KAIPA

The eponymous deput from the band Kaipa represents one of Sweden's earlier ventures into prog rock, and is a probable answer to the Genesis and Yes of Britain. It also marks the first appearance of guitarist Roine Stolt, who has made his presence well known with bands like The Flower Kings and Transatlantic .

I noticed a few things initially about the album which make it rather unique. Firstly, in addition to the overall symphonic sound, there seems to be heavy use of classical influenced technique and sound throughout, such as the main theme of 'Ankaret,' and the Harpsichord use in 'Allting Har En B'rjan,' which is no doubt due to Stolt and company's admiration of music from that era.

Much of the album is instrumental, though vocals in the native language of Swedish do appear throughout most songs. I don't dislike the vocals for this reason; rather that they don't really add anything of interest, and seem mixed too loudly in parts.

Besides this, the music is pretty similar to existent prog of Britain and North America, often relying heavily on keyboards, highly mixed and wandering bass, and diverse song structures. The real treat here, however, is the myriad of pleasant melodies throughout. Albeit there isn't much in the way of complexity, but there is a non-stop flood of catchy riffs.

Overall, I believe this to be a very fine debut. As mentioned, it's filled with fun melodies and great musicianship throughout. However, I do not find it to be terribly adventurous. Therefore I would conclude by saying this is simply a pleasant, inoffensive album.

6/10