BROKEN

MAGENTA is a band that keeps surprising me in a good way, first they hit the world with the symphonic "Revolutions" which was a breeze of fresh air for those of us that keep living in the shadow of the wonderful 70's, then came "Seven" with a Neo Prog' approach but without betraying their symphonic roots and now is the turn for "Broken", a more eclectic release that covers all the stages of the short MAGENTA career.

The first two albums were full of epics, in "Broken", the band plays shorter tracks but without loosing their essence. Who said all prog' songs must be longer than 5 minutes?

It's obvious that the band has developed a genuine unique sound even when we can listen the reminiscences of the 70's big prog' bands, but they turned more aggressive, with the opener track "Broken" a short story about vampirism, powerful rock song where all the members of the band are perfect, specially Christina with her impeccable voice and surprisingly Matthew Cohen who always stayed in the back, but now he takes a lead role supporting the melody and structure of the song with his strong bass, properly backed by Alan Mason-Jones and his precise drumming.

Let's not forget Martin Rosser, who complements Chris Fry and Rob Reed with his unique guitar style, seems like he plays from the dark hidden somewhere between keyboards and the lead guitar, but his contribution is crucial for the sound.

Not convinced if this track is 100% progressive rock but surely is first class rock with prog' tendencies and a stunning keyboard. Chris Fry's guitar reminds me of a Peruvian band called FRÁGIL, strong but somehow mysterious, a perfect mixture.

But the prog' fans will be pleased when they listen the third track "OPUS III" A short baroque church organ solo by Rob Reed that may become the symbol of MAGENTA, pure prog mixed with classical music that would make Johan Sebastian Bach proud of his legacy.

Opus III is simply perfect from start to end, leaves the listener with the honey in the lips wishing it could last at least 5 minutes more, but when a band leaves the audience asking for more you can be sure they're in the right path.

The rest of the tracks are also great but different to what MAGENTA has offered us before, Call Me is an excellent Power Ballad, Lemminkainen's Lament is more melancholic and the string mix of Sloth (from Seven) is incredibly beautiful.

A must have for any prog' fan because "Broken" proves that good music can be released in the XXI Century.

Even when Revolutions is more brilliant I will give "Broken" 5 solid stars because they are proving a band can evolve without selling out to mainstream just to get more profit.

MAGENTA fans are waiting with impatience their next release, and as I said before, if the audience keeps asking for more, you must be sure the band is going in the right path

This is a good EP that is sort of a companion with the "Seven" album. 26 minutes of great music.

The title song is powerful in it's own way, with Christina's excellent vocals transcending the instrumental music that accompanies her. "Call Me" is a mellow song that is quite touching with fragile vocals.The song picks up tempo considerably towards the end with drums pounding and an amazing guitar solo ! "Lemminkainen's Lament" is a melancholic tune with piano and strings. "Opus 3" is an instrumental featuring a church organ. "Sloth" is another fantastic song, with strings, piano and vocals. This is a song that was on the "Seven" album, and has been remixed here. I do prefer the original though.

This is an EP that is worth searching for my friends, highly recommended especially if your a MAGENTA fan. 3.5 stars.

On their first two albums, "Magenta" mixed a symphonic rock fully influenced by "Renaissance" (piano parts and vocals) + "Genesis" + "Yes". At times even over-exaggerating to be honest. Several parts of their songs being obviously stolen which was a bit of a pity.

The title track "Stolen" is probably the more "Magenta" inspired one since they play music (finally). It is also the first time IMO, that this band produces a fully neo-prog song. Harder than usual but still very melodic and an outstanding vocal work from Christina Murphy. It is my favourite song from this EP and an indication that the band can also play original music.

"Call Me" is far from this very good opening. A piano / vocals duet with no melody, little depth. It only starts when it is almost over. Orchestrations are also useless (but this is a general remark for this EP). Great guitar break which is the only positive point to be noticed.

Even if "Lemminkainen" features some nice celtic instrumentation, strings and global feelingless mood are a bit too much. Like "Call Me" this song seriously lack of passion. A kind of rendez-vous with folk-prog this time. Classic music being on the menu with "Opus 3".

The string mix for "Sloth" is also a bit superfluous. The original song was good and featured a great and Gilmouresque guitar solo. Instead we get emulated violin sounds & tutti quanti. Too much. It is hard to remain awaken during these long and dull ten minutes.

This EP is the most personal work from "Magenta" but I can't really be enthusiastic about it. Of course, orchestrations have never been (and never will) my stuff. If it weren't for the title track, this work should be for completionists only IMO. As such, for fans only. Two stars.