Progarchives, the progressive rock ultimate discography

I MOVE

Izz

Symphonic Prog


From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website

Izz I Move album cover
3.70 | 103 ratings | 19 reviews | 16% 5 stars

Excellent addition to any
prog rock music collection

Write a review

Buy IZZ Music
from Progarchives.com partners
Studio Album, released in 2002

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Spinning Round (2:59)
2. I move (5:25)
3. Weak little Lad (3:50)
4. I Already Know (3:55)
5. I wanna Win (5:46)
6. All the New (1:24)
7. Star evil Gnoma Su (8:37)
8. Another Door (4:42)
9. Something True (2:37)
10. Beleive (3:33)
11. Knight and Nights (6:37)
12. The Mists of Dalriada (2:42)
13. Oh, How it's great ! (4:46)
14. Coming Like Light (11:40)
15. Light from your Eyes (4:24)

Total Time: 73:11

Line-up / Musicians

- Paul Bremner / acoustic & electric guitars
- Tom Galgano / keyboards, vocals, producer
- John Galgano / bass, electric & acoustic guitars, vocals
- Brian Coralian / drum programming, acoustic & electronic percussion
- Greg DiMiceli / drums, percussion

With:
- Anmarie Byrnes / vocals (5,9)
- Laura Meade / vocals (10)
- Paige Rigilano / spoken word (5)
- Abigail Lombino / spoken word (14)
- Aaron Lofaro / strings conductor (11)

Releases information

CD Doone Records ‎- DR2-669563 (2002, US)

Thanks to ProgLucky for the addition
and to Quinino for the last updates
Edit this entry

Buy IZZ I Move Music



IZZ I Move ratings distribution


3.70
(103 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(16%)
16%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(53%)
53%
Good, but non-essential (24%)
24%
Collectors/fans only (7%)
7%
Poor. Only for completionists (0%)
0%

