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Metallica is clasified in progressive related.. I just found, I just thought it belongs to prog metal. anyway this album (in other word called black album) is the sole album I got with Metallica. It was about 1993 when I first listen Metallica's The Unforgiven, and I much like the song. Often heard from radio at AFKN(American Forces Korean Network), then I just heard the song and never knew the artist and the song's name. The Unforgiven and Nothing else matters are two favorite songs in this album. Besides I often heard pop songs and so on. and never did I notice that I prefer Italian Prog to other genre as time goes by as I hear Italian Prog! Well that genre gives me more pleasure than others. So I give 3 stars which maybe 4 or 5 stars if I write this review at times of 90s. anyway I will find another album of Metallica just for curiosity.

First album I ever heard I was six years old and from that moment I started to love music. Brilliant album from a brilliant band and in my opinion the most underrated Heep album. It features the classic Heep line up. Fantastic riffs, great bass lines from Thain, organ fantastic and heavy. This album gives you everything from really heavy stuff (Suicidal man, Wonderworld, So tired) great ballads (The easy road, The shadows and the wind). This is probably the heaviest Heep album, fantastic mix of heavy metal, hard and prog rock. It also has psychedelic moments it sounds really haunting when at the end of the song Dreams you hear the parts of Sweet freedom and Dreamer specially when you know that this is the last Heep album with the classic Heep line-up and one of the best line-ups in rock music. I think that this is a must have for everyone because it contains something for everyone.

This is my twentieth TD review so far and it is quite amazing to have listened to so many good albums. Their very early days were not easily accessible but the only album I could hardly cope with was the much later "Cyclone" (two stars). Besides that one, I couldn't find any album rating with less than three stars. This is quite a remarkable achievement (their music I mean) whatever will come in the future.

What's even more attractive, is that even if there were five live albums in those twenty reviews, it all has to be considered as original work since the band always played new material during these recordings (some might say improvisations).

It is again the case with this double "Live In Warsaw". Now to honest, the first part of the opening number ("Poland") is quite hermetic to my ears: too much electro-beat-related sounds for a while but these sweetly slips towards the fine and spacey music we all know (by the way, TD music and alike were referred to space-rock in the seventies).

This is fortunately also the case for the moving "Tangent" which conveys a lot of tranquillity (which I highly need these days, for personal reasons). This is one of their most melodic songs. One doesn't know if he is being sent on the boundaries of the universe or deep down the bottoms of the sea (like during "Underwater Sunlight"). At least for the first ten minutes or so.

The music turns on to a more electro-pop mood after that even with a light reggae scent! Quite abrupt for a change, but not too bad even if it is not this TD aspect that I prefer. I wouldn't say either that "Barbacane" is their most brilliant track: it is much too repetitive therefore and sounds rather uninspired (at least during the first part). It leans more on the new age trends after that (and also becomes more pleasant).

As most of my colleagues, my fave is the closing "Horizon". A full length successful track (in comparison with some partial achievements as I have outlined). It is truly comparable to their great works from the seventies and raises the quality of the whole set quite substantially. You got it all here, really. A formidable kaleidoscope of their huge contribution to prog music.

My objective rating would be seven out of ten but since the PA rating is such as it is, I'll upgrade it to four stars thanks to "Horizon".

— First review of this album —

UBI MAIOR's Senza Tempo is their second album. I got this CD after I hear first one Nostos many times. This second album is more fresh than first one I think. And while hearing the album, I was quite a good feeling of this CD, and it has a very good moments! I would like to give 4 stars on this second album that first album Nostos of course is same rating I would like to give. If you have generous mind of Italian Prog , this album is quite good . Just get it and listen, you like it and notice a different feeling than Nostos. thank you.

— First review of this album —

Solidarity

The title of this live DVD set is not intended to imply that the members of this talented Polish band have been unaware of developments in their own country in recent years. Rather, it is simply a variation on the title of their current album "Iron Curtain". Recorded in Katowice, Poland in February 2009, this set consists of about 50% songs from the new album, and 50% songs which have already become regulars in the band's live set.

Apart from the tracks taken from "Iron curtain", pretty much all the tracks here also featured on the fine 2007 DVD "Four decades". New pieces such as the opening "Defilada" and "Camelele" sit well alongside more familiar works like "Odlot" and "Zywiec Mountain melody" from the band's earliest days.

