Roolaart. Anton - The Ballad of General Jupiter (2026)

 

The third album from this artist from The Netherlands....

Anton Roolart did the bass, guitars, keyboards, synths and vocals.

A number of guests added drums, percussion, piano, keyboards, flute, saxophones and narrations.

It seems like Anton Roolaart has now relocated back to his native country The Netherlands, according to his new record label MoonJune Records. 

His first two albums are pretty good and I am glad he has returned again after this long break.  

The music on this forty minutes is more neo-prog than symphonic prog this time. There are also some more folk rock and mainstream rock on this album.

The music is mid-tempo, melodic and with some good details.

The vocals are a bit too strained at times. It is still pretty good and not a liability. 

The music is pretty good and this is an album well worth checking out.

2.5 points  

 

 

 

Bainbridge. David - On The Edge (2025)

 

The ninth album from this artist from Great Britain.

David Bainbridge did the percussion, guitars, mandolin, bouzouki, piano, keyboards and synths here.

He got help from a number of guests who added drums, percussion, bass, violin, viola, cello, uillean pipes, saxophones, flutes, tin whistle, narrations and vocals.

This is the first album I have ever got of David Bainbridge, the solo artist. I am an admirer of Iona, his previous band and I got all their albums. But his solo albums has completely bypassed me....

On The Edge is clocking in at eighty-three minutes and the music is symphonic prog with lots of folk rock incorporated. This album can even be labeled as a folk rock album. It is 50/50 of both genres.

The music is mid-tempo, melodic and very elegant. There is a lot of uillean pipes and female vocals here. Both are superb, btw. The guitars are great. 

The music is also uplifting and epic. There is a lot of very interesting details here too.  

This is a very good, bordering to a great album. Well, on reflection, this is a great album and one of last year's best albums. 

4 points