MRS. CALIGARI'S LIGHTER

Scottish band BEGGARS OPERA is a band that remains most famous for their first three albums, released at the start of the 1970's. The following years saw their releases steadily decline in interest from the buying public and arguably decline in quality too, until they called it a day with the aptly named "The Final Curtain" in 1986. Just over 20 years later they reappeared however, and since then Beggars Opera has been a highly productive unit. With the release of "Promise in Motion" in 2011 and "Mrs. Caligari's Lighter" in 2012 their later day albums now make up almost half of their total discography.

The 2012 edition of Beggars Opera comes across as a vital unit. A band seeking out new grounds and exploring the use of alternative approaches to the core elements always present in their take on what broadly can be described as symphonic progressive rock with the last two words of that description undeniable. An album well worth checking out by those with a taste for inventive progressive rock that ultimately sticks closer to accessible than challenging in scope, with fair amounts of both included.