The now settled line up of Skrzek, Apolstolis and Nemeth complete the trio who appear on stage, yet once again they succeed in creating a sound which might see other bands needing twice the number of people or more. The overall feel of the gig, which runs for around two hours, will be entirely familiar to fans of the band, with occasional vocal passages interrupting long, often unhurried instrumental passages. While the music could never be described as jazz per se, there is always a significant jazz influence in SBB's compositions. That said, there is as ever an inherent tightness to the performance throughout, which dispels any suggestion of spontaneous improvisation.

Jozef Skrzek offers some lengthy dialogue between tracks, and since both band and audience are in their home country, the conversation is naturally in Polish. It would though have been useful if subtitles in English had been added so that the (hopefully) large international audience for the DVD could have shared his words of wisdom.

The DVD contains a couple of interesting extras, including a promotional video for the new song "Camelele" and a studio documentary. The documentary is really just interviews with the three band members in the studio. Skrzek talks at length about the band's style and motivation, while drummer Gabor Nemeth focuses on how he has settled into the band and how he is able to have a greater influence during recording now. Guitarist Anthimas Apostolis on the other hand is concise in the extreme, his rather downbeat comments reflecting the difficulties of the recording process.

In terms of sound and video quality, the recording of the gig is well up to the standards set of late by Metal Mind. While there is no great excitement to the performance, the band show themselves once again to be musicians of the highest calibre who pride themselves on delivering their music professionally.

— First review of this album —

For me one of the most wonderful discoveries in Japanese hard rock scene!

BANDVIVIL, formed in 1993, is a three-piece outfit featuring Issei Takami, a great guitarist and the leader. The formation is indeed very simple, with a guitarist, a bassist, and a drummer. But their power should be bulky as of a big band, and their songs should be delightful as lots of attractions in an amusement park. We wonder how deep their inner space should be, and in spite of our wondering we can enjoy this album full of their magic.

Trust me the important point is - no suspicion that Issei's guitar is terrific - that the rhythm section, supporting the band basis, should be steady and secure. They cannot construct the eccentric but enjoyable music-style without Jun Isobe, a strict drummer, and Naoki Sawada, a funky bassist but a serious pacesetter. :-) You can do understand this fact as above mentioned by listening to their first full album. Please enjoy!

This album has two parts - one is named Vivid and another Evil. I feel the Vivid side is brighter and more pleasant than the Evil side - although I cannot say that in a wholesale.

At first...what a dramatic development and an impressive guitar play at the injection of Jemah & She! We can be very surprised and shocked with finding their unity in their variety of sound & style. Be careful not to be crushed by their madness, eccentricity and variation. Afro has a lot of varied rhythms and phrases - with lyrical guitar and elusive drum & bass sounds. Well I guess - sorry I'm not a specialist of musical theory - it might be so difficult for them to mix both sounds as above. So amazed they can do that easily and naturally. We can mention that Issei's one-man show is the next track Eat Triplet. Based on the hard, rigid, and simply-held bass & percussion, his guitar can dance and twist with flexibility. With the heavy guitar sounds he can let us palpitate wonderfully. W.P. is a spacey and gentle tune with Issei's graceful guitarsynth. And a real rock shot with wow-wow guitar and streaming rhythm section is To King Rush. All instruments can run and jump right and left, up and down. Get Up may be a loud and cool alarm clock for us...by this track we should be burned away before getting up hahhaha. The heaviest guitar sounds are in the song E.G.F. that we always wonder the title be the abbreviation of what. Whatever, how hard the song is! But be relaxed...the last track in the side Chili Mens Ballade is very smart and soft, can let us cool and melt down. Wait, Chili Mens I suggest should mean 'crepe paper' or 'boiled and dried baby sardines' ??? So, it may be enjoyable for us. :-)

Well another side of the band - it's called Evil. Seven Spices is, as the name itself says, very dry and spicy. In Japan, we cannot live without a Shichimi-Tohgarashi (seven spices), with very hot and tongueache taste and flavour. (Of course, just kidding.) In the simple rock song Abraham Bee we can realize the Oriental (not Japanese but Indo-) flavour. Issei's guitar can shout high-tone and solemn words with various looks. In the middle part, Jun's drum can get exploded violently. Cool! San-Byou-Shi is a trad song for BANDVIVIL. Going with a swing and with a laidback style, this song should have strong passion of three talented men and previous members. We can feel not an atmosphere of Evil but of 'Will' from the song. Complex guitarsynth sounds can be around the track Hane, maybe meaning wings. Like wings of a bird, this let us fly in the sky. Comfortable stuff. A short but very avantgarde tune Strange Smoke may express an eccentric rise of smoke with the ascending current. Zoo Zoo Da Juju pushes us with its repetitive phrase of guitars and percussion. They can play so freely but so seriously...it's their attractant, like a cannabis or a morphine, not an apomorphine (a nauseous stuff). Again Issei's speedy play we can enjoy in Shuffle De Go. And keep in our mind...without such a strict rhythm section, he cannot play well at all! So understand the outfit should be the 'one'. All members let us enjoy fantastically, I wanna say. The last song Zoo Zoo Da Juju (Slight Return) is also druggie...

