YOU AND I

Nice to see that prog bands from Hungary are no different to those from the rest of the world. The album is "based and inspired by the knowledge found in the Tibetan Book Of The Dead, the eternal wisdom of Siddhartha Gautama, and the words of Lebanese writer Kahlil Gibran" (so there). The album is in Hungarian, with a narrated passage between some of the songs, but all of the words/lyrics/song titles are provided in both Hungarian and English.

I found that the only time that the language was a problem was during the narration, as during the songs themselves the pure clear vocals of Fanni Völgessy Szomor become another instrument. Musically they have much in common with Eighties Yes, and the result is an album that any prog lover could well enjoy.

First appeared in Feedback #63, July 01

The music on this record is very accessible, modern sounding and pop oriented. Probably fans of 90's Yes and the music of Asia might like this quite much, and to be frank, some songs in my opinion are in the grey zone of concepts of "prog" and "commercial" rock music, like the music of group mentionded later are too. The vocals of Ms. Szomor are pleasant and fine, quite soft and tender, and the lyrics seem to focus to human relationships instead of more escapistic fantasy themes. The music is professionally created, some arrangements are actually very nice, but it's sounds are still resembling more pop/rock than classical music oriented. Overall quality is very balanced, there doesn't seem to be much filler tracks included. Song "Snowdance" starts with pleasant smooth spacey intro, waking the sensors of a spacehead, and it is quite openly flowing track, still following the overall style of the record. "Invisible Ties" is the longest song in the album, and maybe the most interesting of them. There are pleasant logical changes in it, which do not jump around chaotiaclly, and the pop elements are dominant here too like in the other songs. I would personally like this act more if they would have focused more to this kind of compositions. If the style is your cup of tea, being soft & tender artistic pop/rock in vein of the style of symphonic giants from the change of millenium, check this record out. Though this approach does not totally fit to my own taste criteias, listening the record trough was a relaxing experience, and I do not doubt it merits, though I'm little uncertain if it offers anything totally groudbreaking.

Can’t say as I’ve heard too many prog bands from Hungary; After Crying and Solaris, that’s about it. You and I are nothing like either of those bands though; they’re more of a combination of neo-prog (thanks mostly to guitarist Zsolt Kosztyu who moves between new-age fusion, rock and an aggressive sort of folk effortlessly. At times his guitar work blends into Gergö Szabó’s keyboards for a truly harmonious bed of sound that the rest of the band simply moves along to.

But the real treat here – and anyone reading should note this, is the stunning vocal work of Fanni Völgyessy-Szomor. At times she is simply singing pure pop, albeit with a conviction that would stun wannabes like Britney Spears or Jessica Simpson; but her voice just seems to float above the rest of the music even when the instrumentation flounders into noodling, such as on the overly pretentious “Halálistenségek” (Gods of Death), which unfortunately is the marquee song of the whole record. No matter, she shifts from angelic to a more sophisticated (and Hungarian) Pat Benatar to turn even this tedious track into something worth listening to.

The central theme of ‘Exit’ is death, or more appropriately the transition from the here and now to whatever isn’t here and now. So, death basically. The lyrics range from philosophical to inspirational to hackneyed, but most of them are sung in Hungarian so for the majority of us this doesn’t really matter. The vocals and, to a lesser but still significant extent the guitar, makes this album work anyway.

My only complaint (other than the sometimes flaccid synth work) is that Ms. Völgyessy-Szomor doesn’t sing enough. On the opening track she sets what should be the tone for the entire album with a high and airy vocal track set against a mellow guitar/keyboard buildup. But after that the record starts to wander, and until the first part of the ‘compass’ suite (“Észak” – ‘North’), she mostly takes a back seat to the keyboardist. Unfortunately on this and the subsequent three tracks the music takes on a decidedly rock/lull/rock pattern that doesn’t do either her or Kosztyu justice.

This is a really uneven album at times, and I think the band could have made it much stronger by not trying to make the music quite so accessible, especially given the rather somber theme of most of the songs. In the end I’m left thinking this is a band with a great deal of potential, but lacking in focused inspiration. I’m not sure whatever happened to them but considering this was the last album they released and it was nearly eight years ago, I’d say they aren’t exactly going strong, if they are even still together.

No matter, this is a strong three star effort that could have been four easily had the band focused more on their strengths and not spent time trying to be quite so reaching. Recommended to neo fans except those who don’t favor female vocalists. And for those who don’t, I’d even recommend this record as a strong argument for why you should find a way to get more women singing on your albums. At least ones like Ms. Völgyessy-Szomor.

peace

Nice combo from Hungary. The music is an interesting mix of simple tunes with some more intricated, guitar driven prog pieces. Most of the music is soft and dreamy, but very well done. The guitarrist is very good, obviously influenced by Steve Howe (almost no effects, all comes from his technique). The instrumental parts are more subtle than flashy, not symphonic but very effective, and definitly progressive. Singer Fanni Völgyessy Szomor has a good voice, that gives the group a misleading pop flavour. I did not like the inclusion of the english traditional folk song She Moves Through The Fair (here titled Wedding Day), but it is just a matter of taste, since I never liked any version of this tune. The remaining tracks, though, are quite good.

If you´re looking for something soothing, melodic, and yet not simplistic, with some very good arrangements, this record is recommended.

I rate this album as an essential masterpiece addition to every true prog audiophile's catalog. This is despite the fact that it will never have distribution in the millions like other prog masterpieces that may come to your mind to compare my rating against.

Nonetheless, this album is extremely unique and very very very well put together. It is in itself a work that has no direct comparison.

This band is from Hungary, and the vocals are Hungarian.

The album's songs are themed along the balance of life and death.

This album really stands out in my vast collection as something that is ecstatically enjoyable to listen to over and over. It's complex and serious with an alluring sensuality throughout.

Buy it and spin it, if you're a true prog audiophile, then I guarantee that you'll love it.

Michelle

P.S. Thanks John Rhoda for this great 2002 xmas cd present.

"You And I" 's debut CD is mostly light progressive rock mixing commercial influences. My only complaint here is with the use of a drum-machine rather than a real drummer. The female vocals, both in English and Hungarian, are excellent. Their guitarist is also quite good. This album would be enjoyed by those who also enjoy Trevor Rabin-led YES and late-70s GENESIS.