FOUR MOMENTS

Australia takes part in 70s symphonic prog and it's great. Four Moments is very good for a band's first album and since this I don't think Sebastian Hardie have done better. The music sounds like it's been influenced by Focus and Camel. The guitarist Mario Millo shines here and his own unique sound dominates throughout. He also does the singing which is minimal but good.

The first four songs join up to create an epic, 'Four Moments'. Second part 'Dawn of Our Sun' is majestic and contains classic symphonic elements; lush mellotron and flute. Wonderful stuff. Third part 'Journey Through Our Dreams' is a mini prog epic with a lot of guitar soloing (which reminds me of 'Birth' by Focus) and then an amazing synth solo. In my opinion, best piece of music Sebastian Hardie has made.The first and last parts of the epic are sort of similar and are probably the weakest parts of the album, but vital to the overall structure of the epic. Not bad.

The second half contains a pleasant simple instrumental song, Rosanna, which contains Mario Millo's distinct melodic soloing. (If you like this check out his solo album 'Human Games' which has a better version of this song with an orchestra.) Closing the album is 'Openings' which sounds like a long epic jam between the band. Lots of repetition and lots of soloing, but still enjoyable.

Overall this is an underrated album and an excellent addition to any prog collection. 4 stars.