From start to end, we can be pleased with many delights in the toy box named BANDVIVIL! Ultraremarkably recommended.

— First review of this album —

The band description tells us that this typical French neo band is a sort of blend of early Genesis, Marillion and Ange. And after having listened to this album a couple of times I think this is not too far from the truth. The live performace resembles Genesis mainly where the theatrical displays are concerned, the lyrics and vocal performances show the likeness of Ange but that´s mainly due to the French language in which they sing. And Marillion is the neo aspect in the comparison story but here I fail to see much resemblance I´m afraid. Because Magnesis is - as the title of this album already reveals - more of a semi-classical opera tending band and there was not much of that in Marillion I feel. The classical work Magnesis is inspired by must have something to do with Mozart because he´s the rock and roll star Magnesis will be singing about (4th and 5th track).

Anyway, the album starts with an overture, confirming my statement above. What strikes immediately is the strange and very mediocre (if not poor) production of this album. If this would have been an album from the eighties or early nineties I would have understood but this is from 2005 so what is going on here ? And it´s a pity because it´s destracting very much from the main thing which is the music itself of course. I´m not very impressed with the music either on this opener. Fortunately the album gets better later on I can reveal right now otherwise we would have a two star contender here I fear. 2,5 * for this overture.

Act 2 is called Le Pacte and starts with vocals and the same sort of heavy guitar play as on the overture. This lasts for about three minutes when acoustic guitar takes over in a lovely display. After this bit the whole orchestra takes its turn obviously one by one with some wind instruments. This is a wonderful passage that is a great example of the increasing level of musicianship and composition I was talking about in previous song. Unfortunately the last part suddenly gets very dark, on the other hand this means we are dealing with a versatile track. Also the semi-classical idea I mentioned is very present here. 3,25 *

The beautiful wind contribution from previous song also plays a part in Act 3 and I believe it´s the most enchanting feature of Magnesis. I see no wind instruments in the line-up though so I believe these parts are done by the synthesizer (?) Also this composition is intriguing and well done by Frederic Przybyl but also here the moderate production quality destracts too much. 3,5*.

Act 4 is the one that´s really about Mozart but with this track Magnesis returns to the rock ´n roll style which was also partly present on Act 1. Some fine guitar here in first minutes later followed by other very nice instrumental parts. Also this is a very fine composition. The guitar in last two minutes is even mindblowing. I fail to see the connection with Mozart though. 3,75*.

Also Act 5 is about Mozart introduced with a short story followed by some nice piano. This is not semi-cassical but 100% classical for 1,5 minutes. Rest of the tracks is about 75% classical with a slightly more modern approach. Is it clarinet I hear after 3,5 minutes or is it the synthesizer ? It´s truly becoming a nagging matter now but alas no conformation to be found anywhere in the booklet. 3,5* for this finale.

All in all a great album by Magnesis and if the production (sorry, but it´s an essential element here) would have been good this album would have deserved four stars. As it is I will have to leave it at three I´m afraid.

In the past years, dream theater released albums that was either love or hate. Some people liked the heavy stuff more and some prefered the old sound of Dream Theater. I am in the first category. I discover Dream theater with Train of thought so it's sure I like their heavy side. But it didn't mean that I don't like the old stuff. Just that I prefer the new one.

This album, I think, is a mix of the old and the new sound of DT.

The opening track, A nightmare to remember is my favourite track of the album. It has his heavy stuff and his beautiful moments. We can see the different voices that Labrie can have. He sings with aggressivity at the beginning but he has a beautiful voice in the interlude. The song sounds between progressive metal and death prog metal(extreme).

A rite of passage is very good even if it seems it was made to be a more accessible song. It has a good riff and the rythm change a lot. The chorus is good and the instrumental part is insane. The Petrucci's solo is great but jordan one sounds weird. Some part of it are good but others not. Another great song to begin this album which seem incredible after 2 songs.

