EXOTIC CREATURES AND A STOLEN DREAM

"AND there is a chance that one day you might write a standard lads, so churn them out quick and fast". Antony Kalugin certainly subscribes to this school of thought. Under his own name, as well as the projects Hoggwash, Karfagin, and Sunchild, he turns out consistently elevated music at an incredible pace. While prog isn't likely to turn out any 'standards', there is always the potential to create a work that will stand apart in his catalogue and be especially memorable. In my opinion, this may be the one for Antony.

Why so? As other reviewers have already stated, it picks up all the influences of symphonic prog that drew most of us to the genre to begin with, great guitar work, fabulous keys, and numerous other supporting instruments. The main tracks are lengthy and full of twists and turns, ups and downs, power and delicateness. While the two main tracks are constantly evolving there is a nice cohesiveness. There is a sense that you pick something new out with each listen which keeps you coming back for another play.

Another item of interest is the cover art which is very nice. For me, the art, if it is engaging, and meaningful (even if open to interpretation), always affects my perception of the music. In addition, this work does not overstay its welcome. It is an old-fashioned album length of about 40 minutes. Absolutely no filler here! Definitely leaves you wanting more, not wondering when it's going to end.

This brings me to my next thought. There has been some question as to the differences between his self-named works, and his other projects. I am not familiar with Hoggwash so won't touch that one, but it seems that the difference of the others as I see it is as follows. His self-named Antony Kalugin works, to me, come across as mostly instrumental, generally very mellow bordering at times on prog ambient and or light prog jazz rock.

Karfagin, which was my initial introduction to Antony's music, namely the "Dragon Island" suite, tends to come across more symphonic but leaning heavily on denser and more prog rock themes with more lyrics, but still sparsely interspersed.

Sunchild, on the other hand, while still symphonic, is definitely more prog rock oriented, even prog pop at times, with a considerably more extensive amount of lyrics. This appeals to me the most as I tend to be more song (with lyrics) oriented and I think this makes albums more accessible to those that may be checking out Antony's work for the first time.

Clearly, many find Antony's singing to be a bit of a weakness, citing a bit of an accent, and perhaps a bit limited range, but personally I like his voice a lot. He has his own sound, not at all unpleasant, and at times sounds a bit (or even a lot) Floydian. And, as has been noted by other reviewers, he shares the vocal duties with others that rounds out the overall sound and emotion of the music quite well.

For anyone not familiar with Antony's works (is this actually possible?) this is a great place to start. As some may say, there may be a certain amount of safety in his work, a certain amount of familiar ideas and themes, but they are spun around and presented in a way that is fresh and never boring. You will hear nice influences from the past and modern embellishments that will be most enjoyable. Give it a spin. You won't be disappointed! So, no new standard here, but one of Antony's best for sure. A solid 4 stars without question.