SURRENDER

There must be something in the water in Southern Switzerland (the Italian speaking part) , home to prog stalwarts Clepsydra, Shakary and Zenit, the last 2 offshoots of the first. Headquartered out of Ascona (a lovely little town on the lake) , Locarno (even lovelier) and Lugano (the loveliest), the scenic alpine/palm tree panoramas are conducive to some great prog. Musicianship was never an issue, as Clepsydra's Lele Hoffmann and replacement Marco Cerulli are first rate guitarists, only the vocals were a tad troublesome , Italians just can't sing in English, the accent is too heavy, so stick to the native tongue or Latin (like Alberto Piras of Deus Ex Machina). Ivo Bernasconi (not to be confused with Silvio Berlusconi, the ex-PM/Duce of Italy) knows how to "Banks" , as his style is very reminiscent of the Genesis master. The guitar parts are also worthy of mention, slippery, effect-laden and expressive. Andy Thommen, leader, bassist and ex-Clepsydra, is a dexterous 4 string manipulator who keeps things alert and interesting. Most neo drummers are rather dull time keepers but this one is slicker than most. The vocals are way better than most because the singer outgabriels Peter Gabriel , a bit like a less frantic Simone Rossetti of the Watch. Where there is room for criticism is the disproportion of quality between the epic, 10 minute plus tracks that are first-rate and the rather sipid shorter tracks. Now, size and length don't matter (we are talking compositions, ladies!!!) because prog can deliver the goods in short or extended form with often stupendous results. The title track, the exuberent "Yin & Yang" and "news1c" are three top notch prog roller coaster rides of the finest caliber, with all the usual ingredients: twists & turns, passion and expectation , led by the inventive bass lines of our head cheese. This is a band worthy of keeping tabs on because their next opus mat contain 6 x 10 minute compositions which just may elevate them to the prog Zenith. Definitely worth recommending. 4.5 alpine sunsets