Whiter brings a little bit of light in the album after 2 very dark songs.The song is slow and more emotional. The background keyborad is perfect and they did not try to prove their talent with a great performance. They kept the song simple and it's perfect.

The shattered fortress is probably the least good song of the AA sage because the best parts in the song are the parts from other songs of the saga. The song is not bad but there are not a lot of things new. There is at least a great guitar solo near the end.

After a beautoful intro, the best of times begins with a beat similar to some Rush songs. As the song progress there are different parts that are incredible. Labrie's voice is perfect for the song. The best part of the song is the ending. It is a mix of incridible drumming and a wonderful guitar solo.

I would not compare the count of tuscany with a change of season. The old one is a lot different but the count of tuscany is a great song too. Dream theater prove they can make a great song of prog without the metal element. The instrumental part at the beginning is good and the chorus is probably one of the best they ever did. There is a break in the song that is similar to the beginning of trial of tears. The slow part at the end is beautiful too. I don't know if it's my english who is bad but I don't understand why petrucci was afraid...Does the lyrics aren't enough specific?

Finally, it's another great album. It will please the old fan and the new ones. 4.5/5

I thought tonight would be the perfect time to review "Fields" considering Ken is doing a live show this evening.He asked me to come out but we were celebrating my son's birthday tonight so it didn't work out this time.So the next best thing is sitting down with one of Ken's wonderful cds and getting lost in another world for an hour.By the way our own loserboy (James Unger) was the emcee at the Baird concert tonight.As with all Baird albums we get a great combination of thoughtful lyrics to go along with Ken's intimate vocals.Sue Fraser and her beautiful voice are like the icing on the cake on this one.Great picture on the album cover of Ken getting ready to throw that 2 foot cardboard airplane out in the fields.It's hard for me to explain but this music is so down to earth and meaningful.It's about real things and everyday life. "New Universe" is a song Ken says he still plays live and if you hear it you'll know why.Kind of spacey to open before this relaxed and steady beat comes in.Vocals before a minute.Susan follows with some vocal melodies.What a great sounding track.Guitar after 4 minutes. "Little Air To Breathe" is another outstanding track.This is my favourite.I like the atmosphere as Ken comes in with reserved vocals.A nice beat with piano here.I really like when the sound gets a little fuller.Contrasts continue.Susan sings backup after 2 minutes.We get some trumpet after 3 1/2 minutes.Guitar follows.Check out the orchestral keys late that remind me of COLLAGE's "Moonshine" album. "There Is A Place" is mostly vocals and piano although we get some recorder a minute in. "Firefly" opens with recorder and strummed guitar.Vocals join in.Susan helps out and she really adds a lot to this track.A fuller sound a minute in.A bit of a Celtic vibe when the whistles come in. "Awake In The Dark" features gorgeous piano melodies throughout with vocals.Interesting lyrics on this one.Wonderful track. "No Easy Path" opens with drums,piano and vocals.Check out the piano after a minute.Nice.It then turns dark before kicking back in with those uptempo piano melodies.Penny whistles 4 minutes in. "Into Night" is the longest track at over 11 minutes.There are those COLLAGE-like orchestral keyboards again with guitar,bass and drums.Great sound! Susan comes in with Ken after a minute.Dual vocals but Susan's voice is more dominant.Themes are repeated.Some penny whistles and piano on this song too. "The Pond" is led by vocals and piano but we do get some recorder followed by some sax after 2 1/2 minutes. "3000 Blue Mountains" has no lyrics but lots of vocal melodies from Ken and Susan.This is so uplifting and moving.A real lush and rich sound too.If i go down to the beach where i live and look out over the bay to the west there is a mountain that's called Blue Mountain.Lots of skiing there in the winter,it's about a 20 minute drive. "Martin Road" is still my favourite Ken Baird album but this deserves 4 stars without a doubt.

Well, I guess there isn't much to say about this album, as everyone has already rated and reviewed it. Go and buy it, chances are you'll love it, thought you might turn out to be one of those who actually dislike the album, (Yes there are a few). The album is pretty classic Ayreon style (Unlike The Electric Castle wich is pretty unique), but at it's best. It has the mellow moments and the metal moments that every fan likes, plus an incredible amount of memorable passages and melodies, and lirically its more "friendly" than previous one, still it remains a sci-fi album, even thought 99% of it seems not to. I don't see the point in going track-by-track with this one, you'll already find a great number of reviews with it and most of them will tell you the same. That's about everything I have to say about this particular album, the top PM album on this website, a true masterpiece: The Human Equation.