IZZ I Move reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by lucas
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
5 stars A very nice album. It blends elements of 'trip hop', pop and prog. The vocals are great and close to the great american prog vocals (Neal Morse, Kevin Gilbert, Echolyn's singer). Concerning the prog side of this record, we can notice influences from Emerson, King Crimson (cf the bridge in 'Coming like light'), Pink Floyd (cf track 4). 'Coming like light' is a great epic, beginning with a jazzy beat then followed by a crimsonesque atmosphere, and ending with a beautiful choir and virtuosic guitar. This album shows that prog can sound great when mixed with pop. If you like Spock's Beard, Kevin Gilbert or Echolyn, you will probably be thrilled with this record.
Review by Dan Bobrowski
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars I'm rating 4 stars because I see this band on the horizon the future of Progressive Rock and if you're NOT stuck in the past, I highly recommend this one. Lot's of influences shine through. Mainly the 80's King Crimson, the Beatles, Genesis,...., however, don't call them a clone. They have many different guises, sounding at times like a pop band to fusion fanatics and pure prog excursions. The disc, unfortunately, starts off with a purely pop piece, Spinnin' Round, one of the few low points. It's not a BAD song, it just doens't fit. Next up is the "should have been the opening tune" I Move. Adrian Belew styled vocals over a solid guitar heavy chord sequence, wonderful percussive interplay and tasty keyboard accents. This is a strong modern prog tune. The soft seque into Weak Little Lad with a electronic drum beat, feathery guitar and heart felt vocals. The lyrics remind me of Echolyn's Uncle, you get a bit emotionally involved with the perspective of a targeted young child with a bully waiting in the wings. The ballad I Already Know dispells the myths of promises. Gilmour like guitar lines float and growl before the final verse turns to I Wanna Win. Taking a piece from the first track, pop vocals and the lyrics of the final breakthrough to the BIG TIME. All the New is a soft Lennonesque tune, short but beautifully sung. Star Evil Gnoma Su cracks the prog storeroom open with lovely keyboard work from Tom Galgano, adding Banks and Wakeman into the "sounds like" mix. Greg Dimecelli and Brian Coralian add some Bruford like drumming into the stew and Paul Bremner adds a cornucopia of guitar styles over John Galgano's thrumming bass line. This piece takes the music to a different level, shrugging of the sweet vocals for an instrumental chops fest. Another Door takes off with some acoustic piano and a strong vocal melody that evolves as Brems takes off an a wonderful solo. Something True could have been a Porcupine Tree tune, in lyric and delivery, another short segue tune. Believe, my favorite tune, has a nice acoustic guitar riff and well placed percussive accents and, though not really prog, a solid melody with Laura Meade's beautiful voice handling the harmony. John Galgano's bass line livens things up and Brems throws in some jazzy guitar fills and a nice tri-tone lead ends the song. Knight of Nights, a tribute to Genesis/ELP? Maybe, Tom Galgano pulls off some great Keith Emerson "Tarkus" styled Hammond and Moog solos, while Brian and Greg add some Carl Palmeresque drums. The Mists of Dalriada, a Celtic instrumental follows. What a ride. This tune will have you dancing a jig and slamming an ale on the downbeats. The Beatle-like Oh How Great comes next. It recalls Sgt Peppers with an Irish twist. Fun and dancible, in a manly way.... Next up, Coming Like Light. A late seventies era tune, I hear UK in the keyboard riff and Tom Galgano sings in the Wetton/Lake fashion here. Bruford like drums abound. As the song near the end a repeated lyric "You can make love" has a Freddie Mercury like quality and Brems guitar solo has a bit of Brian May to it. (But Danbo, Queen aren't PROG.. Ha, I say, Ha.... Check out Queen II and tell me it's not prog). The last track, Light from Your Eyes, a wonder finish to a great album. My second favorite of the album.
Review by NJprogfan
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars A prog stew. Starts off rather modern sounding, poppy with up front guitars. Second track is in the poppy side of things again. Track three, "Weak Little Lad" begins the proggy Genesis Lamb Lies Down On Broadway sound. Next, "I Already Know" has that Genesis LLDOB sound again, very Hackett sounding guitar. (Is Hackett the most copied guitarist in rock history, or what?) "I Wanna Win" has some processed drums and excellent vocals. Really nice track! Next track is a short ballad. Next, "Star Evil aGnoma Su" is the most prog sounding so far, rather jazzy and spacy. Prog fans will love it! Next, "Another Door" again has excellent vocals. IZZ's strength is great vocal harmonies, ala Echolyn and Spock's Beard with traces of the Beatles and the Beach Boys, never sounding like them, but definately influenced by the latter two. "Something True has nice female singing. Next up, "Believe" is my favorite track on the album and it's the most popish. Catchy lyrics, beautiful acoustic guitars, wonderful female backup singing, just a fantastic song. Next song, "Knight Of Nights" is ELP with metal flourishes, bombastic Neo. "The Mists Of Dalriada" is a celtic rock instrumental, very well done. "Oh, How It's Great!" is Beatles mixed with Genesis, quite original. "Coming Like Light" is the longest track, nice piano with Emerson ELPish synth runs throughout. The most proggy song on the album, excellent! "Light From Your Eyes" is a nice straight rock track, well done. Hard to pin these guys down. There're very talented with some of the best singing in the US prog scene. I'd play this for music fans who are not familiar with prog. It's what I'd call "Safe Prog", safe to play to a non-fan. Rating them is difficult. Not overtly pop or prog, they fall in the middle. So my review will too. 3 stars plus 1/2 for that wonderful pop song.
Review by Tony R
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator / Retired Admin
3 stars Hmmm, good but not essential. I'm stuck with a paradox here;I Move sounds fresh and modern yet encapsulates 30 odd years of Prog Rock influences.The biggest influence is a kind of Keith Emerson playing for King Crimson hybrid:meaty Moog melodies compete with brutal Bruford beats,but in a more commercial mix.

Please note:the opening track "Spinnin' Round" stands at odds with most of the rest of the album, a strange choice for an opener and liable to put many off. Dig deeper into the album and a reasonable amount of plays and some standouts appear: I Move,with it's bracing beats and heavy chords,Star Evil Gnoma Su is prog instrumental heaven ,the oddly satisfyingly-derivative Knight Of Nights and the ELp-like Coming Like Light.

So all-in -all a damn fine album you should audition with an open mind.

