CINEMA

1. "Opening Credits" [0:58] an organ intro (4.375/5)

2. "Return to..." [6:30] a song that reverently conjures up feelings of familiarity with bands like classic 1970s URIAH HEEP (especially with the predominant presence of a KEN HENSLEY / KEITH EMERSON-like Hammond organ), but I am most reminded of (especially in the rollicking final two minutes) the song "One Fine Morning" from the Canadian band LIGHTHOUSE (Juno Award winner as "Best Band in Canada" for the years 1972, 1973, and 1974): the musical palette, the melodies and chords, and especially due to the singing voice of Marc Illa. My favorite song on the album. (8.875/10)

3. "Spyglass" [8:16] acoustic guitars pick and weave, strum and support Marc Illa's in a STYX-like way. The entrance of the Hammond's arpeggiated chords at the 90-second mark brings in an ELP-like feel. I really like Marc's vocals: they feel relaxed and easy going and yet are quite fitting to the music. At the end of the fourth minute the instrumentalists launch into a little exposition of odd-time syncopation, but Marc is fairly quick to return, forcing the band to smooth out their flow a bit. Too bad: I was really wanting to see where the band would take that more complex instrumental passage. At the end of the fifth minute it appears as if the band has heard my wishes as the next instrumental passage sees them returning to the syncopation, here supporting some nice soloing from a synth. When the music smooths out in the eighth minute with strumming acoustic guitars and Marc's laid back finale. Interesting and kind of a weird let down. Still, a top three song for me. (17.5/20)

4. "Tangent" [8:38] opens like a prog étude: a practice/warmup for some real complicated, tempo-shifting stuff. After two minutes the music smooths out and vocalist Marc Illa enters. He has a nice, easy-going, strong and versatile voice. The music improves quite a lot when the chorus sections occur. The guitar and Hammond organ interplay is quite nice (Keyboard player Miquel González channeling a little Keith Emerson as he plays) though the staccato rhythm track beneath gets a little old. At the end of the sixth minute the music calms down as piano takes over as the foundational instrument. Marc rejoins for a bit before the lead guitar takes over for his own little bit. The eighth minute lets the band build from a modest palette to a full-spectrum crescendo. I'm rather surprised at just how little and how subdued Marc Illa's vocal role is in this. My other top three song. (17.5/20)

5. "Dramatis Personae" [1:31] what sounds like a multi-track keyboard flute solo. Pretty and cinematic like the soundtrack to a scene from an old Italian suspense/horror movie. (4.375/5)

6. "Accolade" [20:27] three minutes and fifty seconds of instrumental prog opens this one before we enter into the vocal meat of the song (which is actually not very meaty at all as the instrumental palette goes from full band in full dynamics to complete sparsity for Marc's entry). The vocals, sung in English, are a bit monotonous as Marc uses one melody line to deliver the oddly disjointed yet poetic word salad. The instrumental passages continue to put on display the band's cohesive individual talents with tight performances from all over some definitely proggy music (think Gabriel-Hackett-era GENESIS with a very different singer). In the final two and a half minutes we return to a solo piano-based vocal passage. Marc is not quite as good here as is pianist Miquel González--and the end just kind of leaves me dangling. Not bad but not my favorite song on the album. (35/40)

Total Time: 45:00

Very competent sophisticated prog rock from a young band who will, hopefully, continue to work on their great compositions so that a little more of the individual instrumentalists will be able to "show off" a bit. Also, though I appreciate and benefit from the singing being done in English, I'd like it if the LA COSCIENZO DI ZENO/Alessio Calandriello vocals were worded a bit more accessibly.

B/four stars; an excellent debut of nostalgic prog rock that most prog lovers are going to be quite attached to.

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