HYBRIS

As "Formentera Lady" said, the whole album is just copies of old prog rock acts with quite little variation (albeit great production). "Hybris" is not really in the spirit of progressive rock for me, and doesn't feel risky and outgoing enough for a high rating from me, even though on paper the music should be excellent, and almost as good as bands like Genesis and Yes. Some nice little melodies throughout, and it's good to hear some of the old stuff in a slightly dimmer light, with a whole new atmosphere, but this is just the most overrated album on PA by a long shot. It's almost in the top 10, and I could think of hundreds of better albums! But anyway, I'll stop my rant and start the review!

The first song "Jordrok": too dark and intense for me. If you listen to this album for the first time, don't expect much variety afterwards. Quite depressed piano tunes, which sound a bit awkward, and don't really fit in with what's to come, but quite intriguing. The whole song doesn't really flow, and the instruments don't complement each other most of the time. Good tones and recording though, and of course the musicianship is spot-on.

"Vandringar i vilsenhet" is also a bit over the place. Quite an odd mood change from the dark symphonic opener, to the more simple (but very layered) style. Of course, everything is there that you would want in a prog rock song, but it's not experimenting with anything further. I suppose in a way it states a signature consistent sound for "Hybris"

"Ifrån klarhet till klarhet" is quite similar to the previous track so it starts to get a bit tired after 15 minutes of ongoing "laid-back" complexities in the album. The guitar (as with the following track) brings a gentle, warmer vibe joined with the flute that I think defines a certain sound that they could have refined down to a very melodic and calm work, but one of the problems with "Hybris" is that it's all over the place really, and quite undecided in its direction apart from progressive rock.

The last track, "Kung Bore" is probably my favourite, and is what secures this album in the 3-star rating for me. This is the sort of thing that I like, with the intricate passages and mixtures of baroque and rock, although once again lacking the experimental value. I could probably listen to this song on its own, but not with the whole of the album - it's just too much altogether. The mellotron, flute and acoustic guitar works well together, but not at all a fan of the organ/electric guitar thing going on. A bit stifled in my opinion, but some nice little themes reappear I guess, and some pretty good melodies.

C(-): A struggle to listen to and to not feel drained by the length of non-stop, non-varied music, regurgitated from the prog rock bands of the 70s. Therefore, mediocre.

Jordrök: *** Vandringar i vilsenhet: *** Ifrån klarhet till klarhet: *** Kung Bore: ****