I PUT THE SPELL ON THE FIRE

Knowing that this early 1980s effort had to be recorded clandestinely might have an effect on how one listens to it. The group apparently used a Moscow hotel to record this prog rock album at a time when the Soviet Union banned all rock music. Sometimes, I think they are actually quieting down to avoid detection, and, especially near the end of the epic "Universe", I feel like I can hear sirens as the group plays what could be its final sequences.

Luckily they return with several more strong tracks, such as the contemplative "Share Part 3" with its chilling use of vocoder. While the album and song titles are in English, Dawn Dialogue sings in Russian which, with the abundant keyboards, helps to create almost a Gothic symphonic atmosphere not unlike that conveyed by Eloy around the same period (Colours, Time to Turn, Metromania), and they seem more influenced by Yes than any other classic band, but they really do establish their own sound. In "Share Part 4", the lead guitar carries an emotional theme before ceding to more keyboards and an almost native-American sounding vocal part. The share "Epilog" is the closest thing to an out and out ballad on the CD, albeit a spacey one with power ballad trappings.

The opening "Share Parts 1 and 2" suffers from a coming out of nowhere feeling, and perhaps the album would have been better served to open with the lengthy and well developed "Universe" instead. In general, this is not the most accessible album but is worth discovering from both a historical and musical point of view. On both counts it holds enough interest to spark a dialogue amongst symphonic prog fans at any time of day.