DØDHEIMSGARD (Norweigian for "Realm Of Death" formed in 1994 in Oslo by Vicotnik (drums), Fenriz (bass) and Aldrahn (lead vocals, guitar). They were yet another band who jumped on the Darkthrone bandwagon of second wave black metal and should be commended for becoming perfect clones on their first album KRONET TIL KONGE ("Crowned To Be King.") All those early black metal traits are here in perfect replication. All the buzz saw guitars and tremolo picking, the shrieked unintelligible vocals and of course the lo-fi demo quality sound production peppered with all the anti-Christian Satanic lyrics (albeit mostly in Norweigian) about slaughtering God, winning the war and all the usual suspects.

While DØDHEIMSGARD would evolve fairly quickly even as soon as their second release "Monumental Possession" which would find them finding their own creative stamp on black metal before they would really delve into the avant-garde and industrial worlds, KRONET TIL KONGE is so generic it hurts after coming to this last after their original and creative run of "Satanic Art" to "A Umbra Omega." In fact if you placed any of these tracks on the first few Darkthrone albums no one would know the difference except for a slightly different sound of the vocals. The song structures are nearly identical as is the overall bleak atmospheric din.

There is nothing really bad about KRONET TIL KONGE either. It's as good as any other standard second wave black metal release of the era, but with a band as original as DØDHEIMSGARD it comes across as woefully substandard and even though i am a huge fans of this band i have skipped this one until i found the 2015 remastered version used in mint condition and took a chance. While i'm happy i have tasted this early roots era of DØDHEIMSGARD, i very much doubt if i'll be throwing this on for listening pleasure. Average and for completists only.

2.5 rounded down

SOTOS was one of those under-the-radar avant-prog bands that followed in the footsteps of Univers Zero and Art Zoyd, released a couple albums and then disappeared from the scene. This all instrumental ensemble emerged from Bordeaux, France in 1996 and was composed of five musicians. Nicolas Cazaux on violin, flute & tambourine; Yan Hazera on guitar and djembe; Bruno Camiade on bass and djembe; Nadia Leclerc on violin and cello; Michael Hazera on drums and flute. Both Hazera brothers would later play together in their next band Zaar a decade later. All members attended the French National School of Music and required little time in finding a common thread to create their first eponymous album released on the French Gazul label.

Just like many in the more obscure corners of the avant-prog world, SOTOS marries myriad musical disciplines and drives them together with angular rock riffs, chamber rock atmospheres, post-rock compositional styles along with classical sensibilities in this case from the likes of Bela Bartok and Igor Stravinsky. While avant-garde is the first thing that comes to mind when a Univers Zero or Art Zoyd connection is made, SOTOS were disciplined enough, despite creating only four monster tracks all clocking in over 13 minutes, to encapsulate a roller coaster ride of interesting hooks that are allowed to play out and add the proper amount of tension before climaxing and shifting to another complex instrumental arrangement.

While the near 22 minute opener "Tango" may have elements of Argentina's favorite dance music, it's only a small part of the overall sound and fairly obscured with a healthy dose of violin and cello sounding more like a classical folk composition taken from the Hungarian countryside of the 19th century but also offers the angular rhythmic rock approach of the avant-prog tradition with a healthy dose of twists and turns that allow more energetic percussive segments than usually heard in this subgenre of prog. The second track "Gilgamesh" sounds as epic as the Akkadian poem from which the name derives. It begins with a rather Steve Hillage "Fish Rising" type of guitar riff accompanied by folky violin but turns into a more energetic rocker and also displays a fair amount of energetic tribal drumming along the way.

"XXVIIIeme Parallele" exudes a jazz guitar intro but is also quite classically inspired and then drowned out by a lamenting violin before spiraling off into a more upbeat parade of folk led flute and drums. As it ventures forward it sounds more like an early King Crimson type of eclectic jazz rock that becomes more progressive as time goes on with the angular rhythms becoming even more so and avant-guitar solos joining in with burst of bubbly zeuhl bass lines that climaxes with one of the most energetic outbursts on the entire album. "L'espoir Du Clan Des Huitres" at almost 17 minutes is the most frenetic track with insane echoey guitars, chugging zeuhl bass rhythms with less of the angular avant-rhythms but they do occur as it all slowly ratchets up into furious guitar frenzies. Like all the other tracks, there is plenty of time for it to breathe and take the time to build up the momentum.

