JOURNEY OF THE SHAMAN

Unexpected surprise from the Turkey

This is a concept work and the sound is very Pink Floyd and Eloy like but at the same time different the band have their own identity. Parts of it reminds me of the Eloy's Inside and Pink Floyd's Meddle. The album very much flows from one track to the next. Yes, there are highs, but the overall strength of the album is the consistant high quality of its material. The work needs quite a few listenings for the listener to discover how good the work is. Frankly, the more I listen to it the better it becomes. Could in years be regarded as a classic album.

There are 3 songs in the album which tells the story of the pysical and spiritual journey of "Mitos", a Shaman living in the steps of Central Asia, upon the message he received from the other world. These three songs represent the three kingdom in Shamanism belief.

On the opening cut, "Part I", the band starts off sound deceptively like Eloy, but that's just for a few seconds, before you know what you're listening to is Psychedelic/Space Rock. Here you get some great guitar and keyboard work, and some atmospheric passages. Here the vocals are very much like Narrator of the epic story.

"Part II" starts off heavy guitar riff with moog solo and very melancholic guitar solos. Than lovely classical guitar ,freetless bass mellows with mellotron just like 70's...but then the music gets more energetic,heavy on the string synths, Hammond organ with some space Minimoog to go with it.

The last song, "Part III" one of the darkest atmosphere intro of Psychedelic/Space Rock. The music then flows naturally with every segment of music gives nice touch on melody part. The guitar part at interlude is performed nicely. Definitely one of the highlights, a masterful song with a very catchy chorus driven by a guitar riff.

Journey of The Shaman is in the true spirit of early seventies era progressive rock containing all the main ingredients. For anyone who will be review this and rated it, listen to it a few more times and see if your opinion changes. You may be missing a masterpiece of Psychedelic/Space Rock!

Highly recommended!!!

This is my first review on PA and one of the first intentionally listened Space Prog albums. What a great luck that it's also pleasant, melodic, challenging and offers everything that one can achieve in this genre. Every song on the album is a keeper and the three spoken word tracks actually contribute greatly to the dark psychedelic vibe on the album. 'Part I', superb psych song with a great intro, catchy verses, and colourful outro serves as an excellent opener to the album. Guitar riffs changes often but drives very smoothly and took to the dreamy journey...In the middle of the song cathedral-like organ creeps and left alone, takes a sudden control, a slow, soul-searching with very psych guitar chords. End of the song we are hearing beautiful minimoog solo and short but very touchy guitar sound mellows just like Camel's . 'Part II', seems to fit perfectly on this album, and is quite a reflective, darkish tune with Mert on guitar, and has a somewhat 'Sad' feel to it. As choral calls and soothing mellotron emerge to join this framework of peace, the piece reaches its reverent conclusion. Absolutely incredible oriental guitar riffs aggressive and sharp sounding feels like tension of the story. 'Part III' is one of the highlight of album i guess. Sound is extreme heights, really inspired and mysterious, early sample of Space-Rock. From the dark melancholy opening to the dramatic chorus of the first movement we might deduce that the mellow feel going to dominate; not so, as the following passage goes from funky to freaky with the screaming smooth lead guitar providing Anatolian sound. There's also some exceptional organ work here by keyboard player. "Journey of The Shaman" is an essential space-rock album, if was to introduce someone to the genre I would steer them in the direction of this album. For those who haven't heard this yet, trust me and buy it! You won't be disappointed.

A professional debut from this Turkish outfit including Pink Floyd and Eloy reminiscences. Which means 'Journey Of The Shaman' is provided with dominant psychedelic respectively spacey elements as well as some sidesteps to other styles like symphonic for example. So here we have a concept album consisting of three epics telling the story about a Shaman living in Central Asia. Not really from the experimental side of life ... anyhow, I really like the album's consistent atmosphere now after having several listening sessions. The songs bear a blend of relaxed and uptempo moments which are comprising many repetitive patterns, however entertaining nevertheless. They are even offering some trance feeling with a slight eastern touch here and there - all in all the result of elaborated arrangements in opposite to endless noodling.

Part 1 basically starts Eloy oriented in a more relaxed manner, Mert Göçay's guitar though is often (not always) heavier edged, dominant in any case due to some overdubs handling diverse variations. He also cares for the vocals which are more of a recitative here. Decent synths coupled with acoustic guitar are reminding of Pink Floyd in between, although this sounds rather unique all in all. The reason is the variety in tempo and ambience while listening to the different four sections, also including funky rhythms, samples, spacey synths and celestial church organ to name a few gimmicks.

