SPACE REVOLVER

The fifth album from The Flower Kings, and what an album it is. The band are at their creative peak on this superlative album. It's very symphonic, but with jazzy interludes, outstanding instrumentals and full of great songs. That happy positive TFK vibe which endears itself to many is there throughout.

Some TFK albums are labelled inconsistent: that is not an accusation that can be levelled at Space Revolver as it's a consistently brilliant album.

I Am The Sun Part One - I struggle to find the words to describe just how good this is. Right from Tomas Bodin's magical synth phrasing to that incredible ambient ending this is outstanding. The opening section is classic TFK, great themes, great vocals and great instrumentally. After a jazzy excursion which showcases both the finest rhythm section in prog and the wonderful playing of Stolt and Bodin we have that incredible ambient section, a piece of music that regularly brings me to tears such is the beauty of it.

Dream On Dreamer - A lovely atmospheric interlude before the next stunner...

Rumble Fish Twist - A brilliant jazzy instrumental. Reingold and Salazar really get going here, with more extravagant soloing from Stolt and Bodin. Another beautiful ambient ending to this song.

Monster Within - Another brilliant TFK mini-epic. The best way I can describe this is typical TFK. 13 minutes or so of fantastic music. What a start to this album!

Chicken Farmer Song - I find this to be a brilliant song which just sums up TFK so well. A happy, catchy song that reminds me of a lovely summers day. But just listen to the instrumental section, that is symphonic prog of the very highest order. Wonderful stuff.

Underdog - At last, a bit of a breather, as the level of quality finally drops a little. A nice track but more straightforward and nowhere near the quality of the first few.

You Don't Know What You've Got - A short acoustic and vocal piece that many dislike. The key factor is that it is only short. It doesn't drag on and fully justifies it's place on the album.

Slave To Money - Normal service is resumed. This is heavier and much more up-tempo. A strong song and one that features great work by Roine.

A King's Prayer - This track stars slowly, but what an ending. It features an incredible guitar solo from Roine that is possibly his best ever solo and lifts this track into the stratosphere. Superb.

I Am The Sun Part Two - A truly wonderful ending to this album. Whilst Part two is not as spectacular as the first part, it's so emotional, with those magnificent keyboard flourishes washing over you. The ending of the track is simply amazing, it's goosebump city, and another piece of music that regularly brings tears to my eyes. Simply stunning.

My words can't describe just how much this album means to me. It is a really emotional experience for me to listen to it, and I am so pleased that at least some other people have been struck this way by it. It stands comparison with and is better than most of the 70s classic prog albums in my opinion and gets 5 stars from me without hesitation.

If I was stranded on a desert island and could only have the standard 8 desert island discs, Space Revolver would be an absolute certainty. It really is that special.