ZANTEA CHRONICLES: THE DREAM DOMINATOR

The finest export from Greece since the Elgin Marbles first rolled up onto British shores at the turn of the 19th century - for which the Greeks have never quite forgiven us. Forbidden Myth is the brainchild of Antonis Adelfidis - Greece's answer to Rick Wakeman - ably assisted by multi-instrumentalist George Katsanos, playing together on just about every keyboard instrument they could lay their hands on, and with a cast list of supporting players almost as long as Ben Hur. It's also worth mentioning that Katsanos is a mighty fine singer too. This is the greatest partnership since Burton & Taylor, Bogey & Bacall, or Marks & Spencer. There's an old saying that you should beware of Greeks bearing gifts, but when those same Greeks come bearing gifts of prog albums, then you should welcome them with open arms and with love and kisses too. In the vast pantheon of prog, Adelfidis & Katsanos joins that long list of Greek heroes including, Theseus, Perseus, Odysseus, Vangelis, Roussos & Sideras. Okay, so the first three Greek heroes never formed a prog band as far as I'm aware, but the last three names were all in the same band. You won't find an Achilles Heel in the astounding sounds and amazing music of Forbidden Myth though, as this stunning album is a pure 100% masterpiece from beginning to end. In fact, you won't have heard such masterful keyboard wizardry as this since caped crusader Rick Wakeman first stunned us all with his acclaimed Myths & Legends album. Forbidden Myth target the listener with rip-roaring power chords with the unerring accuracy of a laser-guided Paveway missile. Zantea Chronicles: The Dream Dominator is the towering Acropolis on the Mount in terms of epic prog albums, which even surpasses all of Ayreon's magnificent masterworks. You'll find Forbidden Myth listed under Heavy Prog on ProgArchives, although they almost found their way into the Progressive Metal category, which really wouldn't have done them justice. After all, Zantea Chronicles is far better than any album I've ever heard by Dream Theater, although I can now hear howls of derision coming from DT fans. It's truly an epic album too, running at over 100 minutes long, in the true tradition of Ayreon's epic productions, making it excellent value for money. If you have the good fortune to buy this fine album, then it'll be the best 4,000 drachmas you ever spent. In the vast progosphere, Forbidden Myth are as good as it gets and Zantea Chronicles joins some of the finest European prog albums from Holland, Italy and Germany. And so, for any German prog fans out there, "Das ist Verboten Mythos. Danke schoen und gute nacht."