Heavy riffing guitars and minimoog excursions open Part 2 but it soon changes to a melancholic touch due to acoustic guitar and fretless bass. A catchy melody dominates the middle part ... and then it might be section three, named 'Fight With The Evil Spirits', which sounds Camel influenced in some way, where they once again turn to some exciting uptempo rocking minutes. 'A Journey To Innerself', the emotional first section of Part 3, offers a nice trancy start which then evolves to a groovy behaviour step by step including sparkling e-piano, additionally decorated with Göçay's riffs and excellent organ input. The longest track and an exemplar where I imagine some jamming basics too.

'Journey Of The Shaman' is a well-thought-out progressive psych album ... a speciality concerning the conceptual approach I'm quite sure when you consider the common Turkish conditions .... inspired by the golden 70s prog era but also made of a modern approach ... the multi-varied guitar contributions and the tricky drum work are striking first and foremost ... I recommend to listen carefully! Solid three and a half stars for this affair.

What a fantastic debut album...

"Journey of The Shaman" is a three tracks concept album of breathtaking beauty and refinement. This is one of the potential legendary prog albums that must be considered in the whole history of progressive music. The album is based upon the tale of pysical and spiritual journey of "Mitos" , a Shaman living in the Anatolia i guess, upon the message he received from the other world. These three songs represent the three stages of Shamanic life to reach immortality.

"Part I" starts beautifully with an ambient music featuring 12 strings guitar, soft keyboard and ambient drumming with dynamic work on tom and snares. In fact, the combination of guitar and drum is really nice and has become one of attraction points for this track. The key strengths of this song includes the brilliant flow of the music as well as the melody changes feeling of peace of mind during the wonderful flow. Mert Göçay's guitar riffs presents very touchy and memoriable moments in the songs especially after the min 6...there is a very smooth guitar solo with lots of bend on guitar remind camel's style with psychedelic !

"Part II" has powerful intro, where a battle of guitar and minimoog follows until rains starts!! Than the atmosphere of songs totally change, middle of the epic journey. After the beautiful guitar and keyboard work we feel more hard-rock, but still maintaining that spacey feel.

"Part III" could be considered by the fans their highest point of album, and they might be right. After the dark and psychedelic intro, a mood very similar to "Pink Floyd" and "Eloy" kicks in, even though it's a bit more mysterious than the others masterpieces. Also the final part is majestic, with many memorable moments that will surely be remembered in many years from now.

It's a masterpiece of progressive music that you should not miss at all. I can guarantee that the music is accessible to most ears. It has tight composition with excellent arrangements, great flow and wonderful musical nuance coupled with catchy melody for all songs featured in the album. This album must be owned in any prog lover collection.

Nemrud's debut is considered by many to be a cornerstone of new area of progressive rock music. Honestly I've listened "journey of the shaman" three times only from streaming and this is not going to be easy writing down review which i couldnt listen from official cd yet!!! "Part I" Typical Pink Floyd and Eloy epic with some lovely synth and guitar for the first six minuetes until it explodes into a blistering guitar drive. Then Mert Göçay's meloncholic tone flows to church organ than go into a great moog and guitar solo. "Part II" starts off rather mellow, heavy on the guitar riff and space Minimoog to go with it. But then the music gets down. Than we hear fretless bass solo on lovely guitar (mellotron sound is so weak bytheway!) last few minutes of the song is more energetic and resembling Camel. "Part III" Dreary synthesizer and a dark melancholic melody played on the guitar introduce a more sinister and energetic passage, which is reminiscent of some of the darker pieces from 70's Krautrock era. Soon the heavier and very catchy moment passes, leaving a more subtle section, over which the vocals finally enter. The composer of the songs Mert Göçay, put some oriental flavour which is charming for me. "Journey of the shaman" is great album, no doubt, with some unbelievable moments and amazing melodies. A must have for any prog lover, especially if you´re into Psychedelic/Space Rock of the 70´s. A solid 4-star.

A promising Turkish Floydish outfit have come here, with three stories about Journey Of The Shaman.

This album is NEMRUD's debut one, with that they are trying to get a formal contract to some record label currently (for the day when this review was written). They say they should be much influenced by Pink Floyd or Eloy, and their stuffs can straightly remind us the Space Rock pioneers. "Part I", for example, definitely has the soundscape of Roger-Floyd's "Animals" ... a great album. Slow mellow space rock, as it is said, can flow quietly and monotonously. Guess this monotonousness like only the flatness of Floydian sounds might be important for them? (Exactly Mert's whispering voices are more monotonous for me) Yes, I'd like to be ... otherwise they might have less originality and get to be "the second SF". One story has some parts musically different from each other, and this matter might make this song lacking in unity rather than colourful I feel (especially a danceable boogie one in "Part II"'s middle part, and so on), but as I've mentioned above, Floyd's "Animals" or other albums have some modulation and climax in their slow mellow space rock, and this should be their originality ... on the contrary, this unrefined atmosphere may be essential for them in my opinion.

