THE LONG PATHWAY

DORACOR are nothing else than a progressive rock concept guided by multi- instrumentalist Corrado Sardella,who invites musicians to help him out on his compositions.Sardella is cited in Rome,where in April 97' he recorded and mixed his debut album ''The long pathway'',his only work up today,which carries an English title.The album was released on Mellow Records the same year.

STYLE: Being entirely instrumental,this effort follows the paths of grandiose Symphonic Rock with plenty of keyboards and additional support by the other instruments.Every song offers double keys attacks,partly in melodic lines,partly delivering complex and bombastic musicianship.The compositions are well-crafted ranging from impressive symph passages to darker and mellower moments.Guitars aren't used often and when they are,they are a bit low in the mix.The general style ends up to be in a Neo/Symphonic mood.

INFLUENCES/SOUNDS LIKE: The mass of twists and breaks are definitely of the E.L.P. school of prog,but the bands that come straight to mind are an instrumental version of IQ and ARENA,especially CLIVE NOLAN's influence is more than obvious throughout the listening.

PLUS: A musician with incredible talent,Sardella amazes with his compositional skills and great virtuosic playing.He also uses a variety of keys to give the songs some alternating possibilities.Most of the album is quite melodic and he manages to deliver a good memorable dose of them.A good first step in the fields of symphonic-oriented progressive music.

MINUS: Too-much keyboard-based ''The long pathway'' lacks in different moods and ends up to be quite monotonous after a few listenings,with the tracks being quite similar.The rhythm section seems to be a little buried in the mix,while the sound of drums is too plastic.The presence of a vocalist propably would save the album from falling down.

WILL APPEAL TO: Obviously fans of Symphonic Rock with a love to endless keyboard sounds and even fans of electronic prog...for all the others,I would recommend trying some samples first.

CONCLUSION/RATING: A solid 3 star rating for nice album overall by a very talented musician,which fails to impress due to the lack of different moods.A big disease for all the one-man bands.However still the album comes recommended by my side.