STELLAR GARDENER

The only previous reviewer this far who didn't give a full rating for this album wrote that "the problem lies in constant release of the new material which don't sound new or enthusiastic. The compositions are done in the same manner, like he is copying himself". I have very similar feelings, sad to say. First off, Marshmallow Moondust (released in autumn 2020) charmed me very deeply. Probably it still does; frankly I would still prefer seeing IT as the latest one. In addition, during 2020 came out TWO albums of Kalugin's primary band KARFAGEN (Birds of Passage also containing two roughly 20-minute suites). Any great album, and especially if it's progressive rock, deserves some time to stay close to your heart and become more familiar (like a lover does) after the honeymoon period, if it was love at first hearing. If new, more or less similar albums keep coming up, the inflation factor is bound to follow. Developing a natural craving for more in the same vein takes time, at least for me.

How big an impression this album would have made on me, had it been in the place of Marshmallow Moondust? Of course that's something I can never truly know, but very likely much, much bigger than it has now done since last Monday when I received the cd. I really can't (at least not yet) evaluate objectively if this album is, in my honest opinion, less succesful than Marshmallow Moondust, or if it's equally excellent -- or perhaps even better like some reviewers say. I only know that the similar absolute charm I experienced last autumn was mostly absent this time. Instead I felt here and there during both 'Stellar" (20:04) and 'Gardener' (20:53) that the epic pieces are slightly forced, constantly going forward ambitiously just for the sake of it. "Prog by numbers".

Antony Kalugin, primarily a keyboard wizard, plays again everything by himself, and he certainly does it wonderfully. A full four-piece band would have every reason to be proud of this music. The mellow, CAMEL- reminding soaring melodies are there as well as the Wakemanesque/Emersonian rollercoaster ride led by keyboards, ie. the whole classic symphonic prog soundscape familiar from artists such as [Hackett-era] Genesis, Camel, ELP, Yes, Rick Wakeman... and later adopted in a more or less retro manner by numerous major prog bands or instrumental artists such as WILLOWGLASS (to whom I gladly compare Kalugin). Some moments are wonderous indeed, but the pompous ride forwards leaves relatively little room to cherish the emotional impressions.

Unlike Marshmallow Moondust, the cd of Stellar Gardener has bonus tracks. I had a wish that they, being relatively short, would expand the listening experience to the "less is more" elegance in opposition to the rollercoaster epic approach (think of the Karfagen album Echoes from Within Dragon Island, another of my favourites), but to my disappointment this is not exactly the case. 'Stellar Castle' and 'Stellar Garden' basically just throw you back into the epics you just left. The same breathtaking rollercoaster ride is there, instead of focussing on one specific direction.

The two-minute 'Stellar Heart' finally offers the calm oasis I was craving for. It's a very peaceful and mellow little piece mainly for keyboards and acoustic guitar, reminiscent at first of ANTHONY PHILLIPS and on the latter minute adding a (software-based) violin sound.

So, it's no five stars from me this time. Nevertheless, this is an excellently produced, composed and played piece of epic instrumental symphonic prog. Perhaps it's trying a bit too hard to be that as much as possible, sticking to the familiar approach. How about trying something different next time?