Well where will their next story go? I'm very curious ...

Debut album from unknown new Turkish band with some high ratings on PA?I am curious to hear if it's a new masterpiece.... Happily, all three album compositions could be heard from band's site ( and it looks for a moment it's the only way to listen this work).

First 15+ minutes long album's composition is heavily influenced by middle era Pink Floyd. Or, better to say, it sounds as Pink Floyd tribute, but unfocused, too long and with uninspired vocals. I really like when modern band uses 70-s prog legacy in their music, but it will be really nice to hear not only some copy/paste musicianship, but something more original from musicians.

Second composition (12 min) only supported my worries - down tempo relaxed Pink Floydish music is long, too simple, and not enough original to attract listener to listen so monumental compositions. To play another "Animals" is very risky business, and if someone just is makes such a risky step, he should be very prepared musically, technically and artistically. Unhappily, Nemrud is not the one. Such target would be extremely difficult even for much more capable bands.

Some heavy guitars riffs and Middle Eastern tunes included is good trick to re-fresh the composition, but it's far not enough to save it in full.

Third, final album's part, is the longest one (17+ min). It opens with stereotypic spacey synth sounds. Some Eastern tunes are added again, but how much I need some energy or action there! Even their main influence PF music never was a music for relaxed meditation! Same spoken vocals can add nothing, and I really become tired: it's not easy to listen three lo-o-ong compositions with not much added inside. For real meditative music there are not enough musical master ship demonstrated, for spacey album for listening all the material is very unfocused, too long and uninspired. In fact, possibly from all this album's raw material it was possible to play and record few short good compositions. Or, by other words, this album's music is two short compositions because of some reasons played all album long.

In all, it's nice some new bands returns to prog classics in their sound. But for such steps it will be nice to have more own ideas, material and try to find own way not just simply copying giants.

I must say this has to be possibly one of the best albums I have ever heard. As a debut album, it contains a great variety of styles and sort of blending them together to create a spacey and experimental kind of style. The bands influences and the variety of styles give it a unique style, bringing to the table one of the best albums of space rock. The record starts off (Part I) with a spacey sounding with string guitar, which is a very relaxing way to start the album. After a few minutes the proper song begins. Main riff welcomes you after 6 minutes, remind me Early Eloy and Pink Floyd sound. I like to way it ends... The Second Part, away of changing moods and styles but keeping them on the same spacey page. The song that most caught my attention was oriental guitar riff and moog solo.

Last part is sound very unique, same guitar riff shows different face of the melody and that's why I believe that this is the best track on the album. Compared to other songs on the album.

Stunning and beautiful debut by one of the most talanted modern prog bands. Highly recommended to fans of Pink Floyd and Eloy.

Five stars !!!

This is a very serious, sad and moody record, and it made a very big impression on me. The songs have stunning melodies, and the overall feeling is very psychedelic. The production date 2010 but i hear 70's sound it is revealed by some moog and guitar sounds, which could not have appeared last 30 years recordings. There's also quite strong rhythm section on this band, and they do some faster stuff in some occasions too. Mert Göçay's voice is often telling the epic story with over melodic sound and each song has few touchy moments of vocal floating and they are not bother me at all. This is a quite rare achievement in the underground recordings coming out of non-English speaking European countries.

There are three long compositions here, the opening track "Part I" rises from cricket sound with 12 strings acoustic guitar (I am not sure but i feel this way) psychedelic move, as distorted amplified electric guitar begins to weave the soothing web of sound. The composition is interesting, as it has many different and very beautiful sections in it. Especially moog solo and last guitar solo are very solid.

"Part II" is another longer stunning psychedelic voyage like the first track. I was so hypnotized whilst listening to this and i feel like i was the one who step-down to the underground. Bytheway in the middle of the song guitar starts very powerful oriental riff, i like it a lot...

"Part III", starts with a moody, abstract sound wall, from where mysterious and powerful song rises. The composition has a mellow and calm feeling, where the fast and loud parts emerge from time to time. The vocals are also treated with weird effects during the verses.

