PEER GYNT IN FAVOUR

It takes quite a lot of abstract imagination to hear Symphonic Prog elements here. This is because Aviva sounds quite different from what most of us are used to call Sympho.

Combination of new elements with strong electronic feeling (but not like synthesized 80s), putting together melodic & disharmonic sounds, Peer Gynt in Favour (continuing pun tradition of naming as last album did, Nutcracker, which had "In Fury") actually shows some interesting interpretations of classical compositions of the original work. It's not electronic-ization of it, it's interpretation. I would say completely new, but it can never be true, so it's as "original" as possible, given the purpose.

Pleasant it is, no problem there. I think that more than Nutcracker, which had some rather disappointing moments. Not that there aren't these, but in general, it flows nicely.

4(-), just don't expect that it will be "normal" Symphonic, OK ? Lowered rating, because I suppose it may take some time to get what people here (some of them at least) call "acquired taste".

The Peer Gynt Suite by Edvard Grieg is a part of mine and my countrymen's DNA profile. In other words; I know it well and I love it. In other words; the music here is so familiar territory that I will automatic compare Aviva's version to other versions. Read: Traditional orchestral versions.

Aviva is threading the same paths as Little Tragedies and Senmuth is walking down. This is not the type of walk in the wild I enjoy. The landscape is cold and desolate, draped in plastic and synthetic material. In short; the sound is anything but organic. And yes, this is a one man band from Russia. A country that has given our world a lot of fantastic big orchestral music and other fantastic art.

My big gripe with this album is the synthetic sound given the exceptional good Peer Gynt Suite. It kills the good in this piece of music. Yes, the Peer Gynt Suite is much molested by bands and keyboards fanatics alike. In particular, In The Hall Of The Mountain King. But Aviva has taken this molestation to another level. There are some good pieces of artistic creativity scattered around this album. But I would mostly say that this album is pretty bad. I also regard this type of music as muzak. That means music for airports and shopping malls. I am not impressed by this album at all.

2 stars

Russian project AVIVA is the creative vehicle for composer and keyboardist Dmitry Lukianenko, and first came to prominence in 2007 with the release of "Rokus Tonalis." Since then a band version of the project named Aviva Omnibus issued "Nutcracker in Fury" in 2008, and then in 2010 the next stand-alone Aviva project appeared in the shape of "Peer Gynt in Favour". As with the other CDs named, this latest venture was handled by the French specialist label Musea Records.

"Peer Gynt in Favour" is a production that appears to be a tribute to the late and great Edvard Grieg first and foremost. Themes and motifs from his Peer Gynt suite are explored in a distinctly electronic setting, ranging from tranquil new age to energetic and close to industrial in scope. Cold and synthetic material, but also vital and refreshing as long as you have a soft spot for electronic music made with a clinical contemporary sound. An estimated target crowd for this CD would be those who enjoy Vangelis just as much as Nine Inch Nails, and I'd guess that those with a soft spot for artists such as Isao Tomita might find this one enticing too.