MIRAGE

Yes, this album is very kitsch but to this reviewer's eyes, most of the attempted progressive experiments fail. When an interesting time signature arises, it is simply maintained for a while and then left behind, often without a satisfactory transition and never does an interesting melody get the chance to shine during such a sequence. A lot of the chord progressions are contrived and don't really make sense - that's ok, as this is progressive rock we're talking about, after all, but these experimental musical ideas are often buried underneath conventional solos which would still have fitted a traditional chord pattern.

The fact that singing is sparse and stranded on this album leaves this reviewer at a loss, as it is patently obvious that every one of these songs contains lengths which could be greatly improved by a sung melody.

All I can really say about "Mirage" is that it's more ambitious than music by most of Camel's rock contemporaries. Whether it actually capitalizes on its ambition is for you to decide; I say no.