So in all this is very promissing album, with only a couple of very minor quibbles to keep it from being considered a masterpiece. This feeling that the band was originally scoping this as a concept album (as evidenced by the band's name, artwork, and opening track), but for some reason the theme doesn't seem to quite hold throughout (i heard some groove moment which i dont like it). Maybe this is a masterpiece anyway, but for now I'll say it is a solid four stars.....

If you are fan of bands of the psychedelic-prog as ELOY & PINK FLOYD, I think I have good and bad news for you. Before, however, it would like to highlight that I don't have anything against to bands that present in his sound forts influences of other bands in which were inspired. The good news is that this work of the Turkish band NENRUD - "Journey To The Shamam " it can (in my opinion) to be considered a beautiful tribute or a type of "remake" of the sound of these bands (mainly if we take in consideration works in the middle of 70's) such it is the similarity among the sound landscapes of this band in relationship to the bands above. The bad news it is that in spite of being a disk very well produced, counting with excellent musicians and a special care in the recording process, it doesn't increase anything in relation to the previously work by the other bands (that in my form of understanding commits the objective of the artisit, that is always increase something to the work already produced by their icons , creating like this his own identity). For this reason my rate is 2 stars!!!

Excellent refinement and consolidation of the sympho-space rock style debuted from Turkey. A true concept album that listening to it must be in one time from start to end. No songs should/can be skipped. I think that Nemrud got their own sound and direction in this very first album which made them unique in the progressive rock scene. "Journey of the Shaman" is a complex album with some huge ideas put to very impressive musical themes. The tracks run together almost seamlessly as one and there are multi movement suites that encompass several songs, 3 sections with a variety of styles and time signatures, with inventive musical breaks. 5 stars without hesitating!

Well, I have come to the album after all the hype in this and other sites. I find this album quite enjoyable after several spins, I am the kind of guy that feels admiration for the trio thing, as these three songs are basically guitar, bass and drum based.

The storyline about a shaman journey fits the music quite well, as it is spacey with symphonic leanings and psychedelic aura. In find the sound quite cool, very 70's, the guitar work . It surely reminds of the more spacey offers from Pink Floyd and Eloy, though a more raw sound is found here, and this is something I really like. A oriental flavour is also heard along the record, all in all these guys operate in Istambul!

I think the album is a bit repetitive and the vocal performance adds little value to the overall sensation, but is a pleasure to find this sounding and this adventorous ideas thrown in a record in 2010. I'll give it three stars, but I'll be after their next release, because I think they'll do better!

Nemrud's debut album is a fine work which develops simple rock songs stickied together to make a "prog" epic structure. It has great energy in it, ofcourse it can get a bit boring sometimes becouse of their amateur approach. The three parts has some memorable segments, and they rock pretty well in it.

Consisting of just 3 tracks "Journey of The Shaman" is, perhaps predictably, a concept album. This is a slightly psychedelic piece of conceptual, quite hard rocking music. The concept is based around the Shaman character name Mitos, pysical and spiritual journey. These three songs represent the three stage of immortality in Shamanism belief.

The whole piece is well structured and carefully arranged and psychedelic jamming feeling. Mert Gocay's guitar sound is loud and strong throughout. On some passages the bass guitar and the electric guitar remind me slightly of Hawkwind and Camel respectively. It is hard to compare this album to works by other bands. Some say this is similar to Pink Floyd or Eloy, but not very much, in my opinion. This is a pretty unique band and unique sound...

The lead vocals are not the best, but certainly not bad either. The lyrics are quite interesting and unusual. The instruments involved, however, are basically just the traditional ones - electric guitar, bass, drums and organ but you will find beautiful Moog synthesiser solos here. Mert Gocay is the one who compose of all songs, probably he is driving force of this band. I do believe their second album will masterpiece for progressive rock listeners ! The first couple of times I heard this album I liked it but it still left very little lasting impression on me, but it grew on me and after several listens I begun to appreciate it more and more. This album is very listenable and never annoying or boring even if it is far from being as loaded with musical ideas.

A very good, soft ambient spacey progressive rock album, with some heavy symphonic pieces. Drum and bass create a very solid, strong rhythm section, that counterpoints the more atmosperic spacey/floating keyboards, with occassional edgy guitar. Great solo-ing throughout the album. The more heavy parts reminds me of Eloy at times, and the singer has a weird voice with a slight mediterranean accent. Very good album.

Mert Gocay's song compositions, enorchestrations and productions are very mature for debut album...The raw, heavy, half-finished sound of the early era becomes space and melodic, clearly progressive giving Nemrud an original musical identity that differentiate them from other new bands all over the world.

