BIOGENESIS PROJECT

On this CD the Japanese progrock trio Ars Nova delivers a SF concept: it's 2301 and the earth is overcrowded, without nature, the ozone-layer has disappeared and an artificial sun is shining, a kind of Greenpeace doom-scenario! The story is written by Numero Ueno, the #1 Japanese proghead and deals about a fanatical nature organisation, space ships, robots, several ideologies and the deep-rooted evil in mankind. On this CD Ars Nova is supported by an impressive range of progrock artists: members from PFM, Goblin and Il Balletto Di Bronzo, the rhytm-section from Gerard and, I proudly presents, the Dutch genius Arjen Lucassen (the brainchild behind Ayreon). The music is in the tradition of the Japanese bombastic keyboard approach: dazzling synthesizer flights, virtuosic keyboard (inter)play and heavy floods of Mellotron and Hammond organ. In between there's frequently Arjen's fiery, very distinctive guitarsound. A strong contribution is from violin player Lucio Fabbri (PFM), he sounds like Jean-Luc Ponty at his best but the vocals are also OK featuring female singer Mika and ex-Leviathan vocalist Alex Brunori. At some moments the vocals sound a bit too theatrical and the compositions a bit fragmentic, in my opinion this CD would have gained at least one more star if Arjen Lucassen would have lived in Japan because of his compositional and producing skills. BUT IN GENERAL THIS IS A GOOD AND ENTERTAINING PROGROCK CD!