Review by Gatot
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars It's truly a progressive album!

The first time I listened to this album I almost rejected to continue because the first track gave me an impression of new wave kind of music, you know it's bit like Duran Duran, Orchestral Maneuver In The Dark, Ultravox and the like. Not that I hate new wave, it's more on I was not really prepared to receive that sort of music. But I kept listening to it and found something interesting about the band. BTW, this is the first album I have ever heard from IZZ. The music is diverse in nature. See for example first track which at firs a kind of new wave but it has rich textures as throughout the song I can hear many sounds coming out from keyboard and effects. The next track "I Move" is even richer as it has Eastern components through percussion and keyboards. The vocal harmony is really great. "Weak Little Lad" brings the music into upbeat style with good vocal line and guitar work that fills between bars. It sounds simple structure music with simple drumming (even it can be replaced with programming) but it's rich with textures and styles. I like the stunning guitar that works at the background.

"I Already Know" is relaxing in style but the guitar still gives similar touch as previous track - really cool. "I Wanna Win" has positive lyrics for being the best with music that lays on programming. It's nice and it's different. The spacey keyboard sound enriches the song's theme. "All The New" is a ballad with acoustic guitar as rhythm section which accompanies great vocal. "Star evil Gnoma Su" makes me confused about the band's music direction. It starts off with jazz arrangement combining piano and other instrument but it then moves into silent segment with spacey nuance followed with keyboard / synthesizer solo. It's surprising for my ears. I can conclude that the band's music is so diverse, blending all kinds of music style. It's progressive, really.

Am not gonna review the album on track by track basis. But what I can summarize is that IZZ music is powerful and unique. It blends components of new wave, funk, rock, jazz, groove, classical as well as Eastern / Latin. For me, it's a good experience having this album as it's different than what I have been listening to so far. Keep on proggin' ..!

Credit: Thanks to Hardiansyah Rizal who loaned me this CD.

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW

Review by Padraic
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars The most unfortunate aspect of this particular album is the band's dreadful choice of an opening track, an uninspired and listless pop number, "Spinning Round". Upon first listen I was feeling a deep regret about purchasing the album, but that all changed with the remaining tracks. IZZ creates a nice blend of pleasant, often Beatle-esque pop-sounding tunes with "proggish" instrumental excellence, found in tracks like "I Move", "Weak Little Lad", and "I Wanna Win". Buried among such pleasantries are some true prog treasures. "Star Evil Gnoma Su" is an outstanding 9 minute instrumental with plenty of Emerson sounding keys and, interestingly enough, a guitar sound which reminds me of Alex Lifeson in the mid 80s. Also some really great bass lines in this track. The other standout is the best track on the album, "Coming Like Light", which as of this posting is available to be listened to on this site (so please do!). I feel that while the first 4-5 tracks are quite good, it is the second half of the album which delves into more of a variety of sound and delivers a more interesting listening experience; for example, the Celtic inspired "The Mists of Dalriada". As far as influences go, Emerson, Lake & Palmer seems to be dominant thoughout, such as with the Lake-inspired ballad "I Already Know" and the epic "Coming Like Light".

Overall, great melodies and superb instrumentation make this an excellent addition to one's collection, especially for those seeking new artists in the symphonic genre.

Review by Mellotron Storm
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Being a big baseball fan myself I laughed when I read the bass player thanking Mike Piazza for being the greatest player he has ever seen play. This is in my opinion IZZ's best record so far, a much more enjoyable record then their last one "My River Flows".

Some of the highlights for me are "Spinnin Round" with the funky groove and the piano and guitar solos. "I Move" reminds me of Sam Roberts from Canada, with the strummed guitar and different guitar melodies throughout. "Weak Little Lad" has such a good beat to it, and I like the vocal melody, the drummer is having as much fun playing on this one as I am listening to it.

"I Already Know" is an absolutely beautiful song ! A slow dreamy tune with a tasteful guitar solo. "Star Evil Gnoma Su" is the best song on here in my opinion, an instrumental in the KING CRIMSON style. It's amazing ! "Another Door" has smooth vocals on this jazzy tune with a sing along chorus and more great guitar. "Knight Of Nights" is a dramatic, bombastic song, very enjoyable. "Light From Your Eyes" is an emotional ballad-like song.