Nemrud's Journey of the Shaman, is a great album, with a spacey feel to it and some more rocking moments, which they seem to blend in just as eassily. 5 stars. I'd recommend for people who like Pink Floyd and Eloy, you will not be dissapointed.

NEMRUD "JOURNEY OF THE SHAMAN" (Musea Records)

Nemrud is the first progressive rock band to emerge from Istanbul, Turkey. Their newly released debut album titled "Journey of the Shaman" (Musea Records) already fixed them an international appeal. The band is four piece led by Mert Gocay who is behind the most of the compositions and lyrics. Mert was running the Turkish Eloy website for many years and a friend of Eloy's Frank Borneman. Inevitably there is some Eloy influence in Nemrud's music circa "Inside" and "Floating" period. Nemrud is blending all the prog elements with many variations of psychedelic/space rock and adding some nice melodic eastern flavors which makes this new band very enjoyable to listen. "Journey of the Shaman" is a concept album. According to shamanism all man on earth has to go through the underworld to reach the sky. There are three long cuts on the album timing between 12-17 minutes. Each cut tells the story of this journey : the earth, underworld and the sky. The album cover design also beautifuly depicts the sory. All cuts have many time changes, intelligent lyrics (all in English), topnotch musicianship and very much 70's analog sound; all the prerequisities for die-hard prog fans. But most important fact which strikes the attention while listening to the album is the band's sincerity in what they do. Unlike many new bands their ambition is not on the creating some more accessible music but what they really believe and enjoy, true progressive rock. Nemrud is already a popular band in Istanbul and lining up some live dates in Turkey and hoping to play at various progfests around Europe soon. They are also working on their follow-up album, there are rumors that the next recording will be made at Frank Borneman's studio in Hannover but it is too early to make any assumptions yet. Finally last but not least , a big thanx must go to the Musea Records executives in France for discovering Nemrud and bringing them to the attention of the international prog fans. Akif Ergulec, December 2010

A great epic journey by this well respected potential legendary Turkish progressive rock .

'Journey of the Shaman" (Musea Records) is a very expressive album and offers a wide range of tones and moods with a superb blend of classical and progressive chamber rock. Nemrud's debut is a heavy theatrical production which comes across as a great concept- like piece of art. Loads of great guitar work here as you would expect and songs are exceptionally well pieced together. I love the inter-exchange of the rock ideals with the classical style.

'Part I' starts mellow with 12 strings guitar work with repeated chords in a spacey style. The music flows in with a mark of dynamic drumming.It forms a beautiful opening part. The music then continues in crescendo style. Floydian guitar work then continues to flow nicely. It then creates a guitar sound that reminds me to the intro of Eloy songs. It's a short but very cool solo guitar; it provides a rocking nuance. The music then continues to flow in faster tempo. The howling guitar sound is really stunning. Drum work is dynamic. Keyboard then follows with spacey nuance. Excellent composition.

'Part II' features a space rock sound that brings Steve Hillage to my mind. We can enjoy pleasant work on the fretless bass, twanging acoustic guitar and an accellaration with flashy Moog synthesizer runs and again strong hints of early Eloy.

'Part III' begins with beautiful spacey keyboard layers, then many shifting moods that contain very tasteful work on guitar and keyboards. The music flows beautifully with constant style but in every journey through many segments, the textures are different - using sound effects or different guitar sounds.

Additional note is on Mert Gocay's compositions. The album is structured tightly in term of composition. Various piece of melody and sound are blend together with smooth transitions between melodies.

Overall, I can't see this as a "must-own" for prog-lovers' collections. It's a solid 4.5 than I'll round it 5 !!!

I highly recommend this album for experienced progressive rock fans only ... it is very challenging music.

This seems to be one of those "love it or hate it" type albums. It's interesting that most of the negative reviews focus on how much they sound like ELOY and PINK FLOYD. For me ELOY did come to mind but only because of the accented vocals and those spoken word passages. Now this guy doesn't have as heavily an accented voice as the guy from ELOY thankfully but it's there. What I love about the Psychedelic genre is that it's not about complexity or virtuoso playing, it's about creating emotion and a mood while being inventive. And these guys have succeeded. I also like the story line and the fact that they don't mind letting loose with some rocking passages. We get three long tracks between 12 and 18 minutes.The band who is from Turkey "Is named after mountain of Nemrut, which is the place embracing the Middle of the Ground and the place that Mitos passes while going to the Underground". Mitos is the Shaman of our story here.

