EDITH

With ''Ice'' not much has changed regarding Edith's style, which remains a pretty safe and lyrical Neo Prog, close to MARILLION's sound circa ''Clutching at straws'', but lacking the depth and inner power of the Scottish band.Most of the tracks are long, 7 minutes or longer, but do not expect any instrumental diversity.All pieces are based on atmospheric passages with plenty of vocals, but the thin keyboards and soft piano lines next to the otherwise smooth guitar plays bury the attempts of the band to come up with something trully interesting.Additionally memorable melodies are also absent and the only thing really shining through is Gulisano's emotional singing, very much in a STEVE HOGARTH style.To say the thruth the first half of the album is rather forgettable with mediocre material and downtempo arrangements, extremely led by lyrical moments and lacking instrumental power.Fortunately the second half contains some good moments, like the tracks ''Life'' and ''Dimmer'' with their nice choruses and the interesting melodious textures, although even them are too calm to completely catch the listener's attention.

To my ears Edith were always a band hidden behind secure and non-risky material, stepping on MARILLION grounds, but without having the talent of their main influence.''Ice'' is material written exclusively for Neo Prog buffs.End of story...2.5 stars.

Also this album's title is well chosen because this one is dreamy at many points as well. But the vocals make a pretty big difference. They are far from awful but don't really add an extra beauty to this very nice album. And another similarity with Edhels' pinnacle is the high melodic standard of the music. This is another very fine neo progressive effort that found it's way to my collection.

Some will be put off a bit by the Italian accent of the vocalists (who sing in English) and in the end it's one of the reasons I will not give it a very high score ultimately. It just doesn't reach the very high level of it's twin brother Still Dream. I gave that one four stars and will have to leave this one at three but it's rounded down (3,4) and yet recommended for neo fans.

"dreams" is a very stylish and accessible album of elegant jazzy pop neo-prog music with just a tad of punchy attitude. It sometimes seems too conventional to be a part of a progressive music collection but the more you listen the less you will care. It's very pleasant ear candy combining the catchiness of The Police with the sound of Joni Mitchell's instrumentations during her late 70s and 80s jazzy period. The players are very talented but for the most part everyone is committed to the overall sound rather than flashy solos.

The songs are conventionally structured with lots of vocals, refined playing, and tasteful arrangements. The guitar sound is mostly clean electric with occasional acoustic use. The percussion is nuanced and nimble. The lyrics concern mostly matters of the heart and on the back of the album they even thank their girlfriends for their patience at the rehearsals and add "What a great thing is love!" True enough. The final track "Dreamland" is a sophisticated instrumental with layers of lovely keyboards, electronics and bass.

The cover is a delectably classy painting by Tonino Romano that was an absolutely perfect choice for the music contained within. The booklet includes lyrics printed in English and Italian with nice color photos of the boys. Vocals are sung in English. Recommended to anyone looking for some high-end addictive pop music with smooth jazz styling. It's certainly not what I expected from the "neo-prog" genre but I ended up liking it anyway.