There is a lot of variety on this record, as well as some great vocals ,and most of all amazing guitar melodies and solos throughout. This is such a good record and I highly recommend it.

Review by Garion81
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars My first introduction to IZZ and I should have written this review sooner. Great album always a warm and friendly feel to slip on even after three years of listening to it. Some really excellent material here and well played. Obviously these guys are students of prog as well as players and they pay tribute to their heroes with vintage sound samples in the keys of Tom Galgano, the tasteful and melodic bass lines of John Galgano and the great guitar sound of Paul Brems and stylistic drumming of Brian Coralian and Greg DiMiceli but they are so much more.

I love the composition of the songs in general as really it represents skillful crafting something lacking in much of modern prog. There is nothing wrong with using the Beatles as an influence because they were skillful songwriters. It is a great starting point and I love that influence here. That is in evidence is in songs like the Title Track, I Wanna Win and Light Form Your Eyes. Add to that the epics of Star Evil Gnoma Su and Coming Like Light as well as a great little instrumental The Mists of Dalriada and you have a complete CD.

Some bands or albums have a rainy day feel to them. Aqualung is one always felt that way to me and so does this one. I love that feeling so I will revisit this one many times.. 4.5 stars.

Review by ZowieZiggy
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars The second Izz album sounds much harder than their debut one. Even if the YesSound is very much borrowed again.

I found that the band was hesitant in their first album and I have to say that the direction they took for their second release is not the best orientation I would have thought of.

This album starts as a neo-prog one. From the complex music they played in their debut album (at selected times), the switch is rather dramatic. From a Crimson/Yes combo, they switched to dreadful AOR and uninspired music like featured during the first part of I Wanna Win. To be complete, I have to say that there is a great guitar solo which is featured as well in this song. Some sort of compensation, maybe?

It is a shame because the band had potential but they just threw it away quite miserably during the first five songs or so.

Thr first track during which the band confirms his good aptitudes is Star Evil Gnoma Su. It is a fantastic travel into some of the giants genre (Crimson, Yes). Complex and authentic I would say. It is by far the best and the longest but one track of this album. I just can't understand that Izz didn't investigate more into such powerful and great music. It is THE highlight of course.

A song as the mellow Another Door features such an excellent guitar finale that it also belongs to the best moment of this album. But just for the guitar to be honest. For a change, the band is switching to ELP with Knights Of Nights. It is a rather pompous affair to be honest. But given the average quality of this album, I consider it as one of the best songs available. Gorgeous synthesizers.

Now, if you would like to experience a harder Oldfield, you only need to listen to Mist Of Dalriads. It is a very good and folkish instrumental; pretty upbeat as well. It is another highlight of this work.

This album should have started form Star Evil Gnoma Su (the seventh track featured). It would have clocked to a decent fifty minutes and would avoid the boring part of this album.

A song as Oh, How It's Great conveys such a wonderful feeling, such a passionate guitar and fine vocals. How can the band be so dual? It is really incredible!

The next Coming Like Light just confirms this: it is the epic of the album (almost twelve minutes) and it is a great combination of wonderful and powerful synths and keyboards in general.

Again, the ELP influence is not to be dismissed. Great piano, intricate structure, fantastic musicianship are elements that make you regret the poor start of this album. Crimson is so close as well.What a great combination! Even Yes is coming at the rescue at a certain time. Did you say regressive? Probably. But it is so well performed on this occasion that I can live with it. A highlight as well.

In all, this is a good album which could have been better if it were cut off from the first six or seven songs. Three stars.

Review by DamoXt7942
FORUM & SITE ADMIN GROUP Avant/Cross/Neo/Post Teams
4 stars I wanna say, a department store of melody and sound...without much complexity.

In this work I Move, IZZ can give us many varieties of melody and sound, but I can't feel much difficulty of understanding or complexity of tunes. Why? Maybe their clarity, softness and gentleness make me feel so. Indeed, the previous work Sliver Of The Sun seems to be rustle, unfashionable and unrefined, but I think I Move is more refined and polished. Especially the album-titled track has so eccentric atmosphere but it looks natural. So surprising! Only one song wears full of colours and all of them are on their identity. This song is well worth listening, I'm sure.