"Part I" opens with atmosphere as gentle guitar comes in. Drums and a heavier sound arrive around a minute. Spoken words come in then vocals after 2 minutes. I like the guitar that follows.The organ floats in the background. A change 6 minutes in as we get a calm then an uptempo section takes over. Nice bass after 6 1/2 minutes as it settles briefly. Riffs follow as the drums pound. Another calm before 9 minutes then spoken words after 10 minutes.Vocals are back as it picks up. Soaring guitar before 14 1/2 minutes. Beautiful stuff. Heavier guitar and drums end it.Nice.

"Part II" opens with thunder and rain. Drums and guitar then take over. So good. Water sounds and picked guitar 3 minutes in. Atmosphere then spoken words join in.Vocals 5 minutes.The guitar kicks in at 7 1/2 minutes and the organ follows as the drums pound.They "rock out" to the end.

"Part III" is spacey to start, very atmospheric.The guitar comes in after 1 1/2 minutes with cymbals. Cool sound here. It's building. Spoken words join in before 4 minutes. A change after 6 minutes.This is great. Heavy riffs after 7 1/2 minutes. Nice. Some prominant bass before 10 minutes then organ before the vocals arrive. Catchy stuff. A change before 14 minutes and we get a great sound as a result with the guitar playing over top. A calm with nature sounds after 15 1/2 minutes then this laid back guitar with atmosphere takes over. Spoken, almost whispered vocals join in to end it.

This is very well done and they should be proud.

The reason why Nemrud so much deserves better status as an epitome of the best Turkish prog of all times is the fact that its three efforts are highly remarkable masterpieces in which complexity and beauty are taken to their maximum levels.One of the greatest albums of 2010. Yes, this does stand up to giants like Pink Floyd, Camel, and Eloy. So "Journey of The Shaman" is mostly dominated by guitars and the moog. Nemrud uses many intricate guitars that really take this album from one level of prog to the next. Mert Gocay will fill you with emotion and not just on the guitar. He does a beautiful job on all three songs, great composition. It may be simplistic but very satisfying. Mert Topel really works the Moog well on Part II and Part III. This isn't the easiest album to get into. The emphasis is on the guitars,moog and synth and of course those discrete vocals which is not abrasive.

"Journey of The Shaman'' has absolutely no weak tracks. Every song was well written and played very well. You probably won't like it at first. But, listen to me: give it a pair of spins more and it'll never leave your top ten! A concept album for the journey of your prog taste. Easily 5 stars!

This is a kind of "hard to understand" album. At first listening I said what is this ? I really dislike this album. However when I played this album at right time, my mind blow up and I think this is cool album. After 15-20 listening I decided this is one of the best work from turkey. I really Impressed from this album and I remembered Eloy lots of times. In my opinion this album deserves more listenings. Don't be prejudice,

Lets talk about music. Concept is really cool and lyrics are nearly perfect, some parts are perfectly comply with music. Mert Göçay proved that, he is a good composer. All songs are exciting for me. Shamans are really weird groups and I never listened a album about them. Different concept is a good choice. (It can be a love story, think again :) )

My rating is 4 stars for this album, because i think nemrud don't show their own sound on this album. They have to create their sound. This is only bad thing for this album. I'm really hopefully their next album I think it will be better. Nemrud have talented musicians.

This is one of the best albums from my all-time favourite Turkish group. Album starts with the 16 minute epic "Part I". This is not for symphonic fans, it's a long dark journey through psychedelic sound-landscapes. Absolutely brilliant! "Part II" starts with thunder than very moody guitar riff revial, very good stuff. The last part of album is simply fantastic, there are four different section in the songs and each section has own tension. I would recomend you this album if you like long, intense jams with electric guitars and various melody. Also, this album is the best place to start if you want to explore Turkish bands. 5/5 from me!

Named after the Nemrut mountain in the depths of the Turkish lands, this Istanbul-based group started in 2008 under the force of guitarist/singer Mert Gocay.Maybe the biggest influence on forming the group was his meeting with with his idol Eloy's Frank Bornemann during the summer of 07' in Hannover.Nemrud had some line-up changes in the beginning and recorded their debut ''Journey of the Shaman'' at Studio 18 in Istanbul as a trio with Aycan Sarı on bass and Harun Sonmez on drums.From the guest musicians, keyboardist Mert Topel would later join the group.The album was released in 2010 on Musea Records.

