TNNE: THE CLOCK THAT WENT BACKWARDS

As a huge fan of No Name's last album, "4", I was very interested to hear that 2 key members had formed a new band, TNNE, and released a new album. I guess the easiest way to rate this album is to compare it to the style of No Name. Well, the differences are rather striking.

The one thing that has not changed is the great vocals of Patrick Kiefer. One of the best voices in prog, very distinctive. Moving on, No Name was a band that featured keyboard dominated, majestic and lyrical songs that often exceeded 10 minutes each. Well, almost nothing in that description also describes this new TNNE album. "The Clock That Went Backwards" is much more guitar focused and has all shorter songs and mostly without the extended instrumental passages. There is even a single edit of one track, "Circles of Life" included as the last track on the album. And although still in the realm of neo-prog, there are several catchy verse-chorus combinations that almost have AOR tendencies.

Still, although this album is quite divergent from what No Name used to do, it is still an enjoyable listen, with many memorable melodies and excellent musicianship and production.

Hailing from Luxemburg, THE NO NAME EXPERIENCE was formed in 2012, when Alex Rukavina and Patrick Kiefer, both with a past in the recently disbanded band No Name, decided to collaborate ? initially for one single song, but the project then expanded into a band and album process. "The Clock That Went Backwards" is the debut album of The No Name Experience, and was released through the German label Progressive Promotion Records in 2014.

The No Name Experience is the only Luxemburg band I know that has chosen to explore progressive rock, and their take on the genre is one that has neo progressive written all over it in bold types. If you have a soft spot for Fish-era Marillion and bands of a similar kind, and you do enjoy late 70's Genesis as well, chances are that you'll find "The Clock That Went Backwards" to be a compelling production well worth spending some time with.