Of course, the highlight of this album should be Coming Like Light, as you should say. This song's going is beyond words. Clear piano melody, stream-like voice, and hop'n'jumpin' rhythm section...heavy guitar's and keyboard's shower and storm...and calm and fantastic harmony (HERE I MUST WEEP!) ...last palpitation. What an unusual but terribly terrific song this is!

Review by Marty McFly
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars Marty is not amused. This may be because at first I expected something Symphonic, secondly that I don't like Trip Hop (not even a little bit). But there are things that are worth of attention.

It's not so bad after all, these "modern" elements works a bit good and there's not this distinct patine of "modern" by all means as with some other bands these days. Some tracks even has good old guitar solos (even combined with grand piano like sounding keyboards).

I would advise you to overcome your fears, your love of traditional "style" of Prog music and with this request, I challenge myself too, because even I love Prog music, it's not necessarily progressive at all costs. In fact, I like my good old Symphonic thingies, so I'm little bit to be blamed too, but this album proves to be worthy.

Very worthy, because after initial hesitation, it steps in forward and moves.

3(-) - "It move(s)", truly

Review by BrufordFreak
COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars A New York City-based band releasing their sophomore album four years after their debut. It's a long one but well worth careful investigation and multiple listens.

1. "Spinning Round" (2:59) heavy dub/trip hop opening with power chords turns 1980s techno pop when vocal arrives. Catchy pop song reminding me of THE CLASH until the jazzy piano fill and techno-hip-hop sounds join in. Clever, poetic lyrics. Nice guitar solo in the final minute. Definitely not what a prog lover would expect, but I like it! (9/10)

2. "I Move" (5:25) an XTC-like song. Nice imitation but a little slow. (8.667/10)

3. "Weak Little Lad" (3:50) this one convinces me that the band was really trying to make a mark in the Indie-pop world. A little house funky. (8.667/10)

4. "I Already Know" (3:55) slow, plodding beauty. Could be a Beatles song were it not for the proggy Steve Hackett lead guitar. (8.75/10)

5. "I Wanna Win" (5:46) more 1980s programmed drums, funky bass, and synths with choral vocals similar to ABC or NEW ORDER. I love the vocals and lead guitar work; not so keen on the rest. (8.667/10)

6. "All the New" (1:24) acoustic guitar with vocal. Nothing special here musically. (4/5)

7. "Star Evil Gnoma Su" (8:37) a foray into jazz-rock fusion albeit simplified and very organized which then, in the second minute, moves into a kind of electronic sequence. Nice keyboard work. Nice CRIMSONian weave and guitar soloing in the third and fourth minutes, respectively, before the rhythm pattern turns almost Reggae bass 'n' drums. Interesting and unlike any other eclectic cut and paste song I've ever encountered before. (17.75/20)

8. "Another Door" (4:42) like a R&B side of Curt Smith (Tears for Fears) ballad--a sound that precedes that of New Jersey band, The Tea Club. (8.75/10)

9. "Something True" (2:37) acoustic guitar & mandolin weave trying for a bit of a World/Arabian sound as the angelic voice of female vocalist of Anmarie Byrnes fills and permeates the background. One of the Galgano brothers takes over in the lead vocal department with his raspy voice--rather aggressively for this kind of folk soundscape. (4.5/5)

10. "Believe" (3:33) AMERICA-like multi-guitar weave with multi-track vocals opens this before being enriched by bass, drums, and keys. With the female & background vox it almost sounds like STARLAND VOCAL BAND or some other Americana band from rural America. Pretty nice! (8.75/10)

11. "Knight and Nights" (6:37) true 1980s GENESIS or TWELFTH NIGHT with some 1980s sounds and vocal approach. Nice Tony Banksian keyboard work--until it becomes more Keith Emersonian. Pretty well done, actually. (8.75/10)

12. "The Mists of Dalriada" (2:42) a nice instrumental Scottish folk song electrified and progged up. (8.75/10)

