OF THINGS THAT NEVER WERE

1. "L'Impasse Sainte Bérégonne" (4:26) pompous and jagged, this is a prog song with avant-jazz leanings. (8.75/10)

2. "Shelieth" (8:28) coming across like a Canterbury style song--though more in the SETNA style--here is a song that soothes in an old 1970s smooth jazz-rock fusion kind of way. Jazz electric guitar takes the lead over the first three minutes before relinquishing it to a spacey synth in the fourth and a nose-flute-like synth in the fifth. Despite the overall Canterbury feel that the underlying Fender Rhodes gives this, there are instances in which I'm reminded of other bands like Focus and Styx and Camel--this latter especially in the searing "Rhyader"-like guitar solo of the seventh minute. Nice song! (18.75/20)

3. "Ladybird on a Moebius Strip" (1:47) electrified acoustic guitar being picked while flutes play over the top. Very pretty. Again, kind of CAMEL-esque. (4.5/5)

4. "The Pear-Shaped Man" (5:16) pensive foundation to this before accented English voice enters and sings about the pear-shaped man. A cross between Camel and Focus that entertains but will not get many rotations into my playlists despite its nice instrumental third minute. (8.5/10)

5. "Dawn Angel" (2:03) acoustic guitar and electrified acoustic guitar weave a nice little English-sounding folk tune with their interlaced picking. Nice though nothing extraordinary. (4.25/5)

6. "Pirates in Pingaree" (7:43) more instrumental symphonic music sounding very much like CAMEL and FOCUS--sounds and shifting motifs quite like both bands. There's even a little JTULL and KCRIMSON in there. (13/15)

7. "The Magi" (1:43) electrified acoustic guitar and flute weaving a little English folk tune together. At 0:45 Sergey Gvozdyukevich enters singing in a bit of a Ian Anderson or Scottish folk singer's lilting voice. Again, I am surprised to be hearing English. (4.25/5)

8. "Soleil Noir" (6:10) gentle four chord progression within which dirty Fender, electrified acoustic guitar, maletted toms and simple bass support Sergey's Gentle Phil Collins-like voice in a very "One for the Vine"-like performance. For the first four minutes, the music is disappointingly simple--again, not unlike the music of half of Wind and Wuthering--but then it gets harsh as Sergey and Co. try a kind of "The Knife"-like breakout of aggression. It kind of works. Still, nice performance by Sergey. (8.5/10)

9. "The Curfew" (7:42) ominous muscal base over which Sergey enters singing in some low Native American-sounding chants. Interesting! This is theatric in a kind of PETER HAMMILL kind of way. At 2:28 there is a shift into a more full-band structure to support Sergey's continued attempts to channel his dead Siberian ancestors. Too bad the music is so simple, otherwise this could be interesting. inNot even the LAtimer/Akkerman lead guitar melody and solo in the fifth minute can save this one (the foundational music established and maintained by the rhythm section is too disco-corny). Okay Hammond solo in the sixth and seventh minutes, nothing special. (13/15)

10. "Return to the Cold Sea of Nothing" (9:50) nice late-1960s bluesy psych rock sound established in the first minute that includes Wurlitzer organ and reed winds. Sergey enters singing in a theatric kind of voice reminiscent of classic prog artists like Eroc! (Grobschnitt), Doroccus (Babylon), Geoff Mann (Twelfth Night), Fish, Dave Cousins, Frank Bournemann, Greg Lake, Ian Anderson, and Peter Gabriel. The music has quite an early GENTLE GIANT feel to it due to the strong presence of the various reeds. (18/20)

11. "Hope" (2:22) another folk song with nice acoustic guitar and flute interplay. Very pretty. (4.5/5)

Total Time 57:30

Boy! AltrOck sure knows how to pick 'em! And the production is always of the very highest quality, which helps. The musicians here are quite proficient performing these fairly sophisticated songs--many of which are quite melodic and engaging.

B+/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of retro sounding symphonic progressive rock music that would be a welcome addition to any prog lover's

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