THIRD EYE LIGHT

Of all Eris Pluvia /Ancient Veil releases, this 2010 effort by Eris Pluvia is my personal favorite, no doubt about it on my regard; "Third Eye Light" really demonstrates the sort of beauty that can be achieved when the natural calmness of pastoral-friendly old-fashioned prog rock meets fluidly and naturally with a sense of modernizing energy in terms of writing and arranging. This Eris Pluvia that came to be after the first line-up's crisis can be proud of itself as the one that capitalized the band's artistic ethos. Romantic symphonic prog with a heavy emphasis on evocative moods, this is what Eris pluvial is all about. The presence of guest flautist Roberta Piras is an excellent asset in the achievement of this musical vision. The namesake track opens up the album with a full display of lyrical magic that clearly hints at heritages from Celeste and PFM, as well as "WYWH"-era Pink Floyd and 90s Camel: it's 6 ½ minutes of symphonic beauty. This combination of relaxed tempos and impetuous musicality is successfully reiterated in track 2, 'Rain Street 19', which eventually serves as the opening of doors to the inclusion of more aggressive strategies in some portions of track no. 3, 'The Darkness Gleams', as well as spacey synth layers that punctuate the basic melodic lines: it is at this point that Eris Pluvia becomes more patently modern, somewhat related to the neo-prog standards of Quidam and Satellite. Another noticeably neo-oriented song is 'Fixed Course', that could easily have been included in any of Pendragon's later albums or a Satellite album had the Hand of Progressive Fate changed the history of music just a little bit? well, it's an Eris Pluvia song and that's all to it. Between the two stands 'Someone Care For Us', which brings a moment of calm, reflective ambience that sounds like a mixture of Celeste and Aries. 'Peggy' is a solid return to the pastoral prog atmospheres that had dominated the first two tracks: guest vocalist Diana Dallera shines here, so enhancing the composition's inherent beauty. The instrumental 'Shades' is the album's highlight: this is where the progressive nature of Eris Pluvia's music meets its highest peaks of sonic magnificence and elegant complexity: the links between motifs and the interactions among musicians are just impeccable. Next track is 'Fellow Of Trip', a candid-natured song that stands halfway between the moderated vitality of 'The Darkness Gleams' and the engaging simplicity of 'Rain Street 19'. The album's last 4 ½ minutes are filled by the beautiful serenade 'Sing The Sound Of My Fears', which incarnates a fulfilling expression of the band's romantic approach to the tradition of symphonic prog. While not a totally essential album in my book, I gladly admit "Third Eye Light" is an undisputed lovely album that honors the continuing presence of Italy as a major voice in the past and the present of progressive music. 3.40 stars or this one.