TIME TO REST

Morild came to birth in 2004 in Trondheim, Norway by part of the Adventure line-up.Bassist Nils Larsen and drummer Alexander Salgado Rodriguez were in the Adventure line-up for sometime, while guitarist/keyboardist Odd-Roar Bakken was among the founding members of the group and a longtime friend of Larsen.Bakken worked on Morild's debut for quite sometime and the recordings were put through, when John Anders Troset joined the band on vocals in 2008.Their debut ''Time to rest'' was recorded between 2008 and 2009 at Bakken's own studio with Mari Haug Lund providing the flute parts and Hans Kristoffersen guesting on guitar.Most surprising, this was a 2-CD work by a new band, released independently in 2010.

It can't get any closer to the fundamentals of Classic Prog than this.Eight tracks, five of which clock at over 10 minutes long with the three-part ''The slave ship'' approaching the 30-min. mark!Soundwise Morild appear to be heavily influenced by the classic groups of the 70's, most notably GENESIS, CAMEL, YES, KAIPA and URIAH HEEP, as a result they come close to other North-European bands like compatriots THE WINDMILL or the Dutch LEAP DAY.A mix of old and modern techniques provides a great instrumental depth and the long arrangements give plenty of chances for elaborate melodies, vintage-inspired orchestrations, injections of folky underlines but also some beautiful complex textures.Knowing that, you can expect plenty of different segments in the same track, a fair amount of delicate flute work and a great balance between the nostalgic sound of the Hammond organ and the powerful flights of the synthesizers.Harsichord, church organ samplers and piano are also included among Bakken's instrumental variety as well as some elegant acoustic soundscapes.The impressive melodies and the emotional guitar solos have a taste of some Neo Prog bands like GALLEON or ELEGANT SIMPLICITY, but the bulk of this release is pretty much 70's-oriented.There are no evident flaws in here, except maybe the usual lack of a personal character or some pale vocal moments, otherwise this is some well-composed Symphonic Rock album with endless, varied atmospheres along the lines of the 70's bands.

Sometimes it's better to release one CD over a double edition.This is not the case here.Too much good material to be left out, comprising of lengthy, symphonic-oriented tracks with interesting structures.Strongly recommended...3.5 stars.