NOVA

Nova is a forgotten finish prog band from mid '70's who for some reasons didn't made it in prog circles. Anyway the album was re release at Si-Wan records some years ago and is a real chance to be heared my a larger auditorium because the album is worth investigate. Nova pays some eclectic music combined with jazzy and bluesy interplays and even in places some symphonic elements are there. They remind me of Dragon (from Belgium) or Tabula Rasa , their country fellows, even some Genesis chops here and there. Overall a good album that desearves 3 stars for sure , but really I can't give it 4 or 5 like other reviewers, it isn't a masterpice in my ears not if I listing the album 100 times. In places beside the good atmosphere , some parts are to forced, is like they are bored by this music. Anyway the best pieces are first one - the opening track Se Vuosi (translate in That year) and last one Vanha Surullinen Laulu (translate in Sad old song) with great spacey key passages made by Antti Ortamo, whi is aswell the vocalist and the main composer; the rest of the two are ok, Kaupungin Naiset (translates in The Women of The City) is blues number totaly unintristing and out of this album as a whole, and Atlantis. So finally a good album, but nothing special in my opinion, anyway desearves 3 stars for sure. One of the fine finish prog bands from the '70's along with Tabula Rasa among others.

First I thought this should get 3 stars (2,9), but soon I noticed that "Se vuosi" and "Vanha surullinen laulu" were masterpieces. I don't like "Kaupungin naiset" - I think it's for the bigger audience (which doesn't exist), or just because they like basic blues rock, which can be heard from other songs, too. "Atlantis" is atmospheric song, almost like the first and the last song on this album, but it just has some stupid periods though the melodies are nice occasionally.

But 4 (3,5 or less - but still somehow has to get extra) stars for the songs everyone should hear. And I'm pretty amazed that this album isn't widely known by Finnish progfans. To name quickly something different that reminds this, I say Seventh Wave's "Star Palace Of The Sombre Warrior". Except this is more jazz/fusion, and of course psychedelic/space rock. Nova is pretentious, but not too much - the instruments are a bit lame (like in psychedelic rock..), except keyboards with bass and vocals, which are the center of the music. Background is very harmonic and melodic, like vocals too which has nice modulation in it particularly in the best parts of the songs. Music is rather slow-moving, but complex enough and has different moods and musical styles - mostly JAZZrock instrumentals. Harmonies change very delightfully and the sad lyrics empowers them, or vice versa. "Vanha surullinen laulu" = old sad song is very sad, and although lyrics are also little bit naive, they are very touching. Funny that it's actual and political, song title consists "old".

Timeless, emotional, dynamically sad.

I was positively surprised by this album, which hasn't got much attention anywhere I have managed to poke my nose in. A jazzy piano sounding a bit Keith Jarrett and Patric Moraz opens " Se Vuosi" (That Year), which is a pretty & slow keyboard driven ballad, resembling quite much both Greenslade's first album and "Bedside Manners are Extra", and it's actually very pleasing. There's room for solos in the middle sections of long verses, and also there's a faster movement in the end, with different rhythmic ideas. "Kaupungin Naiset" (The Women of The City) is a slow blues rock filler, a small disappointment after the wonderful opener. But luckily it's short, and the rest of the tracks continue the good style of the first long track. "Atlantis" starts with some soundscapes, which present again very interesting sounding keyboard driven song. These compositions are carefully constructed, they have also some thoughtful arrangements and some free solos over predetermined scale progressions. In the famous Scandinavian melancholic way there are lots of minor key melodies and catchy verses to be heard here. The last song "Vanha Surullinen Laulu" (Sad Old Song) is truly the most depressing number here, and the lyrics are about the political violence of the 1970's in excess of other terrible things. As a counterforce there are the only major key melodies of the album in a short middle section.

As a conclusion I would say that in addition of Greenslade, this music resembles Haikara's first record, if that masterpiece's wind sections would be changed as to old keyboards. The result is not still as great as the Finnish band's debut I mentioned. Also as this was done in 1976, this wasn't a pioneer band, but rather a record done inspired by the artistic style of the English art rock acts from the beginning of that decade. Nothing new under the sun, but a very pretty flower still! I believe that punk was a quite strong musical movement in Finland already in that time, and probably the vinyl versions of this album didn't sell very well. Thus this sympathetic album was maybe forgotten, sharing the demise of Flamish band Dragon. Now it's luckily back as a well manufactured CD reissue, and all of those who are interested of rarer symphonic prog releases or history of Finnish alternative rock might like this album. I'm still not suggesting of paying ridiculous sums of money of the original, unless the record is surely known to you. Singing is done here in Finnish, so majority of the world's population possibly escape the the lyrics, which are not critical for the listening I think, but being very warm and thoughtful poems still.