SOTOS is fairly unique sounding. Not as scary as Univers Zero or Art Zoyd. Not as heavy as Thinking Plague. More varied than bands like Nebelnest but not as ambitious as 5uu's. SOTOS utilizes just enough of several different elements to make it feel balanced with a lot of time paid to repetitive patterns that linger with subtleties joint in. Just a tad of rhythmic zeuhl, avant-garde angularities as well as the King Crimson rock rock mixed with the Bartok classical folk elements. The music is definitely dense and complex but it is fairly easy to follow if the listener is actively engaged. Segments proceed in a logical manner and nothing really jumps out of the blue. Excellent music for those who love a more focused form of avant-prog that also offers a few twists and turns along the way.

2.5 stars. Man this was a disappointment. KYRIE ELEISON were a Symphonic band out of Austria and they released this album in 1976. Clearly they were huge GENESIS fans and the singer tries to sound like Peter Gabriel but his vocals are bad. And it's not the way he pronounces English words, I just can't handle his voice. The sound quality is not good either making this one of the rare albums that I refuse to play after just two spins.

The positives are the mellotron which is on all but one track. They apparently owned a M400 Mellotron. Give me a clearer sound and a different singer and I would be a fan I'm sure. For me it's not worth the 3 stars. This was painful.

Well, I have never heard of this dutch quartet until my good friend Erik Neuteboom told me about them.Variates Op Een Dame is their first album, released in 1978. It really surprised me a lot, since the music here is totally acoustic and does not even have drums. So it is not rock. In fact, it is hard to label their sound because Flairck is simply too different, even if their influences are easy to tell: folk, classical, jazz, eastern and world music in general, among others. All wrapped up by their sheer musicianship and excellent songwriting abilities. The instrumentation is quite simple: acoustic guitars, violin, flutes and acoustic bass guitar. Some odd instruments like sitar and pan flute are also included, although the booklet does not say exactly who played what.

Although there is no rock, the songs are quite energetic most of the time, showing off both their great technic and fine craftsmanship in penning good tunes. Sometimes they take their virtuosity a little too far, as most 70´s acts did, but that´s forgivable. After all, it was hip then and those moments don´t last too long. And their sound is definitely progressive: just listen to the many variations and mood swings of the title track with its 21:25 running time. Not too many groups can hold anyone´s attention for that long in a purely instrumental basis, with such few instruments and no electronic effects at all. Besides the tunes are quite complex and surely takes time to fully enjoy the music here, but you´ll be reward if you do listen carefully. There are no lows and all the tracks are very strong. I really liked the even flow of the songs, making it a very nice listen all the way through. All is helped by the brilliant recording, that balanced the instruments well and clear. The cover is also great.

Conclusion: quite a debut! it´s hard to believe they started in a year when prog music in general were in such low moment. If you like something original and acoustic, or good music in general, this is a CD you can not miss. I´m looking forward to hear their next works. Recommended!

Let's start saying that for me this is a masterpiece. I quite like Riverside even without having been a strong fan of the band. I know that somebody considers this album a change in the band's style: less metal and more symphonic prog. Possible, but I can't hear very big differences in style with albums like Second Life Syndrome.

Also, even if I'm not a fan of Steven Wilson, and you can be sure that his hands upon the console are clearly perceived, he has been able to give the band a consistent sound throughout the album without making them sound exactly like Porcupine Tree.

I can't deny that one of the reasons why I'm really impressed by the album is in the lyrics of "Toward The Blue Horizon". This is the title of a Sci_fi novel by Frederik Pohl, but they sound amazingly prophetic; knowing that Piotr Grudzinski is suddenly passed away few weeks after the album's release. Add to this that Mariusz Duda has now in my opinion the most beautiful prog voice after the passing away of Greg Lake.

That song is not the whole album, of course. "Time Travelers" is another intense song which would be enough to make this album worth a purchase, and one which touches me in some strange part of my sub-conscious. So we can say that this is more progressive than metal, but I don't think that Riverside have betrayed their usual public. There are clean vocals only, no screams or growls, but this is not what makes a metal album. It's just a style that this time was not fitting in the songs' economies.

I can't find more words. Surely, listening to it with the awareness that it has been the last album played by Grudzinski, adds some melancholy to an album which can be considered "sad". It's one of the albums I still listen to very often and one of the absolute best of the last three years.

Another masterpiece from the multi-talented Comedy Of Errors.

I seriously loved their previous album "Spirit" it was perfectly put together and I thought it would be difficult to replicate the complex depth and success of that album but "House of the Mind" gets us there.

First track really sets the pace, after a scene setting melodic slow keyboard intro, the rhythm gets us going at high speed like "Tachyon". After nearly two minutes the vocals come in and the rhythm gets ramped up, strong rock, lots of great keyboard and superb guitar play near the end of this track. Memorable lyrics throughout. Brilliant opener.

