ARTIFICIAL

New formula adopted by many bands.

From Peter Gabriel, Rush to Sylvan, bands like more and more the approach of 20-80% prog- rock approach. There'a no long synth solos or time breaks; they focus more on catchy vocals and du jour guitars. There you are with this album in your hands.

I've prefered more digging in the song structure, frankly. It's not bad, it's just a-n-o-t-h-e-r band delivering an album that's been made before. I've seen worse, but this style of music is soooo easy to listen, much like the Roll the Bones album of Rush. Some parts kinda grab my attention, they are varied (nice orchestration and an actual keyboard drive!) but too few unfortunately.

Unitopia is serious band with solid instrumentation...just use it! I mean, how much slow-dancing-Hall-&-Oates saxophone can you take (biggest sigh ever)?

I think that Jonathan (Menswear) described it well. There is truly some kind of "copying" (nothing so visible though). However, this album is better, like for

4(-) I suppose. Artificial Life, song about disillusioned state of mind by today's world, Beatles (or simply nostalgia) inspired track Nothing Lasts Forever or nice Symphonic arrangements (featured or more songs here by the way) of The Power of 3.

But album continues in a way that I consider good. Story set in these lyrics is touching and sinisterly reminiscenting of a world we're living in. Vocalist sounds less and less like Peter Gabriel (silly presumption, I know). After first two tracks, songs get more melodic and also more "living", like there is some kind of heart involved in process of songwriting (like that it's not artificial at all).

4(+) I suppose.

I bought this album based on the 2010 best albums of the year chart. I had, to be honest, never heard of them before. I'm glad I did.

This is a very satisfying slab of modern progressive rock, and nice to see a band from Australia.

There is all sorts here, including probably the finest Beatles tribute and influenced track I've ever heard in Nothing Lasts Forever, some beautiful melancholy on Reflections, a satisfying epic track Tesla. In fact, my feeling listening to this album is that they draw their music from a wide range of influences, and also have produced an extremely easy album to listen to, which, in my book, is absolutely no drawback at all.

At turns melodic, at turns jazzy, certainly on Rule Of 3's, at others powerful classic rock, with a fine vocal performance from Mark Trueack.

I will certainly be exploring the other works by this band.

One of my pleasant surprises of the year, and rated 3.5 stars, rounded down to a very strong 3 stars for PA purposes, but with the emphasis on good, rather than non-essential.

Well, a modern work of progressive music like this "Artificial", is a little bit controversial, especially as a difficult concept dealing with life, like within the first ten tracks composing the suite, which are not always "organic", being very interesting anyway!! The epic track- "Tesla"- let me think of such a great scientist, who invented the AC-DC voltage, the radio broadcast (not Marconi, as erroneously indicated inside the scientific books) and some other incredible stuff like that!!

But, apart from my regarding above, for me their track "What Kind of World?" is the most personal composition of the present album, thinking of the deep impact with a "double-face" characterizing the controversial human being todays, on our "delicate" environment, especially when such a stupid human kind wants to innovate the world all around!! Well probably it's the same concept as in the 70's track of "Death of Mother Nature Suite" by Kansas, in a modern version, even though the theme by Unitopia doesn't reach the same dramatic tones as in the famous Kansas album, but nevermind...the production in general is very good and the lyrics remarkable as well! I don't know whether the band is better in their jazzy tunes or in their melodic aspects, even though however the work by this interesting Australian band is worth checking out at least, without the echoes of the best world music as well- and perhaps you could add an half star at the end!!

I was mostly disappointed with 2-CD The Garden which would have been much better 40% shorter. Australians are again operating with a wide track length scale in the Flower Kings style, but much more convincingly this time. Artificial suite is over 50 minutes long 10-part epic, and in addition to that, one nearly 10-minute track and two shorter ones. The music shifts between straight pop/rock and symphonic prog, in a way that you probably have heard dozens of times. Nothing new under the sun here, but the result is quite enjoyable. A huge improvement over The Garden anyway.

The suite almost holds my interest all the way; a couple of angrier sections I rather skip. Lyrics I presume to be thoughful in its criticism about modern society - frankly I'm not paying much attention to the lyrics in prog nowadays. The most notable feature is how directly 'Nothing Lasts Forever' sounds like The Beatles, nothing wrong with that of course. There are many highlights to the suite that make an emotional impact.

The three other tracks were all quite good. A solid and entertaining crossover-prog album but not essential. 3½ stars.

Artificial is their third album issued in 2010 is is to me less intresting then their previous album. Even in places the bands keeping the attitude and sound of The Garden album, specially in the longest tune Tesla, the rest are pretty ok and nothing more. Lest lenghtier pieces, only one is above 10 min - Tesla, the rest are all around 5 min or under. A more direct and with to many pretentious moments as on previous album, little more rockier moments but combined with prog elements, Artificial world is an ok piec but nothing excellent about. All in all, wheile the musicinship is ok and the vocal lines also good, the album is a let douwn face The garden, no more catchy instrumental sections. Only 3 stars for Artificial.