Consisting of three long, epic tracks, ''Journey of the Shaman'' shows some tremendous energy in the opening 16-min. ''Part I'', kicking off carefully with psychedelic guitar textures and the angry, expressive vocals of Gocay, before turning into a guitar-grooved electric crescendo with strong riffs and a powerful rhythm section.The later outro with the spacey synths and the smooth organ definitely reminds of mid-70's ELOY.''Part 2'' clocks at 12 minutes, again Gocay and his mad, psychedelic guitar solos will lead the way to a stretched FLOYD-ian acoustic move.ELOY's influence, circa-''Floating'' era, strikes again.An almost Kraut Rock enviroment with spoken vocals, edgy synths and a hypnotic groove gives its place to an Ethnic-inspired guitar explosion with the voice of Gocay becoming reedy and the track obtaining a passionate, rhythmic line.The closing ''Part 3'', over 17 minutes long, starts off with an orchestrated, haunting prelude, slowly becoming another psychedlic, hypnotic electro-acoustic trip with distorted vocals.The middle-part scratching rhythmic tunes are absolutely great, very close to Chileans PLATURNO or maybe sounding like a lighter TOOL version.Strong vintage inspirations follow, again in a very ELOY-like way, with nice organs, striking solos and expressive vocals.The closing theme has again a spacey, slightly oriental touch with background keyboards, emphatic vocals and the narcotic guitars of Gocay.

Fans of early ELOY and PINK FLOYD should not even think about purchasing the album.Very good Psychedelic/Progressive Rock with spacey and Heavy Rock touches and long, well-composed tracks.Strongly recommended...3.5 stars.

This is Journey of the shaman, by Turkish band Nemrud. It is their first record, and it shows them evolving into their trademark sound at the beginning. This is some of the most theatrical progressive rock I do believe I've heard. Beginning vibrantly, very moody "Part I". Here is where the band revels well in the guitar rock that weaves a fantastic riff alongside Gocay's immaculate vocal delivery. Right form the start, you'll hear a nice of moog and bass interplay, and this turns into an absolutely good combination. "Part II" compliments well in its dark and haunting ballad style melancholy. A rousing synth accompaniment is added deep into the mix, with lilting melodies floating together with with guitar. Gocay's vocal delivery could carry many of the songs by itself. This album climaxes splendidly, and with powerful emotional resonance. Nemrud usually delve into depressing and darkly melancholy moods interspersed between their aggressive and violent guitar rock theatrics. I absolutely love the originality put forth from these individuals, and their ability to attack as a cohesive rock unit. Guest drummers shows his talents on "Part III". This song begins mainly as a soft and bleak synth ballad, twisting and turning from stark contrasting soft and hard. Near the end of the song, Gocay and the band let loose with dissonant and fiery classical rock blasting that can be quite shocking. The song thus has a slight Eloy edge to it, of which I don't think anyone could easily complain about. The song causes me to feel as if it meanders for too long, but it consistently remains interesting, and is a thoroughly enjoyable listen. A touching and emotional song. In all, a musical courage for newbies creating hard-core consept album about shaman's spiritual journey, and a testament to the creativity of Nemrud. The band gives us a very emotional and creative album with hooks and melodies placed well within complex structures and musical imagery. They create many memorable melodies utilizing by guitar but they need to blend in keyboards and bass into the sound. Best Moment - Part II Worst Moment - Funky groove on Part III Five Stars.

Nemrud, one of those bands every proghead should have heard about. Last few weeks I tried to get the two Nemrud albums. I guess I'm a bit of an old cynic when I hear claims that a band is the reincarnation of the great days of the 70s or that they have somehow reinvented their own genre.

I consider Nemrud's music to be modest, nothing is missing, nothing bothers me, just moody. I really love the fine guitar-work, truly awesome. The mixture between beautiful, mellow parts and weird, crazy almost wild sections.

"Part I" begins with grasshopper sounds and then ambient spaciness building with menace. The echoed 12 strings guitar grasshopper sounds over, a drum beat settles into a aggressively measured pace. The clement like guitars of M.Gocay begin an improvised psychedelic melody. A riff locks in with twin guitars overlayed, and a synth of keyboards smolders along tinging the edges of the sound. The music is uplifting as it builds to a faster cadence. The repetition of the riff is broken by a frantic keyboard and guitar run with fast arpeggios. An intonation of lead guitar swells over and then is saturated by a bubble bath of synths. A wonderful melody takes over and flatter my soul, and I am in prog heaven. This is an painstaking of prog excess, some instrumental parts are very distinct 70s style sound, with odd time tempos, and percolating liquid keys. This awesome opener to the album with full of melodies.

