VIRGO

JAIME ROSAS is a respectful figure in Chilean prog scene and a long time member of the progressive rock/metal band ''Entrance''.He has also studied psychology to earn his living,but his classical education and love for music led him to follow a career as a musician.''Entrance'' are a very good band and they even played at Baja Prog Festival in 2003,but due to personal differences the band was put on ice for sometime after 2004.These problems led Jaime to compose his first personal work in 2003,named ''Virgo'' and released on Virus Music.

Jaime plays a wide variety of keyboards,starting from his beloved Roland synthesizer and presenting echoes from classical piano,moog synth,Hammond and church organ throughout the listening.You don't need to be a prog specialist to discover that RICK WAKEMAN and KEITH EMERSON are Jaimes' biggest influences.The album starts with a moving 5-min. prelude of Classical orientation filled with Rosas' organ and synth sounds.It is followed by the excellent ''Sinfonia'',a 32-min. suite split in 4 movements with an obvious vintage feeling despite the modern technology used...a grandiose composition balancing between trully bombastic EMERSON-like keyboard parts with complex and dynamic playing and some smoother passages with mainly delicate piano and lots of emotional melodies and sensational harmonies.This is an absolute heaven for all keyboard-freaks out there!The follower ''Lluvia'' is the only track,which features some vocals,handled by Jaime Scalpello,another member of ''Entrance''.This is a keyboard/piano-centered offering with a very emotional vocal performance,a mellow atmosphere and a Classical aura.''Virgo'' closes nicely with another mini-suite,the 12-min. ''Breves piezas rockeras'' (also split in 5 parts),which a very strong track,fully synth-oriented with losts of bombastic keyboard orgasms,unusual solos,good breaks but some decent melodies as well.The end of the album will leave every keyboard-lover wanting for more,as this is really a very balanced work,where melody, complexity, calmness and heaviness are met in equal doses, and not a common example of pure egoism.A must have for fans of RICK WAKEMAN,E.L.P.,CAIRO,TEMPUS FUGIT,BLEZQI ZATSAZ and the likes.