TALES FROM THE BOOKCASE

UK band RED BAZAR was formed back in 2007 by Paul Comerie, Andy Wilson and Mick Wilson. The outfit released two studio albums and one EP as an instrumental trio, but by 2013 the more frequent use of keyboards in their material led to the addition of keyboardist Gary Marsh towards the end of that year, and then collaborative work with composer and vocalist Peter Jones eventually led to him becoming a part of the band as well. "Tales from the Bookcase" is the first album by Red Bazar as a five-man strong unit, and was released by the UK label White Knight Records in the spring of 2016.

One might describe Red Bazar as of 2016 as heavy progressive rock or neo progressive rock, both of which would fit equally well, I guess, but some of the core recurring elements used throughout the album make me consider that the latter is the most appropriate. As long as you can stomach a neo progressive band that plays around with dark, hard guitar riffs at times, this is an album that is worth checking out though, and then especially due to the lead vocals by Peter Jones and how well they fit into the musical universe explored by Red Bazar at this point. While not a match made in heaven just yet, Red Bazar with its current line-up comes across as a band that has the potential to become a big fish in the relatively small progressive rock lake. "Tales from the Bookcase" is a very well made album that deserves recognition and commercial success.