13. "Oh, How It's Great !" (4:46) electric guitar weave opening turns West End theatric before Beatles-esque vocal makes it more XTC. Great lead guitar solo in the third minute. (8.75/10)

14. "Coming Like Light" (11:40) classical piano opening gives this one a kind of AFTER CRYING or RENAISSANCE feel--especially when all of the electric rock instrumentation arrive. At 1:08 we move into a definitely more EMERSON, LAKE and PALMER territory--more so when the Greg Lake-like (though, if truth be told, it's more of a JOHN WETTON) vocals soon join in. Despite not really being an ELP lover, this is definitely one of the album's highlights. In the fourth minute the instrumental portion of the song moves more into the KING CRIMSON or YES range of ELP sound possibilities. Nicely creative! At the end of the sixth minute this falls away to allow a different classical-sounding piano exposé to enter and dominate--over which vocals join in before chunky bass, drums, and Steve Howe-like pedal guitar give it a very YES-like sound. Nice vocals with some poetic/romantic lyrics. Blade Runner interlude in the ninth minute precedes an awesome John Lennon/BEATLES-like passage. Easily the best song on the album. (19/20)

15. "Light from Your Eyes" (4:24) opening with arpeggi from treated electric guitar sounding very 1980s hair band. Even the presence of beautiful vocal does little to change this 80s hair band feeling. It's not until 2:07 that any shift or other instruments join in--which is kind of nice--especially since the electric guitar dominated second half is a bit less powerful than the first half. (8.75/10)

Total Time: 73:11

B/four stars; an excellent addition of eclectic prog rock for any prog lover's music collection.

Review by b_olariu
PROG REVIEWER
2 stars This is painful to my ears

Izz second album fom 2002 named simple I move is a kind of album that I don't like at all from the first spin, this is pop with crossover prog elements that sounds like Radiohead or Porcupine Tree with some Yes influneces here and there and is disguised as symphonic prog, uhh, not for me. I'm agree with Marty that I've expected something really symphonic prog here, not some modern tra la la band that incapsulates so many styles that even they don't know what they play in the end. I like my old kind of symphonic prog, really. Back to this album, besides an awfull cover art, the music is less intrsting, the first half of the abum is forgetable at best, purly produce, of course well played, but the ideas suffer in solid songwritting, this is mediocre. No true songs here to really put my finger on and said this is the best from the album, all are almost the same with no attitude. To me this album is boring like hell, I can't give more then 2 stars

Review by apps79
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
4 stars After the debut of Izz bassist Philip Gaita decided to leave the group.John Galgano then made a smart move, taking over the bass duties and hiring with his brother guitarist Paul Bremner, a musician that prooved to be the last missing puzzle in a stable line-up.With this formation Izz recorded their sophomore album ''I Move'' in 2002, released again on John Galgano's Doone Records.

The style of the band did not change a bit, despite the presence of the new guitarist, and follows the lines of modern Symphonic/Neo Progressive Rock with glances in the past but a quite contemporary sound.GENESIS, YES, KING CRIMSON and GENTLE GIANT influences along with THE BEATLES touches remain the main components of Izz'es music, which actually sound like a second incarnation of SPOCK'S BEARD.Next to the usual prog instrumentation Izz use a bit of samplers and loops, trying to add some more originality in their music.The result is very satysfying to say the least.Emphatic contemporary Progressive Rock, which ranges from atmospheric soundscapes to rich and full-blown passages, based on the slightly distorted vocals of Tom Galgano and the intelligent arrangements, which contain both melodic and more challenging parts.Excellent soaring synthesizers combine with discreet organs and smooth piano interludes and all these are blended with John Galgano's and Bremner's guitars, which excercise the possibility of the coexistence between melody and complexity.The material is extremely memorable and well-crafted with some very good compositions among the fifteen pieces displayed on the CD, while the full instrumental textures are highly adventurous and fairly complicated.

Another nice album in the Izz discography.Extremely balanced, modern sounding, challenging and melodic at the same time.Highly recommended.

