BLOMLJUD

So this will be my first review on this site. And I think it is only logical to begin writing reviews with the album that brought me closer (from the classical and jazz environment) to the progressive rock/metal genre.

Little disclaimer: I may be influenced by personal experiences while I review "Blomljud" as this was one of the albums that my father (a prog fan since the early times; I'm speaking of Genesis, Yes, Marillion,...) used to listen to in the car over and over again.

Enough stories. Let us now dive into the fairy tale called "Blomljud" by the Swedish Symphonic Prog band Moon Safari! The production starts off with a beautiful A Cappella intro where Moon Safari show what they can musically achieve with their voices alone: sheer magic!

From this point onwards, there is no stopping me from listening to the whole album. One is instantly "trapped" in this everlasting beam of pure happiness. Moon Safari is capable of producing music that has this ubiquitous upbeat musical character that I really enjoy listening to. Some works are songs, some are epics, but even the longest tracks like "Other Half of the Sky" just feel like being one (big) part of a musical path you are lucky to cross.

After rediscovering Moon Safari and a few months time to digest it, I was able to dive deeper into Prog: Haken, IQ, Dream Theater, Opeth, Yes, Genesis, Karfagen, TNNE and many more followed. But this album was one of the foundation bricks to my personal and musical development. This and its brilliant music award it the 5-star rating in my eyes!