RATTRAPANTE

COSMOGRAF, known since 2011, which distills a good prog rock à la Barclay James Harvest, Pink Floyd in a planing variation, is releasing its 8th album here, to make up for lost time? Robin Armstrong almost did it on his own in his studio, this album smacks of neo, prog metal, progressive rock, vintage 80's or even 70's sound with Hammond and Rainbow in focus; he himself says he adores this era of the legendary Deep Purple; I find there a little of the sounds of the great Genesis and the sound snippets of the Martian voice of David Bowie, for a musical and dramatic mishmash of pandemic time unique in our history.

"In 1985" opening à la Gilmour at first, 2'30 "dream then explosion and riff à la" Kashmir ", muffled percussion, languid keyboards and the high-pitched voice of Robin; a track which unfolds, which remains predictable, as if cut for the scene cruelly absent in these uncertain times, wink with crowd noises from the live Aid of 85; spatial instrumental break, synths worthy of a Europe, it smells of the 80's; the tortured Blackmore guitar solo, sublime for a final à la "The Trial" sinking notes like this drums. "Rattrapante" for a punchy rock with an undulating organ à la Genesis, a rhythm dated by the lonely bass and guitar, usual backing vocals; text on speed records, staged on the station wagon with sound effects from President Kennedy then voices from NASA; return of the original rhythm as on 'The Return of the Giant Hogweed' which seems to never stop. "I Stick To You" with Chrissy of the Blackheart Orchestra for a dark song ballad on a spleen side with acoustic guitar; a bit of the soaring Porcupine Trees from the start here. everything is beautiful, romantic, haunting, from another age; a title that stretches like the sensation of a man stuck in time, tragically and inevitably seeing his loved ones disappear. "Memories Lie" piano at the entrance then moving text on our programmed degradation; a sound that reminds me at times of the King Crimsons or even the Barclay James Harvest, the Hammond organ is beautiful and airy, a little acoustic guitar like on "Animals" to put Robin's voice; a majestic guitar solo, dreamlike and filled with warm spleen comes here to increase the emotion and distort our reality with the impression of an endless tune. "Time Will Flow" and already the end on a magnificent moving piano-synth intro, it goes up on a chorus to melt, it draws on the Porcupine Trees, the narrator Tommy adds a little mystery, oral vibration, progressive sensitivity ; it is latent, the synth remains alone in space until Robin arrives, whose voice seems logical; a tune which undoubtedly refers to 'In 1985' with an overly predictable crescendo, but perhaps this is the aim of this melodic and symphonic title keeping the clichés of the genre.

Note 3 short bonuses of 'i stick to you', time will flow 'and rattrapante' which make it possible to account for melodies that are more elaborate than they seem. A vintage sound that gives off a better sensitivity over listening thanks to the contemporary approach to tunes and instruments that may make you dive into it; this Cosmograf there coming out on CD, vinyl and digital is worth more than my first listening, becoming bewitching and nostalgic.

Cosmograf is one of those modern prog rock bands that is releasing consistently excellent material, and yet remains in the shade of many bands that are not necessarily better, or rather, does not get the deserved attention and exposure. Despite this sad truth, this relatively new project has gradually become a very big favorite of mine, and the news of new material are always welcome. The one-man band led by multi-instrumentalist and producer Robin Armstrong released its eighth studio album 'Rattrapante' in March of 2021, on Armstrong's own tiny independent label, called Gravity Dream Music. Ever since he started in 2009-2011, this man has been busy releasing album after album every year or two, and needless to say, the content on the Cosmograf albums is pretty spectacular!

A strong Porcupine Tree flavor, mixed with some Floyd, and cast through a neo-prog prism would be an insufficient but relatable description of the music on 'Rattrapante' (and I would say, this applies for the band overall) - the most impressive aspect of it all, is that Mr Robin Armstrong does the vocals, plays the guitars, the keys and the bass, with a little help from Kyle Fenton on drums and backing vocals, and Chrissy Mostyn on co-lead vocals for one track.

It could be safely said that 'Rattrapante' is a concept album, and the idea behind the whole thing is well described by Robin Armstrong himself: "'Rattrapante' is a collection of 5 songs about our interaction with time; we measure it, but yet waste it more, it defines our existence and forms our memories. Some seek to beat it by being the first or the fastest and some can appear to outlive time itself through their achievements? The idea for the album was inspired from my work with mechanical watches. Rattrapante is a French word deriving from 'rattraper' meaning 'to catch up or recapture. A Rattrapante chronograph can simultaneously time 2 events such a lap split time and a final race time".

Just five songs comprise this 50-minute record, but every single one is very enjoyable, memorable, and intriguing. Kicking off the album, we have the nearly 13-minute 'In 1985', menacing memorabilia about some better times; This one has an anthemic, almost Queen-like character, while maintaining the strong Cosmograf personality. Then comes the title track, a heavier number from the band, and one that has one of the best and most infectious melodies I have ever heard. 'I Stick to You', the third song on the album, happens to be the shortest one; It is a beautiful love poem, well-written and charmingly memorable. 'Memories Lie' is a more typical Robin Armstrong acoustic number and 'Time Will Flow' is the grand finale epic that concludes in the most dramatic possible way this excellent album.

British prog rock is alive! Cosmograf is the proof, this band/project is too exciting to be missed out on; the mixture of heaviness and gentleness, the masterful song-crafting, the thoughtful lyrics, the puzzling concepts, and the crisp production, are among the facets of not only the band, but also their very good 2021 release 'Rattrapante'.