Review by kev rowland
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Reviewer
4 stars I, like many others, am a big fan of the latest album from Izz, 'Don't Panic' yet that and their 2009 album 'The Darkened Room' are the only two I had heard prior to this, which is a definite oversight on my part given how long they have been together and the number of albums they have released. So now we step back in time, all the way to 2002, where the core of the band was Paul Bremner (acoustic and electric guitars), Tom Galgano (keyboards, vocals), John Galgano (bass, electric and acoustic guitars, vocals), Brian Coralian (drum programming, acoustic and electronic percussion) and Greg DiMiceli (drums, percussion). This was the second album, and since the debut bassist Philip Gaita had left, but instead of bringing in another bassist John Galgano switched duties and they brought in guitarist Bremner who had assisted on the debut.

I glanced at the reviews on Prog Archives before writing this, and it is an album which really splits progheads, and I can certainly see why, as here Izz are experimenting, but not in a style which many prog lovers would appreciate. Some of the keyboard sounds utilised would be more at home in a dance and trip hop environment, and there is no doubt they move and switch genres in a way unlike many. There are sections of songs which if turned into a full number I would quickly turn away from, but in the context of the piece as a whole it works very well indeed. Possibly my views are more accepting and diverse than many, as although I would not like to hear a whole album of dance beats, I can understand and appreciate what is happening here. Overall, the music has a very modern sound indeed, even now listening to it some 18 years after the initial release, so it must have been quite a shock to many when it first came out.

It still contains some of the elements I have come to love about Izz, namely well-constructed songs with wonderful vocals and harmonies. Interestingly Laura Meades is involved in just one song, later becoming a full member of the band, and having a major impact on the overall sound. Complex yet still containing simplicity, it is fascinating to hear what the band sounded like all those years ago and how they have moved and consolidated since then. It is not an album which many progheads will enjoy just due to the styles of music contained within, but no-one can complain that it is not progressive in its truest sense. Funnily enough I can remember a conversation with Brian Devoil more than 25 years ago when he told me he felt the next major move in progressive rock music would be in this exact area! I wouldn't give this out as a starting point for anyone looking to discover Izz, and would turn to 'Don't Panic!' as the place to go, but this is still a much better album than many have been saying and I am so glad I have heard it.

Latest members reviews

4 stars In my opinion, IZZ is one of the most underrated bands in prog. They are brilliant and are one of the best newcomers to prog in quite some time. My dad purchased this album in preparation for seeing them live at CalProg, and both him and I were blown away by this extremely creative and talente ... (read more)

Report this review (#226525) | Posted by natewait | Monday, July 13, 2009 | Review Permanlink

5 stars Probably one of the most unjustly overlooked bands in recent prog history, Izz is a band that seamlessly meld pure pop with all amounts of stylistic shifts and progressive trickery. Containing both acoustic and electric drums, two singers, a renegade guitarist and an affinity for melody that mak ... (read more)

Report this review (#120324) | Posted by BobShort | Tuesday, May 1, 2007 | Review Permanlink

3 stars A very special album. the first couple of listens are kind of bizzare but i think it's because they're so much styles on it. It's not an easy one to listen to. Take almost 4 or 5 times and every time it's getting better and better! A couple of songs with a rythm machine(very 80's), a couple of ... (read more)

Report this review (#10898) | Posted by stephdrum | Tuesday, October 12, 2004 | Review Permanlink

5 stars I have only just recently picked up this album having heard some mp3 samples and it has completely blown me away. Since I bought this album I have bought at least another 30 by various artists but I start freaking out if I go more than a day without hearing it again. There is so much in this album ... (read more)

Report this review (#10897) | Posted by | Thursday, April 1, 2004 | Review Permanlink

Post a review of IZZ "I Move"

You must be a forum member to post a review, please register here if you are not.

MEMBERS LOGIN ZONE

As a registered member (register here if not), you can post rating/reviews (& edit later), comments reviews and submit new albums.

You are not logged, please complete authentication before continuing (use forum credentials).

Forum user
Forum password

Copyright Prog Archives, All rights reserved. | Legal Notice | Privacy Policy | Advertise | RSS + syndications

Other sites in the MAC network: JazzMusicArchives.com — jazz music reviews and archives | MetalMusicArchives.com — metal music reviews and archives

Donate monthly and keep PA fast-loading and ad-free forever.