THE ROOK'S SIEGE

The Rook's Siege is the most recent album by The Stalemate Factor, which is a rare progressive rock band from South East Asia. I have all four albums but this is the most progressive overall and by far the best place to start.

The obvious draw is the opener - a great track called The Horizon Myth. A 12 minute piece that ends with a superb Moog solo it also has some fine guitar work by LK Wong and outstanding drumming from Ashwin. There are bits of the song that remind me of Rush, King Crimson and even The Beatles and Traffic.

Another highlight is the blistering Ashes which has some fantastic piano and organ interchanges by keyboardist/singer Vengadesan. I would also recommend The Tomb Of Osiris which blends heavy metal and jazz and The Forest Of Thieves which has a captivating midsection on flute and another great outro solo by Wong.

Then there's The Heretic which is an all out brooding jam featuring electric piano, guitar and sitar by guest performer Kumar. It also has a schizophrenic Beatles-like chorus.

The album is full of hidden moments like the violin solo in The Ballad Of The Latter Day Saint and the maudlin string and flute exchanges in Death Comes As The End. I also like the vocal duet on Citadel of Twenty Six, and there are great female vocal contributions from Joanne, Alena and I-Shan Esther.

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