"Part II" The beginning is very mysterious, in the vein of classic Nemrud. Fantastic mellow melody turn aronund with moog and guitar.After the thunder, the rain starts and vocal kicked in very gentle. Very good job to reach crescendo, then the rythm changes suddenly and gets angrier, but always in a mystical feel. Alternating peaceful and powerful passages with efficient guitar improvisations and special sound effects, the song is evolving, enchanting, stoning, and announces Nemrud's future direction towards space music. It is much more rock- oriented, very melancholic to become surprisingly trippy and rocky.

"Part III" This is the over 17 minute side long epic. Features some great melodies and up and downs. I love the instrumental part in the middle of the song. It opens ominously bringing Eloy to mind.The mood changes slightly 3 minutes in when the synth comes in and the vocals come to life. Then the tempo picks up 3 minutes in followed by heavy riffs as the drums pound with powerful organ runs in tow. Back to the slower, darker sound from earlier with reserved vocals. Love the guitar melody after 6 minutes. It's building...cool section. Things calm right down 8 minutes in and end up getting a little experimental and psychedelic. It kicks back in after 9 minutes as the drums come in and build again. The guitar lights it up a minute later. Nice. The guitar and organ seem to simply jam. Vocals are back before 10 minutes. When the organ driven rock and mystical vocals would still have been refreshingly new and innovative. The blending of lead guitar riffs, Hammond organ and a strong powerhouse remind us of bands such as Uriah Heep, Atomic Rooster, Eloy and Nektar from the 70s. The guitar and moog are prominant the rest of the way.In the end the vocals appear again.

The composition on this album is fantastic, the production is good all the instruments are nicely separated and perceivable without it sounding overproduced. The songs mainly rely on guitar and organs to create a sort of backdrop or sound-scape. The drums from the get go are top notch stuff, I especially enjoy the flanged krautrock style hi-hat sound on 'Part III'. The bass is nice and fat and contributes some nice grooves and is well up in the mix, which is a great thing to see. The guitar work likewise exemplary, I really enjoy prog style guitar that is very calculated and musical whilst not being overbearing, merely occupying it's place and contributing.

'Journey of The Shaman' should clearly be one of the essential purchases for Turkish progressive rock.

According to prime mover and bank worker Mert Gocay listening to a Pink Floyd album at the age of 15 totally changed his view on music: he went back to the basic of progressive rock and ended up listening millions of times to the Classic Prog bands. As a young guitar player Mert loved David Gilmour and Andy Latimer their emotional sound. But in those days he had difficulties to cope with the world around him and he didn't pick up his guitar in anger, for almost ten years. But two strange events inspired him to play again. He won an electric guitar in a competition on a TV music show and shortly after he got the chance to meet his favourite musician Frank Bornemann. Mert was so inspired by this meeting with his musical hero and winning the guitar that he decided to create his own music and make an album, now inspired by Frank Bornemann with his legenadary German band Eloy. This resulted in the recording of his debut CD Journey Of The Shaman album, completed fully as analog in November 2009 at Studio 18, one of the most important studios of Turkey. The band had some troubles to release the album in first place, because nobody knew about the complex basics of progressive rock. But in the end they found a right guy to do it, after more than eight months so the release was in 2010. Nemrud played their progrock at special stages in Istanbul and it was very impressive spiritual ambiance in live shows, the reactions of the audiences were great. To anybody's surprise their album Journey Of The Shaman was sold out in short period. But then French progrock label Musea Records was interested and released the CD in 2010 on their Parallele label. And in 2014 it was even released as a LP in Turkey, one year after their second effort named Ritual and two years before their third, eponymous album.

The album contains 3 parts (between 11 and 18 minutes), each part is divided into 3 or 4 sections.

The first part alternates between dreamy and compelling interludes, the combination of English vocals with an obvious accent and the sound of the guitar and organ strongly reminds me of known German proggers Eloy (Inside- Ocean era). Part 1 ends with slow synthesizer flights and sensitive guitar runs, wonderful cosmic prog! The second part features a space rock sound that brings Steve Hillage to my mind. We can enjoy pleasant work on the fretless bass, twanging acoustic guitar and an accellaration with flashy Moog synthesizer runs and again strong hints of early Eloy. The third and final part begins with beautiful spacey keyboard layers, then many shifting moods that contain very tasteful work on guitar and keyboards (including a sensational Moog solo).

I don't consider Nemrud their progrock as very original but these musicians generate a lot of progrock pleasure. And as a huge fan of early Eloy I am very pleased that Nemrud has incorporated this German progrock legend in their melodic sound. Finally I hope Nemrud will inspire more musicans in Turkey to make progressive rock, their debut was a good start and embraced by many progheads.

My rating: 3,5 star.