The title track is very ambitious. Right from the start there are complex, competing sounds and ideas. Tons of invention here, at times atmospheric , other times pacey and punchy, brilliant guitar leads and outstanding, vivid keyboard work, with counter melodies and a huge range of sound. The music and the lyrics describe a struggle about our feelings and the meaning of our lives. I like "we were lost right from the start" and "call it faith, call it love" and at the end how it's all "safe in the house of the mind". I had to listen to this track a few times before I really got it there's so much in it but I'm there now! Love it.

The instrumental "A Moment's Peace" is just perfect. A clever contrast between the giant tracks on the album. It's a serious, feel good piece, and as always with Comedy of Errors, just a little atmospheric. This is an instant favourite. The fourth track and the shortest on the album is "One Fine Day". An easy, relaxed , dreamy song harking back to childhood (probably). Vocals shine here as always, brilliantly supported by keyboard throughout. Could be wrong but somewhere in the middle of this track, I had a feeling of "Strawberry Fields". Nice one.

For me the highlight of this stunning album is track 5. "Song of Wandering Jacomus" is a bit special. Right from the get go we know this going to be momentous, with the keyboard's magical, cosmic like sounds. Then overlaid with an exceptional guitar section which brings in a classical like climax before it fades away back to keyboard, then overlaid with guitar and later drums before a fantastic vocal entry. So after nearly five minutes of clever, complex build up with all the Band's elements coming together, like an orchestra, we arrive at a familiar sound which to me is unique "Comedy of Errors". It's the relaxed sound of the Band in full swing, "one day we will walk through this world hand in hand". Brilliant. Then there is outstanding guitar and keyboard development which brings us back full circle to the earlier tune and vocals including the classical theme from earlier. Brilliant the way these classical type sounds are integrated into the song. Then it's back to the atmospheric keyboard drifting away to the end. This track is seriously addictive.

The finale is a bonus track "Ever be the prize". The beautiful, cosmic, two minute introduction gives no clue to the pace that arrives to bring in the guitar and vocals with this solid rock song. The song develops with the usual mixture of innovative sounds before exploding into the full "Comedy Of Errors" treatment with exceptional guitar playing and the Band at full throttle. A fitting climax.

An inspiring, brilliant album. I've nothing but praise for everyone in Comedy of Errors but especially Jim Johnston who writes all the songs and isn't afraid to experiment with different styles. Comedy Of Errors just keep getting better and the possibilities for this Band are limitless.

— First review of this album —

Scott Heller aka Dr Space takes a break from keyboard duties for cosmic rockers the Øresund Space Collective to deliver `Alien Planet Trip: Volume 1', the first of several promised solo works, and a wild, experimental and moody change of direction it proves to be! Culled from studio improvisations, `...Trip' is heavy on feverish distortion, swirling electronics and rumbling drones all fusing into stormy drifting instrumental atmospheres, actually a galaxy far away from the jam-heavy ØSC LP's and more in the manner of the early Krautrock-era of Tangerine Dream (but probably more resembling a soundtrack to Edgar Froese's most vivid nightmares!), also given a very modern edge.

Don't look for anything resembling a tune or melodic elements in side-long piece `Five Dimensions Of The Universe'. It's an endless rumbling drone of maddening electronic loops and ringing fizzes spiralling into infinity laced with grumbling guitar distortion provided by two ØSC collaborators Nicklas Sørensen of mellow spacerockers Papir and Richard Orlando of Alien Plenetscapes. Fleeting synth drifts rise and fall like both blowing breezes and raging gales, and guitars eventually twist into stormy wailing reaches and dreamy psychedelic embers. Fleeting moments of light and wonder from trilling and comforting whirring synth caresses reveal themselves in the second half, but overall this wild trip remains darkly colourful and perfectly captures the stark isolation of space the majority of its near twenty-five minute length.

On the flip side, the maddening and immersive `Rising Sun Over Mars' is a nightmarish machine sound collage of unceasing looping sequencer patterns over washes of harsh splintering guitar distortion and bleeding electronics, and the guitars throughout `In Search Of Life On Io' slink from drowsy psychedelic echoing, bluesy smoulders and feedback-strangled ripples, all the while lurching trip-hop-like programmed beats and scuzzy distortion pepper the background. A bonus track is also available with a download purchase through Bandcamp that doesn't fit on the vinyl edition, and `Alien Improv II' is a fizzing Berlin School-modelled howling storm that doesn't sound unlike parts of early Klaus Schulze albums like `Cyborg', only heavier.

