three guests added drums, percussion and spoken words.

The band returned again after a four years long break.

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

The band continued on down the heavy metal road.... or rather, they took a sharp turn to the left and were leaving this scene behind.

The band returned to their hard rock roots on this album. There are indeed some hints of blues here too.

This is other words a hard rock album and there is a lot of 1970s hard rock here.

The vocals are good and the guitars are good too. There are still a couple of cheesy football terrace-like choruses here. 

The result is a massive improvement on previous albums and a pretty good album in its own right. Check it out.

2.5 points

 

Løvetann - En Dag Som Løve (1999)

 

The second album from this band from Norway.  

The band was a sextet with a lineup of drums, bass, guitars, keyboards, sound effects and vocals.

As I wrote in my review of their first album, this band was formed by Odd "Fezza" Ellingsen, the guitarist in St. Helena, Akasha and Høst. Odd Ellingsen was indeed the main force in the best Høst album Hardt Mot Hardt, a masterpiece in the great Norwegian progressive rock scene.

En Dag Som Løve was released as a CD-R album in a limited run of 100 x. Their eight albums were compiled and re-released in the widely available Opus Magnum box last year. I am reviewing their albums and this box this summer.

En Dag Som Løve is clocking in at thirty minutes.

The music is a blend of dark art-rock and dark symphonic prog. Both Thule and Høst are good references.

As I did in the review of their debut album, I am tempted to label their music as Arctic Prog. This as they have the same depressive, dark sound and take on progressive rock and art-rock as their brethren 1000 km further north, Thule. Both Løvetann and Thule released their music well north of the Arctic Circle.

The music is made further dark by some dark operatic male vocals, darkened guitar harmonies and guitar solos. The bass are also brooding.

The four songs are all good and this is another good album from this band. 

This is an album fans of Thule and dark prog should check out.

3 points