With Heller relocating it essentially means the ØSC will be going on something of a hiatus for now, so fans and followers will have these exploratory releases to look forward to, and based on this first volume, it means there's plenty of challenging and experimental space music to come in the future. Well done as always, Scott, bring on volume two!

Four stars for this wicked mind-melt!

It took until 2016 for the next album, during which time they got a new bassist and violinist, but even though some personnel had changed they stayed true to what they had been producing on their previous works. They even started this one with an a capella introduction as they had with the last. Again we are being treated to a band that want to mix so many different styles and musical influences that it is superfluous to even mention them, but when Coheed and Cambria lay down next to Frank Zappa who is cosying up to Mars Volta, then one knows that one is in the presence of something quite special indeed. It is fresh, it is exciting, it is invigorating, and most of all it is just great fun to listen to!

This is not a prog band that wants to copy either Genesis, King Crimson, VDGG or Yes, but instead what to get out there and make a name for themselves performing the music they want, and no matter what everyone else may think of it. Interestingly, the vast majority of progheads who have come across their music think that they are amazing, so how come they aren't more well-known? Certainly they had missed me by totally, of which the only advantage I can think of is that now I know about them I have a few hours' worth of music to discover instead of just one album. That they can mix this complexity and intricacy in a way that makes it so easy to listen to is an art in itself, and something that very few bands ever manage. Full of light and shade, dynamics aplenty, this is an incredibly exciting album and one that I could listen to all day. Each time I play it I make more discoveries, with each musician being an integral part to the musical whole. If, like me, this amazing band had passed you by, then now is the time to discover some of the most interesting music you will find in the current prog scene.

Just one short year after the debut EP, and the band were back with a full-length album of all-new material. The line-up was the same as before, and they had even managed to lift their music a notch, as the listener is dragged straight in with the a capella opening: from there on it just gets even more intense and exciting. It is rare to hear music this complex, invigorating and exciting that is also incredibly commercial. They mix rock and metal with prog, jazz and fusion, not bothering to worry about whether the music fits within any particular genre and not only breaks through preconceived boundaries but smashes them to pieces. This is progressive rock in its very truest sense, with every note and nuance having its place. They combine together far tighter than any band of this size should ever be able to do, and if you don't believe me then listen to the complex introduction of "Feed The Horses": that the song then becomes a Seventies funky pop classic before moving into something else just proves the point.

Sal somehow manages to always stay in control, no matter what is going on around him, and his style certainly adds to the overt commerciality of some of the material. But how can it be commercial when a brass section if playing delicately, there is someone ripping a violin to pieces, and there is also a metal band at full pelt? None of this makes sense unless you are listening to the album, then nothing else matters. In some ways this reminds me of Spock's Beard, not in the way that the music is constructed, but that they are daring to do something different. While the music is heavily arranged, it has to be with this many musicians involved, somehow it is still fresh and exciting. This isn't music designed to smother, but instead is a living, breathing force to be reckoned with. If crossover progressive rock, in its purest form, is what you wish for, then Thank You Scientist are a band that you need to discover immediately, if not sooner.

This New Jersey act are new to me, and I only came across them because I was asked by someone at work what I thought of them. Being unable to answer I took the only course of action possible, and immediately tried to find out more about them. 'The Perils of Time Travel' was their debut release, a thirty-minute-long EP that they released in 2011. Even before the music starts one realizes that here is a band that are somewhat out of left field. While a septet isn't really that unusual in music, the instrumentation being portrayed by some of the line-up certainly is. Sal Marrano (vocals), Tom Monda (fretted and fretless guitar), Greg Colacino (acoustic and electric bass) and Odin Alvarez (drums) can be said in some way to be the "normal" side of the band. They are joined by Russ Lynch (violin and viola), Ellis Jasenovic (tenor and soprano sax) and Andrew Digrius (trumpet, flugelhorn, and synth). Even discounting that the much-maligned flugelhorn hasn't seen many rock outings outside of Jethro Tull or Gryphon, it is certainly unusual to find any band combining strings with brass, and little in the way of keyboards.

What is even more interesting is just how commercial they sound, certainly not what one would expect from a line-up like this. They mix Coheed and Cambria with a gentler version of Protest The Hero and manage to make djent, jazz, pop and prog sound as if they were destined to be together. Yes, they can go off into tangents when they wish to, and Tom is an amazing guitarist, but it is the sheer joy from the music that makes one keep going back for more. Somehow it manages to be inventive, fresh and new, yet managing to stay accessible and soon the listener wonders how they managed to live their musical lives without ever coming across these guys before. Some of these songs could even make it onto rock radio, what on earth is going on?

It is rare to discover a band truly formed and with strong direction on their very first release. What on earth could an album be like?